File No. 600.119/409
The Commercial Adviser of the British Embassy ( Crawford ) to the Counselor for the Department of State ( Polk )
My Dear Mr. Counsellor: I enclose a memorandum of certain new developments in our Danish shipping agreement,1 and also a copy [Page 952] of “Matters for Discussion with the Exports Board, III.”1 May I take this opportunity of emphasizing the fact that we have suspended the issue of export licenses on all commodities to Scandinavia and Holland from the British Empire, except the half dozen specified, such as coal and salt to Norway, vegetable oils to Holland, and munitions raw materials, of which you already know. We are thus proceeding on the assumption that a complete embargo is in operation against all these countries.
We have not had to wait for the denunciation of our agreements to do this, as those agreements recognize the plea of shortage at home as a ground for the refusal of export licenses. In pursuance of this policy, we have just refused to facilitate the export from Australia to Norway of nine thousand tons of wheat, asked for by the Norwegian Food Commission.
Believe me [etc.]