711.0012Anti-War/69: Telegram
The Secretary of State to the Ambassador in France (Herrick)
221. This morning the French Ambassador came in and read me portions of a telegram in which his Government had instructed him to ask whether it would be satisfactory to have the signature of the treaty renouncing war take place approximately August 25. I said I was grateful for the expressions of good will of M. Briand and I would be exceedingly happy to mark the significance of the occasion by signing the treaty in Paris at about that time; but I said I did not wish to do this unless all the European Foreign Ministers concerned should also be present to sign at the same time. I told him naturally I was not sure that the Japanese Foreign Minister could get there, but this was not absolutely essential. The Ambassador said he thought that the Foreign Ministers of all countries would be indeed glad to have an opportunity of proclaiming their allegiance to the idea of the treaty and that the necessary steps to sound out the Foreign Ministers would be undertaken by the French Government. As I previously explained to him, I should naturally be glad to invite all of them to sign in Washington if they so wished.