852.00/8440: Telegram
The Counselor of Embassy in Spain (Thurston) to the Secretary of State
[Received 2:16 p.m.]
1042. My 992, June 28, 8 p.m.93 The President of the Basque State, Señor Aguirre, has informed me that he recently conferred in Paris with Monsieur Bonnet at the latter’s request and that Basque and Catalan representatives in London at the same time conferred with Lord Halifax regarding a settlement of the Spanish conflict. The trend of these conversations appears to have been as follows:
The British and French Governments are now of the opinion that neither party to the Spanish conflict can subjugate the other, that the conflict should be brought to an early end and the danger of foreign domination in Spain removed, and that peace can only be established by positive action from abroad. They are in agreement on a possible course of action looking to a cessation of hostilities, and armistice and finally a plebiscite. It apparently is contemplated that once the Czechoslovakian crisis is passed an attempt to realize this plan will be made, and Bonnet suggested another meeting with Aguirre for October.
Aguirre is confident that a plebiscite would be favorable to the Republic and I infer from hostile criticism of the Negrín Government that Basque and Catalan pressure would be applied in support of such a plan.
This telegram is being repeated to Paris and London and I should be glad to receive from the Department any reports which may be submitted by our Embassies there on this or the Spanish situation in general.
- Not printed.↩