500.A15A4 General Committee/973: Telegram
The Chairman of the American Delegation (Davis) to the Secretary of State
[Received June 11—8:30 a.m.]
891. 1. The probabilities are that the committees to be designated by the General Commission today will proceed with their work, the extent and value of which will depend upon the result of the efforts to bring Germany back into the negotiations.
2. As I have advised you the French wish to pursue actively their efforts with the Germans to reach an agreement for an Eastern Locarno. They seem quite hopeful that they can reach an agreement with Germany which would provide a bridge for her to return. I am somewhat skeptical of their being able to do it this way and so are the British. If however they have not made appreciable headway with the Germans within the next week or two it is possible that the British [Page 118] and French together may try other means and if these fail it will be necessary to call a meeting of the Bureau. At any rate the probabilities are that all efforts will be directed towards preparing for a reconvening of the General Commission in the autumn with German participation.
3. After the appointment of the committees today and possibly a Bureau meeting Tuesday or Wednesday it is not necessary or advisable for me to remain here. I am therefore planning to leave here Wednesday or Thursday spending perhaps a day in Paris and going to London on the 16th or 17th.
4. As the Japanese experts are not arriving in London until about July 15th there is no great hurry to begin conversations with the British but as Simon and Eden have both told me several times they hope I will go on to London as soon as possible, I think it better particularly as our naval experts will be there to go ahead with our conversations with the British.
5. I would like to have Reber21 go to London as soon as the work here will permit him to leave. I hope therefore that the Department will instruct him to proceed to London at such time as the Minister directs.
- Samuel Reber, secretary of the American delegation; Third Secretary of Legation in Switzerland.↩