740.00119 Council/12–1147: Telegram
The Secretary of State to the Acting Secretary of State
urgent
Martel 62. Personal for Lovett from Marshall. Regarding Douglas (Telmar 58).46
The situation here is exceedingly critical and Douglas is invaluable, practically irreplaceable, in keeping me in team with Bevin and the British and vice versa. He also serves somewhat the same purpose regarding Bidault. We are involved now in very delicate maneuvers against Molotov’s evident purpose to secure agreements of a character which would appear well to the public but would permit most serious frustration of what must be done in Germany in connection with ERP. For example, there is a chance that he will come forward with a very important reparations statement today and we have, especially in view of British successful trade agreement with Russia,47 a feeling of some doubt as to how firm the British will be maintaining the front we have so far been able to present to Molotov’s efforts of infiltration. The issue appears to be whether Douglas will serve a more vital purpose for you than he is serving at the moment for me.
Yesterday he and I considered the possibility of his departure Monday48 next. This morning in view of developments at the conference [Page 765] yesterday and present developments today, we both felt that it would be a very serious matter to him to be absent during these critical developments.
I have stated the situation here; you are aware of the situation there. I do not want to embarrass you by my statements of conditions here. I want you to merely judge the matter as you see it and your decision will be acceptable to me. In the foregoing, I have indicated somewhat the crisis through which we are passing.
It is plainly evident that Molotov is not only playing for time but is consistently, almost desperately, endeavoring to reach agreements which really would be an embarrassment to us in the next four to six months rather than true evidence of getting together. We must be exceedingly careful in what we say and what we do and it is going to be exceedingly difficult to have our actions understood by the American public and the British public if Molotov can possibly arrange it so.
I repeat again please be sure that the President sees the important papers, records of interviews, et cetera, that are going to you from here.
- The reference here is presumably to telegram Telmar 52, December 8, to London, not printed, which dealt with new high-level overseas assignments. Ambassador Douglas’ name had been one of several mentioned (123 Dulles, Allen W.).↩
- The reference here presumably to the agreement between the United Kingdom and the Soviet Union on questions on trade and finance, signed in Moscow on December 27, 1947.↩
- December 15.↩