Foreign Relations of the United States Diplomatic Papers, 1932, General, Volume I

550.S1/232: Telegram

The Minister in Switzerland (Wilson) to the Secretary of State

Geneva, October 3, 1932—9 p.m.
[Received October 3—7:03 p.m.]

18. From Sackett and Davis. Organizing Committee this afternoon reached following decisions:

1. That Preparatory Committee of Experts should meet in Geneva October 31st.

2. That Conference should be held in London as soon as work of Preparatory Committee permitted (question of fixing definite date to be further considered by Organizing Committee at its next meeting fixed for November 14. Proposal to fix meeting of Conference for early part of January debated and rejected on ground unwise to prejudge extent of preparatory work necessary).

3. That Secretary General of the League should issue invitations to the Conference to all nations of the world including both members and non-member states.

The list of all experts designated by governments, except our own experts, was circulated as follows:

Germany, Warmbold, Minister of Economy, and Vocke, member of the Reichsbank Board.

Belgium, Emile Francqui and Van Langenhove, Secretary General of the Foreign Office.

France, Charles Rist and Jean Parmentier.

Italy, Alberto Beneduce and Giuseppe Tassinari, President National Agriculture Association.

Japan, Kawai, Minister at Warsaw, and Tsushima, Financial Attaché at London.

Great Britain, Leith-Ross and Layton.

We stated that we expected to communicate names of our experts within 10 days.

The six experts at large¹⁷ whose names were cabled to you some time ago were definitely approved by the Organizing Committee today. With two experts from Bank for International Settlements¹⁸ this completes list with the exception of Norwegian expert added because Norwegian member of League Council is rapporteur for financial and economic questions.

Organizing Committee also decided that Experts Committee should consult with designated experts of International Labor Bureau and International Institute of Agriculture on subjects where those institutions particularly competent.

German representative, seconded by Italian, urged that Soviet Government nominate two additional experts but this proposal defeated on the ground that any addition to existing numbers would open door to increasing Experts Committee to point where useful work impossible.

We find that it is the idea here to leave to the Experts Committee the entire work of preparing the agenda. Last night we told Simon that our idea had not been to leave this entirely to experts as questions of policy are involved. Sackett will talk this over with you to determine just how we should proceed. The type of men being designated by other governments for the Experts Committee is rather striking.

Sackett sails Europa tomorrow, arriving New York October 9 and will give you personally our views regarding work of Experts Committee. [Sackett, Davis.]

Wilson

17. Léon Baranski (Poland), Director of the Bank of Poland; Jan Dvoracek (Czechoslovakia), former Minister of Commerce, and Director of the Zivnestenska Banka at Prague; Jean Musy (Switzerland), Chief of the Federal Department of Finance and Customs; Alfred de Nickl (Hungary), Director of Commercial Agreements in the Ministry for Foreign Affairs; Risto Ryti (Finland), Governor of the Bank of Finland; Raul Prebitsch (Argentina), former Under Secretary of State to the Minister of Finance, National Bank of Argentina.
18. Leonardus J. A. Trip (Netherlands), President of the Bank of the Netherlands; Léon Fraser (United States), Vice-President of the Bank for International Settlements.