Foreign Relations of the United States, 1948, The Near East, South Asia, and Africa, Volume V, Part 2

501.BB Palestine/12–3048

Memorandum of Conversation, by the Acting Secretary of State¹

top secret

[Washington,] December 30, 1948.

Participants:	The Acting Secretary, Mr. Lovett
	The British Ambassador, Sir Oliver Franks
	The British Minister, Mr. Hoyer Millar
	Mr. Satterthwaite—NEA
	Mr. McClintock—UNA

The British Ambassador called, under instructions to leave a Note Verbale with the Acting Secretary of State with reference to the existing hostilities in Palestine. A copy of this document is attached. Sir Oliver Franks read, from a telegram just received by his Embassy, reports from the British Ambassador in Cairo to the effect that an Israeli column had bifurcated in the vicinity of Beersheba and that attacks were being made by Israeli forces across the Egyptian frontier from the south and southeast on a line from Rafah extending fifteen kilometers in the direction of El Arish. One Egyptian airstrip on Egyptian territory had been taken by the Israeli forces. Egyptian Spitfires had landed out of gas on British airfields in the Canal zones, thus implying that advanced Egyptian airfields were no longer operable.

When asked whether, if the treaty of 1936 were invoked, it would be invoked by the British Government or by the Egyptian Government, particularly in light of the fact that the latter government had recently shown its dissatisfaction with that treaty, the British Ambassador said that he could give no straight answer. He emphasized that his information on the military situation was preliminary but that, according to the evidence now at hand, it seemed highly probable that Israeli forces had crossed the Egyptian frontier and that in consequence a most serious situation had arisen. He spoke of the strategic interests of the United States and the United Kingdom in this area and, from the broader political point of view, the troubles which could ensue to both governments if the present threatening situation were allowed to continue.

I said that we agreed that the situation, if the facts were as represented, was a serious one and that we were ready to do our best to compose it. I said the President had been informed yesterday of the most recent information and that I would discuss the Ambassador’s Note Verbale with the President at 12:30 today.² I thought, offhand, that it might be useful for the President to instruct our Representative at Tel Aviv to make immediate representations to the Provisional Government of Israel.

As for the final paragraph of the Note Verbale, I could not but say frankly that if the British Government decided to resume the shipment of arms to the Arab countries this would be regarded as a clear violation of the Security Council’s arms embargo. It would inevitably result in a demand in this country for the lifting of our own arms embargo which, as the Ambassador knew, had been imposed by us unilaterally even before the Security Council took action. Such a development would, of course, be highly unfortunate.

Mr. McClintock suggested to the Ambassador that there was a seeming inconsistency between the first and final paragraphs of the Note Verbale. The concluding sentence of the first paragraph reads “If the Security Council is thus flouted the United Nations will cease to be an effective force”, yet the final sentence of the fourth paragraph clearly indicates that the British Government intends to resume shipping arms to the Arab countries, thus itself flouting the United Nations.

Sir Oliver Franks at this point said that he had been given permission, but only in terms of “utmost discretion”, to inform the Acting Secretary that a telegram had been received from the British Representative in Amman, stating that King Abdullah had received a message from the Jews (presumably the Provisional Government of Israel) that the time for negotiations for an armistice had passed. The Jews were interested now only in negotiating peace. If it was not to be peace, it would be war. Sir Oliver inferred that it was on the basis of this threatening information that his government had drafted the final paragraph of the Note Verbale. The British Ambassador was asked his opinion whether his Government would carry out the intended action described in Paragraph 4, if through the cooperation of the United States it proved possible to meet the suggestions made in Paragraph 3, with the result that the forces of Israel would withdraw from Egyptian territory immediately. Sir Oliver said that he was speaking only for himself but he thought it possible that his government would not proceed to arm the other Arab countries if indeed it was possible to restrain the Israelis from their present attack on Egypt and to get their forces back across the border.

Sir Oliver reverted to his telephone conversation with me³ in which he had requested an interview with the President. I said that the President was giving no outside appointments this week as he was engaged on the State of the Union Message. Sir Oliver asked if I would present his case to the President and I said I would at once give him the British Note Verbale and report our interview. At the Ambassador’s request I promised to ask the President to accord him an interview at the earliest possible moment.

[Annex]

Note Verbale by the British Embassy

All the evidence in possession of the British Government points to the fact that, notwithstanding the truce and the resolutions passed by the United Nations, Israeli forces are fighting on Egyptian territory, where they are in possession of airfields. They have declined the use of United Nations observers and officials and it seems that United Nations, upon which the United States and Britain had both pledged their action, are being deliberately and totally ignored. If the Security Council is thus flouted the United Nations will cease to be an effective force.

2. The British Government regard the situation with grave concern. Unless the Jews withdraw from Egyptian territory the British Government will be bound to take steps to fulfil their obligations under their treaty of 1936 with Egypt. There may arise out of this situation the gravest possible consequences, not only to Anglo-American strategic interests in the Near East, but also to American relations with Britain and Western Europe.

3. The British Government have no desire to get into conflict with the Jews provided the latter accept the decisions of the Security Council of the United Nations and act upon them. They still trust that wiser counsels among the Jews will prevail. They trust that it will be possible for the United States Government so to act upon the Jews as to make any military action by British forces on Egyptian territory unnecessary under our treaty with Egypt. This can only be ensured if the Jews immediately withdraw from Egyptian territory.

4. Meanwhile, the British Government feel bound to take the necessary steps to protect their own troops and installations in Transjordan. The British Government agreed not to supply any arms to the Arab countries provided the truce was observed, and they understood that the United States Government were agreeable that Chapter VII of the United Nations Charter should be applied to either party which did not observe the truce. On that basis, the British Government have carried out their obligations to the absolute letter. They have refrained from moving arms and equipment even to their own installations, thereby endangering their own troops in order to assist a settlement. In view of the very serious danger the British Government must now proceed to move equipment into Transjordan. Moreover, in view of the aggressive use to which the Jews have put arms obtained from Russian satellite countries, the British Government will find themselves in a position in which they are no longer able to refuse to carry out British contracts to the Arab countries.

Washington , 30th December, 1948.

1. Drafted by Mr. McClintock.
2. President Truman read this note at 12:45 p. m., December 30.
3. The editors have found no record of this conversation in the Department of State files.