740.0011 Mutual Guarantee (Locarno)/616
The Ambassador in Poland (Cudahy) to the Secretary of State
[Received April 5.]
Sir: I have the honor to report that today I called upon Colonel Józef Beck, at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and discussed with him the position taken by Poland at the London meeting of the Council of the League of Nations concerned with the alleged violation by Germany of the Locarno Treaty.
The Minister expressed gratification with the attitude toward Poland expressed by the delegates of the nations assembled in London. He thought that Great Britain, as well as France, realized more clearly than before the meeting the necessity for the protection of the Polish Western frontier.
He said that in his address before the Council of the League29 (despatch No. 1070, March 28, 193630) he had not hesitated to express the unfavorable attitude of Poland toward Locarno. This attitude was based upon the belief that the Locarno Treaty in attempting to provide security for Western Europe, entirely neglected Eastern Europe.
He said that from the time of the execution of Locarno Poland was convinced that this pact in its operation would weaken the security of Poland. This conviction was fortified by the expressions of Stresemann31 who made no pretense of concealing his belief that Locarno would not hinder German foreign policy from seeking a revision of its Eastern frontiers.
The Minister said that the recent declaration of Neville Chamberlain in the House of Commons that the British Government would abide by its obligation as a member of the League of Nations to safeguard Poland against aggressive attack, was very gratifying. This added nothing to the existing duty of the British Government, under the League, the Minister said, but it was a satisfaction at this time of crisis to have this reassurance from a British Cabinet member who asserted that his statement was authorized by the British Government. The Minister said that this utterance of Chamberlain’s was subsequently confirmed by Minister Eden in a meeting between Eden and himself and that Eden afterwards gave to the press a statement to such effect.
[Page 274]The Minister said that from the outset Poland had been opposed to the Locarno Treaty on the assumption that it would weaken Poland’s Alliance with France.32 The Polish representative at Locarno at the time the treaty was concluded, the then Minister for Foreign Affairs, Count Aleksander Skrzynski, had insisted that the security of Poland be provided for in the proposed treaty but Austen Chamberlain, the British delegate at the negotiations, refused to extend the guarantee of Great Britain to Poland and stated in unequivocal terms that such guarantee would be confined to the preservation of the status quo regarding the frontiers of Belgium, France and Germany.
The Minister said that a more sympathetic attitude toward this contention of Poland had been manifested at the recent London meeting, and that attitude, together with the statement of Neville Chamberlain in the House of Commons, and the assurance of Foreign Minister Eden that Great Britain would abide by its commitment under the League of Nations’ Covenant to come to the aid of Poland in the case of an unprovoked attack, he considered as something of value arising from the London negotiations.
He said that in his address before the Council of the League he had stressed that the foreign relations of Poland vis-à-vis France and Germany were based upon the Franco-Polish Alliance and the Declaration of January 26, 1934, between Poland and Germany.33
In response to questions concerning his discussions with Foreign Minister Flandin, Colonel Beck was reticent. He said, replying to an inquiry as to whether or not Flandin had demanded a clear statement concerning the position of Poland in case France attacked Germany in retaliation for occupation of the Rhineland by German military forces, that “it was evident to Flandin from my (Beck’s) address before the Council of the League that Poland would not deviate from its obligation under the Franco-Polish Alliance”. Further questioning regarding his dealings with Flandin was met by similar evasive replies and was abandoned when the Minister commenced to show signs of irritation. He said that after Flandin had left London he carried on negotiations with Paul-Boncour and that these were “entirely satisfactory”, giving the impression that they were more “satisfactory” than those with Flandin.
The Minister gave the impression of gratification with the role he had played in London. He spoke of a meeting with King Edward VIII and said the King showed a basic understanding of international affairs.
The Minister expressed the opinion that the German reply to the Locarno Powers marked the opening of negotiations which, in his [Page 275] opinion, would continue “for six months at least”. He expressed unwillingness to comment upon the German reply since he had not yet had an opportunity to study it sufficiently. He did express himself as being optimistic concerning the outcome of the prolonged negotiations that he anticipates. He said that Europe was too war weary to enter into a serious state of hostilities and that the memory of the last war, fresh in the minds of those charged with the conduct of foreign affairs in the various responsible chanceries of Europe today, would serve as an effective bar to another conflict.
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Respectfully yours,
- League of Nations, Official Journal, April 1936, p. 328.↩
- Not printed.↩
- Gustav Stresemann, late German Minister for Foreign Affairs, December 1923–October 3, 1929.↩
- Signed February 19, 1921, League of Nations Treaty Series, vol. xviii, p. 11.↩
- British and Foreign State Papers, vol. cxxxvii, p. 495.↩