740.00119 Council/3–2647
Minutes of Meeting With British Foreign Secretary, Mr. Bevin, 12:30 to 1:30, March 26, 1947, at Moscow
secret
Mr. Bevin called at the Embassy to see me today and brought with him a transcript of an interview he had had with Generalissimo Stalin on March 24. He went over the statements one by one, amplifying them with explanations of detailed remarks he had made which were not recorded complete in the brief summary he had furnished me.
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Regarding the statement which he and his government had made that the British military mission in Greece would be maintained for the “time being”, it was made clear to him that this was an unfortunate statement with regard to political consideration of the United States for the appropriation of the necessary funds for Greece. He explained that this was in answer to a parliamentary question and he was quite certain that what Mr. Attlee really meant was that the mission was not to be maintained in Greece permanently, but was to be removed when its services were no longer needed—that is, as soon as the Greek Army organization had been developed to the point of managing its own affairs. He agreed to take this up with the Government and see if another statement might not be made explanatory of this view.