740.0011 Pacific War/872: Telegram

The Minister in Ecuador ( Long ) to the Secretary of State

510. The President and Foreign Minister asked me to join them this afternoon and indicated they were exploring future possibilities. There are in Ecuador about 25 Japanese plus an active Chargé d’Affaires. If Ecuador should declare war or even take some lesser step that might involve the Japanese in a concentration camp it is their feeling that Japan might endeavor to seize the Galapágos as a base which Ecuador is unable to prevent. Thus with the intention of helping us by interning the Japanese Ecuador might actually furnish Japan a pretext to seize the Galapágos. Is there anything that I can suggest in this connection?

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Long