740.00119 EAC/3–1745: Telegram

The Acting Secretary of State to the Ambassador in the United Kingdom ( Winant )

2076. Since the President’s return from the Yalta Conference, the Department has been working on a basic memorandum outlining more completely than has hitherto been possible the main lines of American policy toward Germany, based on the Yalta decisions and discussions as well as on the three basic agreements thus far negotiated in the European Advisory Commission. The President has given his approval to this statement of policy, a copy of which has been sent to you today by air.88 This basic statement of policy, which is not for presentation to our Allies, will serve as a basic guide to all agencies [Page 459] of this Government during the coming months; as such, it will also be useful to you as background guidance.

Immediate requirements for effective presentation of U.S. views in the EAC have been surveyed this week at two conferences with participation of high State, War and Navy Department representatives. It is understood that you will continue the negotiation of the “General Order,” in the form of a draft agreement on additional non-military requirements to be imposed on Germany by the Occupying Powers, making appropriate use of the suggestions contained in JCS 1103 of October 1389 and in the U.S. SHAEF report on the General Order transmitted by General Bedell Smith90 to General Meyer on February 7.91 The draft agreement, as revised by your joint advisers on January 27,91 is being examined here and you may receive informal comments on it for your use in negotiation. You need not await these informal comments before beginning negotiation.

You are, as before, authorized to proceed with the negotiation of the 16 U.S. draft directives so far circulated in the EAC.92 The War Department is preparing its comments on your two queries regarding the draft directive on United Nations Prisoners of War, and we hope to forward a reply shortly. It has also been agreed here that the remaining 18 draft directives93 will be cleared as expeditiously as possible, to be forwarded to you for presentation in EAC.

In view of the President’s memorandum on policy toward Germany, it has been decided to revise JCS 1067 in several fundamental respects. When this revision has been completed the new overall directive will be forwarded to you for circulation in the EAC, in addition to the 35 separate directives. Military events may render it desirable for the Commission to concentrate its efforts on negotiating a single overall directive, which would then be available as agreed guidance to the commanders-in-chief in case of an early German collapse. The revised overall directive will not be designed to take the place of the 35 separate directives in case Allied agreement can be reached more expeditiously through negotiating on them.

We trust that the EAC will be able to negotiate a substantial range of agreed policies for the guidance of the Control Council and the commanders-in-chief in Germany.

Acheson
  1. See instruction 5221, March 19, to London, infra.
  2. Not printed; see instruction 4665, October 24, 1944, to London, Foreign Relations, 1944, vol. i, p. 365.
  3. Lt. Gen. Walter Bedell Smith, Chief of Staff to the Supreme Commander, Allied Expeditionary Force (Eisenhower).
  4. Not printed.
  5. Not printed.
  6. For the full list of United States directives circulated in the European Advisory Commission, including the 16 referred to here, see bracketed note, p. 537.
  7. For list of draft directives awaiting comment in Washington at the beginning of 1945, see bracketed note, p. 370.