740.00119 EW/5–745
Memorandum of Telephone Conversation, by the Acting Secretary of State
Admiral Leahy telephoned me and said that the situation on the announcement of V–E Day was terribly confused and he wanted me to know the background of the latest information. He stated that we have an agreement with Stalin and Churchill to make the announcement at 9 o’clock tomorrow morning but Churchill today raised the devil because he said he had to make the announcement right away and wanted to make it at noon today.77 Admiral Leahy said the President declined to do it then and said that he had arranged with Stalin and Churchill to announce it at 9 o’clock and he could not violate his agreement without the assent of Stalin. Admiral Leahy said they had been trying to get in touch with Stalin but so far have had nothing from him except the vague thought that he doesn’t know the terms and can’t make an announcement as yet. Admiral Leahy said he had heard later through BBC that Churchill was going to make the announcement at 3 o’clock. He said that he also had heard that de Gaulle is going to announce it at 2 o’clock. He stated that nobody has any control over de Gaulle and that this action was typical of him. I agreed with Admiral Leahy and remarked that de Gaulle was acting just like a naughty boy. Admiral Leahy said he spoke to the President about 20 minutes ago and thought it was definite for 9 o’clock tomorrow morning. He said that the only way the thing would be stopped would be for Stalin to ask us not to announce it yet. Admiral Leahy also said that he had been in touch with Eisenhower who said he had made no announcement and has kept it as secret as it could be kept. He said he would not make any announcement until [Page 779] it was released here. I said I understood it had leaked through AP.78 Admiral Leahy said the Germans are talking freely in plain language about it so everyone knows it. I said at any rate the only people who would be displeased about the whole thing would be the newspapermen.