File No. 861.00/1437
The Ambassador in Japan (Morris) to the Secretary of State
[Received 10.25 p.m.]
My British colleague has recently resumed his informal conversations on the subject of intervention in Siberia. On March 30 he conveyed to the Minister for Foreign Affairs the unanimous opinion of the British military authorities that intervention would be of strategic value to the Allied cause at this time. But the attitude of the Japanese Government as expressed in its memorandum of March 18 [19]1 has remained unchanged, and public interest has subsided although it is of course impossible to foresee the results of the landing at Vladivostok reported in my April 5, 4 p.m.2
Viscount Ishii sailed yesterday by the Siberia Maru several weeks earlier than he had originally planned. For the past two weeks he has been in daily conference with the leading statesmen in and out of office, and is prepared to state frankly the Japanese position as he understands it, both as to Siberia and as to China. During the discussions here, I have seen him frequently and he has consistently advocated a policy of no action in Siberia without the fullest understanding with our Government.
Ministerial changes are still likely in the near future. Viscount Motono is seriously ill and this may hasten hinted retirement which has been imminent for some time. Uchida is much talked of as his successor.