751G.92/277: Telegram
The Minister in Thailand (Grant) to the Secretary of State
[Received February 24—5:36 p.m.]
107. [Tokyo] Embassy’s telegram No. 284, February 23, noon, to the Department.25 Paragraph No. 3 not clear. Tokyo please repeat and amplify paragraph.
British Minister today indicated to me that he has retreated again to former position to which he has tenaciously held with a few slight intermissions, i. e., he would not be opposed and in fact would be pleased to have the Thai acquire the territory proposed in the projected plan as reported in my telegram No. 104, February 23, 3 p.m. He went so far as to suggest to me that the American Government might urge Vichy to yield “in order to prevent a clash”. I replied that it was my personal opinion that my Government would not take any such action since it would constitute a surrender of our consistent policy of urging the strict maintenance of the status quo. I have good reason to believe that the British Minister is again giving encouragement to the Thai Government in connection with their territorial aspirations with a view to keeping the friendship of the Thais at any cost, including collaboration with Japan.
Sent to the Department, Tokyo.
- Not printed.↩