Office of the Historian

893.51/7051: Telegram

The Ambassador in Japan (Grew) to the Secretary of State

Tokyo, March 13, 1940—5 p.m.
[Received March 13—5:30 a.m.]

173. According to Domei, the Foreign Minister55 made the following replies, respectively, to interpellations in the Budget Committee of the Lower House yesterday in regard to the attitude of the Japanese Government toward the Export-Import Bank loan to China, the policy of the Japanese Government toward Japanese-American trade relations in the absence of a treaty, and an alleged American policy of “encirclement” of Japan:

(1)
“The United States has a law authorizing loans to foreign nations to the extent of $200,000,000. On the basis of this law the United States has allowed the Export-Import Bank to make a 20 million dollar loan to Finland, a 20 million dollar loan to China and a loan of a certain amount to Iceland. Such an arrangement is understood to be for the purpose of promoting the export business of the United States and not to be utilized for the exportation of arms. However, I consider it quite unpleasing to Japan that the United States has taken such action to assist the tottering Chiang Kai-shek régime at this time.”
(2)
“Japan has tried to avoid placing hindrances in the trade between Japan and the United States and hopes that the United States will adopt a similar attitude.”
(3)
“A Nine Power Treaty conference56 was held at the time of the outbreak of the China incident. Its results are well known to you. I do not think that the United States is undertaking any scheme to [Page 650] encircle Japan. Japan has convictions of its own. It is useless to be frightened by imaginary phenomena.”

Air mail to Shanghai, Peiping.

Grew
  1. Hachiro Arita.↩
  2. For correspondence concerning the Brussels Conference, see Foreign Relations, 1937, vol. iv, pp. 355 ff.↩