740.0011 European War 1939/6469: Telegram
The Ambassador in Turkey (MacMurray) to the Secretary of State
[Received November 5—4:50 a.m.]
189. 1. In view of the passage in President Inonu’s speech (my telegram No. 184, November 1, 5 p.m.40) regarding the return to the former degree of cordiality with Soviet Russia, I took occasion today to recall to the Minister for Foreign Affairs that he had fairly recently given me to understand (my telegram No. 171, October 18, 6 p.m.) that the relationship had not at that time been restored to a basis of mutual openness. He assured me that there had since been a considerable improvement and that the two countries were now in a position to deal with each other as unreservedly as say 2 years ago.
2. He went on to say that the Turks quite understood the Russians’ situation with the German Army on their backs. From the ensuing conversation I gathered that in his judgment the Soviet Government while hoping that both sides will so exhaust themselves as to be no longer a danger to Russian interests feels that Great Britain is at any rate the less of a menace; and that its sympathies are therefore with the British although it is not in a position to give any effect to them.
3. As to the Italian invasion of Greece he took the attitude that the ultimatum had been a bluff as the Italian forces in Albania (which he estimated at considerably under 200,000) were not sufficient to back it up; and he seemed confident that British naval and air assistance would so gravely embarrass the transport of the necessary reinforcements as to enable the Greeks to hold their own.
Repeated to Moscow.
- Not printed.↩