Office of the Historian

611.3531/1532

The Ambassador in Argentina (Armour) to the Secretary of State

No. 731
Buenos Aires, June 4, 1940.
[Received June 12.]

Sir: Referring to the Department’s telegram no. 81 of May 29, 6 p.m., in regard to proposing to the Argentine Government discussions on the marketing of corn, and with reference also to previous telegrams concerning the protest of the Argentine Government against the sale of a quantity of United States corn to the United Kingdom, as well as to the Embassy’s despatch no. 701 of May 21 last,26 on the same subject, I have the honor to report that in a conversation with the Minister for Foreign Affairs on June 1, I advanced the suggestion mentioned in the Department’s telegrams nos. 79, en clair, of May 27, and 81 of May 29, 6 p.m.

I enclose a copy, with Spanish translation, of an aide-mémoire which I left with the Foreign Minister during the course of the conversation, and also a copy, with Spanish translation, of a memorandum dated May 28, 1940,27 which I left at the Foreign Office on the day last mentioned. The memorandum recites the pertinent facts surrounding the sale of corn in question as set forth in the Department’s aforementioned telegram of May 27.

In a further conversation which I had with the Under Secretary of Foreign Affairs yesterday, Dr. Gache mentioned the corn matter and inquired where it was proposed to hold the discussions. When I replied that I had received no instructions in this regard, Dr. Gache mentioned the possibility of Washington and indicated that his Government might be amenable to having the discussions take place there. As I assumed that the Department would prefer to have the discussions in Washington, I took occasion to offer Dr. Gache encouragement in this suggestion.

Respectfully yours,

Norman Armour
[Enclosure]

The American Embassy to the Argentine Ministry for Foreign Affairs

Aide-Mémoire

Reference is made to the memorandum of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Worship, dated May 20, 194028 concerning the sale by the United States of 20 million bushels of corn to the United Kingdom, [Page 488] and also to the memorandum of the Embassy of the United States of America, dated May 28, in which there were recited certain pertinent facts surrounding the sale of the corn in question.

The Embassy now desires to state that the United States Government is prepared, if the Government of Argentina should be interested in this suggestion, to enter into discussions at once looking toward a possible agreement between the United States and Argentina for the coordination of marketing activity with respect to corn. The period of time to be covered in the agreement could be discussed between the two Governments. The United States Government would be disposed in the course of such discussions to consider any pertinent suggestions that might be helpful in the matter to both countries.

The Embassy would be pleased to be informed whether the Government of Argentina would be interested in this proposal and, if the reply should be in the affirmative, the Government of the United States would be glad to be advised of the method which the Government of Argentina believes would be most effective for the conducting of such discussions.

Buenos Aires, May 31, 1940.
  1. Not printed.↩
  2. Latter not printed.↩
  3. See telegram No. 152, May 22, 9 a.m., from the Ambassador in Argentina, p. 484.↩