875.6363/80
The Minister in Albania (Grant-Smith) to the Secretary of State
[Received May 1.]
Sir: As I had the honor to report in my telegram of today’s date,5 the Italian Minister has finally sent in a Pro Memoria to the Minister for Foreign Affairs in support of the representations made by Signor Dr. Gobbi, acting as Chargé d’Affaires, on the 3rd instant. It will be noticed that the document, of which a copy and translation is enclosed herewith,5 is dated March 3rd although it was handed in at the Ministry only today. Its contents cannot but give satisfaction to this Government since it definitely places the Government of Italy on record as favoring the policy of the open-door for Albania, a complete reversal of the attitude which Italy has assumed towards this country heretofore. This result is doubtless largely due to the clear-sightedness of their present Minister here who has been quick to [Page 382] realize that his country was not at present in a position to realize her desires with regard to Albania, either territorily or economically, and the attempt of Great Britain to gain a privileged position was sufficient to convince him, and through him his Government, of the urgent necessity of securing the cooperation of other Powers to prevent the realization of British designs. Even should the Italian oil concession for some four thousand hectares have been secured, the preponderance of the British at Valona would obviously have seriously endangered Italy’s position both on the main land and especially on the Island of Sasseno, the occupancy of which they are especially tenacious. These considerations appear to have been sufficient not only to impel them to invoke the aid of the United States and France but also to induce them formally to commit themselves … to the protest against the establishment of foreign monopolies in Albania.
I have [etc.]