File No. 763.72/8281
The Ambassador in France ( Sharp) to the Secretary of State
[Received December 25, 2.20 p.m.]
2941. Following joint telegram dated December 19 from the Ministers of the United States, France, Italy and England at Jassy has just been sent me from the Foreign Office: [Page 490]
Having been notified that Monsieur Take Jonesco, Vice President of the Council, was planning to leave the country which would have risked bringing on a ministerial crisis, we went collectively to declare to him that his departure would be contrary to the interests of the Entente as would also ministerial crisis and should be avoided at any price. Monsieur Take Jonesco gave us to understand event which would soon render a separate peace by Roumania inevitable. He wished to clear his responsibility by his departure. We replied that his presence in the Cabinet and that of the sure partisans of the war was for us a guarantee that all would be done to prevent the realization of such an eventuality. As for the risks of separate peace we confirm our opinion that the King and the present Government will not conclude it as long as the situation in Russia does not render their departure absolutely impossible. The plan of Monsieur Take Jonesco to leave explained to a great extent by his very deep-rooted conviction that his position as chief of the Interventionist Party exposes him in particular to the reprisals of the Germans or the attacks of the Maximalists. He took note of our declaration in assuring us that he would bring it to the attention of the members of Cabinet belonging to his party. We informed the President of the Council of our action.
At that time Monsieur Bratiano told us that the situation was becoming each day graver because of the rapid disintegration of the Russian troops who are abandoning the front and sacking everything along their passage. We were advised that Monsieur Bratiano is going to instruct the Roumanian Ministers, London, Paris and Rome to expose this situation and to ask the advice of our Governments. If such a step should be made we would like to know the result of it. Finally Monsieur Bratiano made known to us that Mackensen had telegraphed to the Roumanian Commander in Chief to ask him if he considered that the armistice with Roumania was replaced by the armistice concluded by Russia for the front extending from the Baltic to the Black Sea. According to the instructions from the Government General Presan replied that Roumania adhered to the armistice signed for the Russian-Roumanian front.