740.0011 European War 1939/1287a: Circular telegram
The Secretary of State to Chiefs of Missions in Argentina, Brazil, and Uruguay
Department’s circular of December 18, 4 p.m. For your information the draft statement suggested by Argentina has been approved by the following republics: Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Haiti, Honduras, Mexico and Venezuela, and by Brazil in principle.
The following message has been received from the American Chargé d’Affaires at Lima:
“Minister for Foreign Affairs has telegraphed the Peruvian diplomatic representatives in Uruguay and Brazil to ascertain if those countries have approved the Argentine draft. The Minister for Foreign Affairs personally favors internment of belligerent vessels instead of action suggested in last paragraph of Argentina draft. A definite reply has been promised by the Minister for Foreign Affairs as soon as he hears from Montevideo and Rio de Janeiro.”
It is the belief of the Department that the reference in the Argentine statement to “the adoption of rules to prevent belligerent vessels from supplying themselves and repairing damages in American ports” is sufficiently general to permit of a careful study by the American republics of all the methods which may be open to them to attain the objectives set forth in the Declaration of Panama, and that it would not be desirable to delay the issue of the statement now under consideration pending a definition of those methods.