740.0011 P.W. (Peace)/3–2047
Subject: Foreign Office Comment on General Mac Arthur’s
Advocacy of Treaty with Japan.
I also enclose a copy of the text of an item which appeared in the March
19, 1947 issue of the Manchester Guardian
(independent) on the subject of General Mac Arthur’s pronouncement.72 There is very good
reason to believe that that item was written after its author had
canvassed the situation at the Foreign Office, and that it correctly
reflects Foreign Office thought on the subject of Japan.
[Enclosure]
Memorandum of Conversation, by the First Secretary
of Embassy in the United Kingdom (Drumright)
confidential
[London,] March 19, 1947.
Subject: Foreign Office Comment on General
MacArthur’s Advocacy of Treaty with Japan.
In the course of an informal conversation this afternoon at the
Foreign Office, Mr. Drumright inquired what views were held in the
Foreign Office on the statement made by General MacArthur to foreign
correspondents at Tokyo on March 17, 1947.
Mr. MacDermot73 said that General MacArthur’s views on the future
of Japan had not come as a surprise to the Foreign Office, since
[Page 451]
about a week prior to his
interview with the press General MacArthur had imparted them in a
general way to Mr. Gascoigne, the chief British diplomatic
representative in Tokyo.
Mr. MacDermot said that the Foreign Office shared General MacArthur’s
views that an early settlement of issues about Japan is desirable.
He went on to say that the Foreign Office is in favor of the
conclusion of a general treaty with Japan, but that before such a
treaty is arranged the Foreign Office considers that a disarmament
and demilitarization treaty along the lines suggested by Mr. Byrnes
in 194674
should be concluded among the interested powers.
Though generally approving of General MacArthur’s statement, Mr.
MacDermot said that the Foreign Office was “piqued” over his remark
that “Japan was still blockaded by the allied powers.” Mr. MacDermot
went on to say that Great Britain was not responsible for the
economic blockade of Japan and had never wanted it. For several
months, as a matter of fact, Britain had been calling for the
opening of Japan to private trade, and he (Mr. MacDermot) was glad
to see that more and more steps were being taken to open Japan to
private trade.
Mr. Drumright inquired whether the Foreign Office had issued or
contemplated issuing a statement in regard to General MacArthur’s
pronouncement. Mr. MacDermot replied that the Foreign Office had not
issued a formal statement but that after consultation the news
department of the Foreign Office had “briefed” certain
correspondents on its thoughts on the matter.
Before closing the conversation, Mr. Drumright referred to the
currecent clamor in Britain for the demobilization of British troops
and asked in this relation whether there might be further withdrawal
of British troops from Japan. While Mr. MacDermot did return a
categorical reply to this question, it appeared from the tenor of
his remarks that the British Government may now have under
consideration the withdrawal of further British contingents from
Japan. In this connection, Mr. MacDermot referred to a recent
pronouncement of the Indian Government on the return of all Indian
troops to India and remarked that this undoubtedly presaged the
recall of Indian troops from Japan.
