500.A15A4/1344: Telegram
The Acting Chairman of the American Delegation (Gibson) to the Secretary of State
350. Your 187, July 19, 7 p.m. We request reexamination of the text contained in our 34345 and comparison with that contained in our 333.46 It seems clear to us that your anxiety must be based on the misapprehension that this is recognition of a principle. If you will examine the draft text you will see that this does not come under part 2 which is a statement of principles agreed upon but rather under part 3 which deals with questions for study. While this text may not mark any great advance over that contained in our 333 we venture to point out that it is distinctly less objectionable in that it omits any mention of global limitation. This wording was agreed upon because it left the door open to any form of limitation including limitation of expenditure on matériel as complementary to direct limitation. We do not feel that we are asking the Department to modify its stand in any way. No delegation here misunderstands the position of the American Government which has been repeatedly and definitely stated and they are under no illusion that we are prepared to modify our attitude. There is nothing in this text which is not fully consistent with your letter of guidance47 and the statement of our position in point 9 of my opening speech.48
Moreover, the present text has been approved by the entire delegation including military and naval advisers.
In order that there may be no proper basis of misunderstanding I am preparing a reference in the speech which I shall make in the General Commission, (my 349)49 which will specifically and not merely inferentially except us from acceptance of the principle of global limitation.
This section of the resolution has been worked out laboriously together with those on effectives, air and other subjects and they to some extent hang together. Furthermore, the Italians and British who are even more intransigent than ourselves on the question of limitation of expenditure have acquiesced in this formula.
[Page 299]I plan to telephone this afternoon at 3:30 Geneva time (since the meeting of the General Commission is called for 5 p.m.) and read you what I plan to say on this subject.