867.512/219
The Department of State to the Department of Commerce
Memorandum to Bureau of Foreign and Domestic Commerce
The Division of Commercial Affairs of the Department of State transmits, herewith, three copies of a telegram No. 196, dated January 30, 10:00 p.m., from Ankara,45 recommending the issuance of a statement to American exporters to the effect that the Turkish Government is prepared to guarantee payment to American exporters for exports to Turkey which Turkish merchants are unable to pay for on account of the capital tax. The Turkish Embassy, however, has requested of the Department that no public statement be made upon this subject, since it is believed that to make a statement now would tend to revive the question and might give the impression that new difficulties had arisen.
Accordingly, the Department requests that the Department of Commerce send a notice, not for publication, to its regional offices for the information of interested exporters which might read as follows:
“Question is understood to have been raised among American exporters to Turkey regarding the possible inability of Turkish [Page 1084] importers, in view of the recently enacted tax on wealth in Turkey, to pay for goods shipped from the United States. The Turkish Ambassador in Washington has informed the Department of State that he has been authorized by his Government to assure American shippers that the Turkish Trade Office, an official agency of the Turkish Government, will make the necessary arrangements to prevent transactions from being defaulted because of the tax, should any necessity for such arrangements arise.”
- Supra. ↩