761.9315 Manchuria/189: Telegram
The Ambassador in Japan (Grew) to the Secretary of State
[Received October 31—9:40 a.m.]
564. Our 482, September 18, 6 p.m.
1. We have been informed today by an official of the Foreign Office that conversations relating to a settlement of the boundary line in the immediate Nomonhan area are proceeding in Moscow and that if these progress favorably it is hoped to take up a delimitation of the entire Manchurian-Mongolian border and if possible of the Siberian-Manchurian frontier as well. It was indicated that the Japanese Government is restrainedly hopeful that—contrary to the failure of the commission established after the Changkufeng incident to accomplish anything—some progress toward a settlement of the vexed border question may come about to put an end to the costly and futile series of frontier “incidents” that have taken place in the past.
The Japanese press today announced the arrival at Harbin of Smetanin, the new Soviet Ambassador to Tokyo (formerly Counselor [Page 76] here), with a suite of 12 persons including a new Counselor. He is quoted as having referred to the Nomonhan truce agreement as an indication that he and his Government are prepared to cooperate for an adjustment of Soviet-Japanese relations. His appointment, coinciding with the signing of the agreement, and arrival here, after over a year since the departure of Ambassador Slavoutsky—during much of which time the Soviet Embassy has been left in the charge of a junior secretary—may be viewed from the Japanese angle as showing some disposition on the part of Moscow to normalize Japanese-Soviet relations. The Japanese official referred to in paragraph 1 above however did not seem inclined to believe in the possibility of any really friendly relations between the two countries in view of their fundamental divergence of thought and interest.
Repeated to Moscow and Peiping. Peiping please repeat by naval radio to Chungking.