611.6231/357
Memorandum by the Secretary of State
The German Ambassador called and proceeded at once to take up the desire of his government to enter into conversations or negotiations for further reciprocity trade arrangements between our two countries. He insisted on congratulating me two or three times upon the passage [Page 427] of the pending bill20 giving the Executive branch of our government authority to negotiate such commercial agreements; and was very pointed in his request that I agree that the two governments would in the immediate future proceed with such conversations. The Ambassador referred to the previous conversations between him and myself in which I had stated to him that I could not discuss the matter, even as to the question of time, until after the passage of the bill above mentioned, and he then added that he was here on the first day after the passage of the bill in question. He stated that his government was in a most serious economic crisis and the trade between Germany and the United States had gone down almost to nothing so far as exports from Germany to the United States were concerned. The figures he cited purported to show that for the year 1933 United States exports to Germany were virtually twice the amount of exports from Germany to the United States, while for April 1934 this ratio was nearly four to one. I stated to the Ambassador that many months ago my associates had made certain commitments with respect to negotiations with five countries, which included Colombia, Brazil, Portugal, Sweden and one other; that all conversations had been suspended pending final action on the legislation already mentioned; and that the first step I would find it necessary to take would be some conferences with the experts here in the Department, primarily in charge of these commercial negotiations, with the view to gradually developing plans and programs. I stated that many countries had requested the opening of negotiations, Germany was only one of these many, and I could not undertake to make any commitments at present nor before these conferences were held and some definite program determined, even as to the time when conversations might or could begin between the United States Government and the German Government.
The German Ambassador proceeded at great length to repeat over and over again what he called the desperate economic situation of his country; stating that it would be obliged to resort to autarchic or some other very drastic policy of absolutism, and that it meant everything to Germany to proceed at once with these trade negotiations with the United States. He became so persistent in his repetition and in his request that I specify some day for further discussion and decision, in order that he might telegraph it to his government, that I finally brought up the question of both public and private indebtedness due from Germany to our government and its nationals and from German sources to American nationals. I reminded him that unexpected developments had taken place recently with respect to the treatment of our government and its nationals in connection with this debt situation, and that I felt obliged to consider all phases of the [Page 428] situation before going into any definite plans for trade negotiations. The Ambassador insisted that they could do no more than they had about their debt obligations due in this country, on account of the lack of exports and of gold, and he stated that the very purpose of the proposed new trade arrangements with the United States was to remedy the present situation of Germany towards her external debtors in this country. I continued to reiterate to him that I could make no commitments even as to the time when I might make a decision as to trade negotiations with the German Government and when the negotiations might begin.
The Ambassador left with this definite refusal on my part, after spending three-quarters of an hour repeating Germany’s plight eco-omically and urging me to give him something definite about his request.
- 48 Stat. 943.↩