Office of the Historian

740.33112A/10: Airgram

The Acting Secretary of State to the Ambassador in Uruguay (Dawson)

Washington, October 29, 1943—7 p.m.

A–589. Reference Embassy’s despatch 3211 of September 13.43 There was discussion by the Interdepartmental Committee concerning the question raised in the last section of the Embassy’s despatch relating to the inclusion of firms in the Proclaimed List for a specified period of time as a penalty for dealings with Proclaimed List nationals. The Committee’s views were as follows:

1.
The policy with respect to listing persons for dealings with Proclaimed List nationals continues to be that listing will be approved in the following cases:
(a)
for transactions involving materials originating in the United States;
(b)
for a consistent, deliberate and substantial course of dealings; and
(c)
where the transaction is of particular assistance to the Proclaimed List firm in its undesirable activities.
2.
The Committee believes that the Proclaimed List should not be regarded or utilized as a means of meting out punishment for inimical acts but as a practical weapon for waging economic warfare, and that additions to the Proclaimed List should be made primarily for the purpose of invoking control measures by this government.
3.
The Committee believes that, except in the instances referred to in paragraph 1, the Embassy should accept an undertaking whenever it has reason to believe that it would be adhered to.

The Committee recognizes that there are a certain number of cases which would not be included in the Proclaimed List and in which an undertaking would not be deemed feasible, but it is felt that the alternative of using the Proclaimed List as a means of graduated punishment to prevent all dealings with Proclaimed List nationals would be an obvious interference in the affairs of the other American republics that would react against this government and, on balance, against the effectiveness of the Proclaimed List generally.

Stettinius
  1. Not printed.↩