740.00119 European War 1939/2057: Telegram
The Secretary of State to the Ambassador in the United Kingdom (Winant)
207. Your 172, January 7, midnight, and 174, January 8, 2 p.m.1 In view of paragraph 3 of annex 2 of the Secret Protocol of the Moscow Conference establishing the European Advisory Commission,2 the Department concurs in your opinion that the question of surrender terms for Rumania comes within the competence of the EAC. The Department hopes to send you, as soon as the necessary clearances can be obtained, the American views on surrender terms for Rumania.3
The background information on the forthcoming talk set forth below may be useful to you:
The American position with regard to Rumania was set forth in the Department’s telegram to Stockholm of November 16 repeated to you as the Department’s 7259.4
Department was informed by British Embassy on November 215 that a message had been received from Maniu indicating his desire to send a special delegate or delegates out of Rumania for the purpose of discussing arrangements for a political changeover in that country. The British Government proposed to reply to Maniu’s message by [Page 134] saying that his emissary would be received on the understanding that his sole function would be to discuss “operational details” looking to the overthrow of the present regime in Rumania and its replacement by a Government prepared to offer unconditional surrender to the three principal Allies. It was stated that the Soviet Government had approved this proposed reply, at the same time indicating its expectation that Soviet representatives would participate in any negotiations that might be carried on with Maniu’s representative. Department gave its agreement to the proposed British reply as already approved by the Soviet Governement.6
Ambassador MacVeagh7 has been authorized to attend any conferences which may be held in Cairo with Maniu’s representative provided his Russian colleague8 as well as the British Ambassador9 likewise attends. Should either his British or Soviet colleague designate subordinate officials to represent them in the discussion, MacVeagh is authorized likewise to designate a member of his staff for this purpose.
- Neither telegram printed. They conveyed information regarding reports that a representative of Iuliu Maniu, exiled head of the National Peasant Party of Rumania, was expected shortly in Cairo to discuss surrender terms with the American, British, and Soviet representatives. In telegram 172, Ambassador Winant stated: “The information in my opinion would justify a review of armistice terms for Rumania and since the European Advisory Commission is charged with the obligation to make recommendations in this field I would appreciate being informed of the views of the Department provided that I am able to confirm the information I am sending you tonight.” (740.00119 European War 1939/2056, 2057)↩
- The cited passage reads in part as follows: “As one of the Commission’s first tasks the three Governments desire that it shall as soon as possible make detailed recommendations to them upon the terms of surrender to be imposed upon each of the European states with which any of the three Powers are at war, and upon the machinery required to ensure the fulfillment of those terms.” ( Foreign Relations, 1943, vol. i, p. 757.)↩
- Letter of February 2 to London, p. 136.↩
- See telegram 2465, November 18, 1943, to Madrid, Foreign Relations, 1943, vol. i, p. 505.↩
- Communication not printed.↩
- Memorandum dated November 27, 1943, to the British Embassy; for text, see Foreign Relations, 1943, vol. i, p. 507.↩
- Lincoln MacVeagh, Ambassador to the Greek and Yugoslav Governments in Exile in Egypt.↩
- Nikolay Vasilyevich Novikov, Soviet Ambassador to the Greek and Yugoslav Governments in Exile in Egypt.↩
- R. C. Skrine Stevenson, British Ambassador to the Yugoslav Government in Exile in Egypt.↩