740.0011 European War
1939/31032
The Acting Secretary of
State to the President
1
[Washington,] August 21,
1943.
My Dear Mr. President: I enclose for your
information a copy of a memorandum of conversation which I have just
had with the Apostolic Delegate.
Believe me [etc.]
[Enclosure]
Memorandum by the Acting Secretary of
State
[Washington,] August 21,
1943.
Memorandum of Conversation
Subject: Attitude of Italian Government toward
continuation of war.
| Participants: |
The Most Reverend Amleto Giovanni
Cicognani, Apostolic Delegate; |
|
Mr. Welles, Acting
Secretary. |
The Apostolic Delegate called to see me this evening for the
second time today. The Archbishop brought with him a copy of a
telegram which he had sent to the Cardinal Secretary of State on
August 19
[Page 1082]
and which
he read to me. In this telegram the Delegate had informed the
Holy See that in his judgment public opinion in the United
States was exceedingly uncertain as to whether the policy of the
present Italian Government of apparently continuing the war on
the side of Germany was a spontaneous decision on the part of
the Italian Government or whether it was a decision which was
forced upon it by German power. He also said that American
public opinion was equally uncertain as to whether the Italian
Government sincerely desired to find the ways and means of
bringing to an end Italian participation in the war against the
United Nations.
The Archbishop then read to me the reply which he had just
received from Cardinal Maglione. In this message the Cardinal
Secretary of State stated that the Italian Government desired to
find as promptly as possible the means of ending its war against
the United Nations, and second, that its continued collaboration
with Germany was not spontaneous but was forced upon it by the
German Government.
I thanked the Delegate for bringing this information so promptly
to my attention and I said I would of course immediately refer
the message he had given me to the President for his
knowledge.
