867N.01/2056
Memorandum of Conversation, by the Secretary of State
The British Ambassador15 called at my request. I proceeded to refer to certain phases of the Jewish relief situation and particularly to the provision of the White Paper15a relating to the discontinuance of immigration into Palestine after March 31, 1944. I said that, of course, this Government has been exerting itself in every possible way, both individually and collectively, to render every possible aid and relief to the Jewish people in connection with their persecutions, and in connection with every and all kinds of injuries inflicted upon them by Germany and other enemies, particularly during the period of the present war. I said that, of course, this Government has not only thus striven to be of aid, but it has been sympathetic with any and all efforts of groups of individuals and other governments to give aid and comfort to the Jewish people; and that this relates to the complaint by the Jews of the threatened termination by the British Government of the immigration provisions of the MacDonald White Paper on next March thirty-first. I continued by saying that the President and myself, and other officials of this Government, in the light of our international interest in the Jewish situation, based primarily on the residence and citizenship of some five million Jews in this country, are in earnest sympathy with the proposal of the Jews that the immigration provisions be extended by the British Government beyond March [Page 824] thirty-first, and that in every other possible way, relief and aid be given to the Jewish people. I concluded by saying that I was desirous of talking freely with the British Ambassador on these matters, and that I would appreciate anything he might say that would be helpful in the premises.
The Ambassador said he could understand the situation of this Government with respect to the question in regard to the White Paper to which I had referred, and as to our sympathy with the Jewish request that the immigration provisions not be terminated on March thirty-first. He then added that his Government found that there were more than thirty thousand Jewish people entitled to go into Palestine before March thirty-first under the provisions of the White Paper, and that his Government had agreed or was in the act of agreeing that these thirty thousand might come in after March thirty-first, the date of the expiration of the immigration provisions aforesaid. The Ambassador then said that Mr. Churchill had always supported the Balfour declaration and its operation, and had been opposed to the MacDonald White Paper. I thereupon handed him a copy of the conversation between Mr. Breckinridge Long, Assistant Secretary of State, and Dr. Nahum Goldmann upon this subject of the White Paper, on December 9, 1943, copy of which is attached.16 The Ambassador then repeated what he had said about Mr. Churchill’s attitude; he took no issue with the statement of Dr. Goldmann to Mr. Long. Dr. Goldmann rested his statement mainly upon a quotation from Dr. Weizmann in London, who was understood to have been in recent direct contact with the Prime Minister.
I emphasized repeatedly to the Ambassador that in harmony with the past course, attitude and activities of this Government to aid in every possible way in Jewish relief and assistance, we could not help but be thoroughly sympathetic with the Jewish request not to terminate the immigration provisions of the White Paper on March thirty-first, and that the only question is how I could best define the attitude of this Government publicly without seriously embarrassing the British in dealing with the military situation. I emphasized that it was difficult to keep this matter from reaching the public much longer, and that it is only being kept confidential on account of military considerations and its probable or possible effect on them. I said that I should like to make public reference to what we have talked about, namely that this Government is deeply interested in the phase of the MacDonald White Paper already pointed out.
The Ambassador then proceeded to speak, off the record, for two or three minutes.
- Lord Halifax.↩
- See British Cmd. 6019: Palestine, Statement of Policy, issued by the British Colonial Secretary, Malcolm MacDonald, May 17, 1939. See also Foreign Relations, 1939, vol. iv, pp. 750 ff.↩
- Supra.↩