761.56/11–2450
The Chargé of the Soviet Union (Bazykin) to the Under Secretary of State (Webb)
[Translation]
Sir: With reference to the notes of the United States Government of June 15, 1950, concerning settlement of Lend Lease accounts, which [Page 1320] notes were in reply to the Soviet Government’s notes of September 30, 1949, I have the honor to communicate the following on instructions from the Government of the USSR.
(1) The Government of the USSR, as has been stated previously, desires the earliest possible agreement with the United States Government concerning a full and final settlement of Lend Lease accounts and has sent its representatives to Washington repeatedly to hold negotiations with representatives of the United States. Precisely because it is guided by a desire to reach agreement, the Soviet Government in the course of discussion made substantial concessions and put forward a series of constructive proposals creating the possibility of a successful conclusion of the negotiations for the settlement of Lend Lease accounts. The Soviet Government, therefore, rejects as devoid of all foundation the attempts of the United States Government to cast doubt on the seriousness of the Soviet Government’s intentions to achieve a rapid and mutually satisfactory general settlement of Lend Lease accounts.
The Soviet Government’s proposals concerning the fixing of an overall sum of reimbursement in the amount of $200,000,000 and concerning the conditions for the payment of this sum, contained in the USSR Government’s notes of December 9, 1948 and September 30, 1949, are in close conformity with existing precedents set in the settlement of United States Lend Lease accounts with other countries. Desiring to expedite reaching full agreement, the Soviet Government declares its readiness to increase the over-all amount of compensation to $240,000,000, considering this sum the maximum, inasmuch as this sum will fully conform with existing precedents.
The Government of the USSR expresses its agreement that representatives of the two governments should begin negotiations in Washington for the purpose of reaching final agreement on all related questions. The Soviet representatives will be prepared to commence such negotiations on December 20 of this year, if this date is acceptable to the Government of the United States.
(2) Desiring to settle fully the question of the naval vessels received by the Soviet Union under Lend Lease, the Government of the USSR agrees to the resumption of talks by naval experts in Washington, proceeding on the basis that these experts will discuss conditions of the sale of these naval vessels to the Soviet Union, concerning which the United States Government has previously expressed its agreement, The negotiations of the naval experts can be begun simultaneously with the general negotiations on the settlement of Lend Lease accounts.
(3) As concerns the question of negotiations with American companies—patent-holders—the willingness of the USSR Purchasing Commission in the United States to negotiate with all interested companies has been made known repeatedly to the United States Government, [Page 1321] particularly in the Soviet Government’s note of September 30, 1949, As is known, as a result of the Purchasing Commission’s negotiations with the firm of M. Miller, on February 15 of this year, an agreement was signed with this firm concerning compensation for the use of its patents, and on June 1 the Purchasing Commission made its first payment in accordance with the conditions of the agreement. At the present time the Purchasing Commission is conducting negotiations concerning compensation with the firms “Universal Oil Products”1 and “Texaco.”2
The Stratford company,3 with which the amount of compensation and certain other conditions has already been agreed, has preferred to decline further talks, referring in its letter of January 30, 1950, addressed to the Purchasing Commission, to the fact that it has been negotiating for some time with United States authorities concerning the question of compensation and, therefore, cannot resume negotiations with the Purchasing Commission. In the light of these facts, the Government of the USSR must also reject as devoid of all foundation the assertion in the notes of June 15, 1950 that the Soviet Union allegedly is not fulfilling its obligations under Article 4 of the Agreement of June 11, 1942, which provides a guarantee of the rights of patent-holders.
The Soviet Purchasing Commission in the United States is ready, as it has been, to continue negotiations with all interested companies to conclude with them agreements similar to that concluded with the M. Miller Company.
Accept [etc.]4
- Universal Oil Products Company, 310 South Michigan Avenue, Chicago 4, Illinois.↩
- Texaco Development Corporation, 135 East 42d Street, New York 17, N.Y.↩
- Stratford Development Corporation, 1414 Dierks Building, Kansas City 6, Missouri.↩
- A summary of the contents of this note was sent for the information of the Embassy in the Soviet Union in telegram 367 on November 27, with the full text to follow. (761.56/11–2750)↩