890D.01/6–2045
The British Ambassador in France (Duff Cooper) to the French Minister for Foreign Affairs (Bidault)30
No. 452
Paris, 16 June,
1945.
Monsieur le Ministre: I have the honour, on instructions from His Majesty’s Principal Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, to inform [Page 1145] Your Excellency that His Majesty’s Government have considered most carefully the suggestion made in the French Ambassador’s note No. 236 of June 6th that a conference of French, British, American, Chinese and Soviet representatives should be called to consider current questions in the Middle East.
- 2.
- The United States Government have kindly communicated to His Majesty’s Government a copy of the reply sent by them on June 8th31 to a similar communication from the French Government. It is observed that the United States Government, though they would be glad to discuss the difficulties which have arisen in Syria and in the Lebanon, do not believe that an international conference on Near East questions as a whole would be appropriate at the present time. His Majesty’s Government share the views of the United States Government on this point. They doubt very much whether an early solution of the difficult problems raised in the Levant States would be facilitated by a discussion of the questions relating to other parts of the Near and Middle East, or by arranging the participation in the discussions of other powers who have had no close associations with or detailed knowledge of Arab countries in that region.
- 3.
- At the same time His Majesty’s Government consider it essential that there should be a discussion of the position in Syria and the Lebanon between the Governments directly concerned. His Majesty’s Government therefore extend a cordial invitation to the French Government to send representatives to London to take part in conversations directed towards a settlement of the difficulties which have arisen in Syria and the Lebanon, and the establishment of a new understanding between the Governments most closely concerned with this problem. They would propose that representatives of the United State Government should participate in these conversations. Arrangements for associating the representatives of the Syrian and Lebanese Governments with the conversations will clearly also be required.
- 4.
- His Majesty’s Government earnestly hope that in the higher interests of a return to the former confident collaboration which marked relations between Great Britain and France, the French Government will see their way to accepting this invitation.
I have the honour [etc.]
Duff Cooper