361.11/6–346: Telegram
The Ambassador in the Soviet Union (Smith) to the Secretary of State
[Received June 3—3:27 p.m.]
1738. Depths 957, May 23. Representations to Soviet Govt regarding citizenship and protection cases.
[Page 760]We have examined Dept’s proposed representations against what we have in way of evidence to back up our case. We conclude that we are not in a position to present a water tight case. This being so, we think we should not approach Soviet Govt as recommended by Dept. To do so at this time would be to invite embarrassing legalistic rebuttal, at which Soviet Govt is most adept.
Reason for our conclusion is that (1) some of cases reported in Embassy’s despatch 2257, Nov 143 have been satisfactorily closed, (2) we have heretofore not exhausted all of our local remedies, thus leaving loopholes in our case, and (3) we do not now have overall statistical picture of citizenship and protection operations of Consul section, which statistics we consider essential to a complete presentation of our case. Latter two defects result from Consular section being stepchild of Embassy—continually understaffed for past several years.
Having said foregoing, we do not propose that Dept’s recommendation be dropped for good. We believe that fundamentally we have ample and just reason to protest Soviet treatment of Consular matters. We propose that during the next 3 months, or as long as process takes, we can (1) go through back files, amounting to some 2,000 cases and find out just where we stand with FonOff regarding them; (2) present all protection cases, including ones of doubtful citizenship (which has heretofore not been done) to FonOff; (3) follow up all cases persistently.
As this process develops we should begin to get a clearer picture of what sort of case we have. And when that picture is well defined, perhaps 3 months hence, then we shall have a definite basis on which to decide whether we are in a position to make representations, and make them stick.
[The final two paragraphs, dealing with administrative affairs and personnel allocations in the Consular Section of the Embassy in Moscow, are here omitted.]
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