856E.01/4–1747

Memorandum of Conversation, by the Secretary of State

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The Dutch Ambassador called on me at noon today and left at 1:15. The subject of his discussion was the view of the Dutch Government that “Up till now there is little indication of a common policy of the Great Western Powers towards China, Japan and India. This is even more fatal where it concerns the weak Asiatic countries such as Ceylon, Burma, Malaya, Siam, Indo-China, the Netherlands Indies and the Philippines.”

The attached paper is a concise statement of the views expressed by him on the general subject.54

When questioned concerning the possible formalization of procedure in the matter, he presented no definite proposition, stating that the Dutch Government first wished to get my personal reaction on the general proposition. When questioned regarding specific procedure of such cooperation, he was lead into a discussion of the economic factors which included a statement by him to the effect that it was desired that the various business enterprises upon which the prosperity of the Far East and these small countries in particular depended, should be secured against disruption and against gradual deterioration through the inability of the natives themselves to operate and maintain them. I understood him to mean specifically that the Netherlands Government had in mind a procedure between the democratic governments immediately concerned which would protect these business enterprises, I presume largely foreign if not entirely foreign owned, against the disorganization and deterioration which it was felt would inevitably follow, if, for example, these businesses were nationalized or ex-appropriated [expropriated] and taken over by native technical management.

The Ambassador also discussed the necessity of agreed interchange of goods which would give a balanced economy and prosperity to the regions concerned.

I told the Ambassador that as far as I was concerned personally, and I was reasonably certain that it was the view of my Government, that we regarded some degree of cooperation among the democratic powers concerned in the Far East was necessary, both for the peace and prosperty of that region and also to offset the subversive activities which were in progress and which could easily excite destructive reactions. Other than that, I could not commit myself and that even that statement had no implication of agreement to the necessity for formalizing the procedure.

  1. Not printed, but see memorandum of April 17, p. 917.