740.00119 Control (Bulgaria)/3–645: Telegram
The Acting Secretary of State to the United States Representative in Bulgaria (Barnes)
74. Reurtel 116, March 6, Crane’s message 1280, March 6, and related correspondence. The Department is informing the Soviet and British Governments of its view that the question of according co-belligerent status to Bulgaria is a matter on which no action should be taken except after consultation among the three Allied Governments which were parties to the Armistice.
For your and Crane’s information we are not necessarily opposed in principle to the idea of granting Bulgaria the status of a cobelligerent. We believe, however, that such action should be taken only by joint decision of the three Allied Governments and after Bulgaria has taken further steps in fulfilment of its obligations under the Armistice. The Bulgarians have not, for example, shown any genuine inclination to discharge their commitments regarding reparation, restitution and relief deliveries to Greece, thus creating for our Government a serious problem of supply and shipping.
We would in any case wish to defer consideration of Bulgarian cobelligerency pending discussions on the situation in Rumania, the Department having meanwhile informed the Soviet and British Governments [Page 176] of its opinion that no decision should be made regarding Rumanian cobelligerency except after Allied consultation.
Sent to Sofia; repeated to London and Moscow.95
- As Nos. 2136 and 650, respectively.↩