867.24/5–2748: Telegram
The Acting Secretary of State to the Embassy in Turkey
257. Patsu 97. In considering relation expendable supplies to Turkish military aid program,1 Dept guided by principles stated below. Dept requests your views and invites such restatement as you believe appropriate.
Pattern of military aid to Turkey should not create inference US will continue indefinitely provide military assistance. Therefore US hereafter should except as stated below avoid supplying without reimbursement expendable supplies for which Turkish armed forces have annually recurring peacetime requirements. Principles of aid program accord full recognition to need for well balanced preparation of Turkish armed forces to meet a war emergency, but emphasize creation, without commitment as to continuing support, of effective military machine. These principles presume furnishing of initial minimum expendable supplies (a) for purpose training Turkish forces in use of [Page 98] US equipment and (b) to meet first onslaught of an invasion, all subject, of course, to availability of funds and intra-program priorities. In view limited provision of funds for military aid to Turkey, application of these principles should accord priority to those expendables such as ammunition and spare parts, that are required for use with US equipment being provided in air program. After that, these principles should be applied to such equipment as German ordnance held by Turkish Forces so far as ammunition is available from captured stocks in possession of US forces. Similar case in point would be lend-lease retransfers from UK inventories of spare parts for British type equipment.
This provision of expendables for dual purpose of immediate training and ultimate emergency leaves an obvious gap of intervening requirements of expendables which Turk Govt cannot ignore and which should be met by Turkish Govt at own expense.
Adherence to this policy, to extent possible without defeating objectives of US policy with respect to Turkey, may avoid embarrassment in a future year when it may become consonant with US interests to reduce or terminate military aid to Turkey.
This policy places annual peacetime requirements of expendables on same financial footing with other necessary measures of Turk preparedness that cannot be met out of Amer aid funds but must be undertaken by Turk Govt on its own responsibility.
- Telegram 257 was sent, presumably, in reply to telegram 330, Ustap 110, April 21, 5 p. m., in which Ambassador Wilson transmitted the request of the Turkish Foreign Minister for the United States to provide uniforms and shoes for part of the Turkish Army (867.256/4–2148).↩