640.0031/97: Telegram
The Secretary of State to the Minister in the Netherlands ( Emmet )
15. Your despatch No. 678, March 8. Please deliver the following message to Premier Colijn for me:
“I appreciate your friendly consideration of my informal message to you regarding the meeting of experts of the Oslo States. Now that I have had the opportunity to read the speech you delivered to that Conference, I wish again to convey my great interest in this initiative [Page 831] and my hope that the countries meeting in this Conference will be able to concert their efforts effectively for the lessening of restrictions to international trade. The growth of peaceful and mutually beneficial trade between nations can alleviate many of the troubles that now confront them.
I see the possibility of the creation of a determined worldwide opinion that national policies must be shaped to facilitate trade, and that the economic and political policies which thwart such actions must be abandoned. The Governments of many European countries have recently proclaimed their belief in this program. At the recent conference held in Buenos Aires the 21 American Republics adopted it as their settled policy.
If the Governments of the countries which met recently at The Hague will throw their determined weight in the same direction, and proclaim their views with untiring force, and call upon all other countries to pursue conformable economic and political policies, the whole movement will receive great encouragement and impetus.
I trust you will accept this expression of my personal views and hopes as coming from one wholly sympathetic with your effort.”
Will you then suggest that publication of this message may help to develop American interest in the meeting of the Oslo states, and in his general program and mine, and that I therefore would like his opinion as to possible publication.8
- In telegram No. 26, March 30, noon, the Chargé in the Netherlands informed the Department that Premier Colijn had no objection to publication of the communication in question, which, however, was not released to the press (640.0031/105).↩