810.74/471: Telegram
The Secretary of State to the Ambassador in the United Kingdom (Winant)
4357. At a meeting on September 9 in the Department with representatives of the Radio Corporation of America, it was decided that the following action would be taken to bring about a closure of the circuits with the Axis maintained by the Consortium companies in Argentina and Chile.
RCA will immediately instruct its representatives on the Boards of Directors of the two companies to have the companies discontinue the Axis circuits immediately on their own initiative, the action to be taken by a Directors’ Meeting in each case. It will further instruct its representatives in Argentina to insist on the appointment of George Hayes as General Manager, in accordance with the decision of the Consortium Trustees Meeting in New York last month.
The Department agreed to approach the British Foreign Office immediately with a request that it do what is necessary to have identical instructions issued forthwith to the respective Directors of the two companies who represent Cable and Wireless Limited.
It is believed that the American and British interests together command a majority on each of the Boards of Directors. The success of the procedure depends on joint action by the American and British interests. Its purpose is to eliminate one flagrant means by which the Axis is enabled to sink ships of the United Nations.
The Department has reason to believe that, while it is possible that the Argentine Government would undertake to operate these circuits itself if the companies abandoned them, it is unlikely that either the Argentine or Chilean Governments would take any more drastic action.
Please bring the foregoing to the confidential attention of the Foreign Office, making the indicated request and emphasizing the urgency of the matter, and report to the Department.
We are keeping the British Embassy here informed.