611.41D31/37

Memorandum by the Assistant Secretary of State (Sayre)

The Irish Minister called to say that he had received instructions from his Government a month or so ago to suggest to the Government of the United States the opening up of conversations with regard to the negotiation of a trade agreement. The Minister, however, quite informally and frankly told me that he appreciated our present situation and understood the difficulties and embarrassments which would attend the negotiation of an Irish-American trade agreement at this time.

I pointed out to the Minister that in my conversation with him over a year ago I had suggested that the United States was sincerely anxious to show its goodwill to the Irish Free State and to increase wherever possible the trade between them. As proof of the sincerity of my statement, I pointed out to the Minister the fact of the 50 per cent reduction which we made in the duty on beer some time ago; and as a further evidence I pointed out the generalization to be extended to [Page 63] Ireland of the 50 per cent reduction on whiskey made in the Canadian trade agreement.2 I said that I felt that Ireland would profit most from generalizations of reductions made by us in other trade agreements.

The Minister said that he entirely understood our position but that in order to carry out his instructions he must send us a formal request for the opening of trade agreement negotiations. I told him that we would give the most sympathetic consideration to any proposal his Government might care to make.

F[rancis] B. S[ayre]
  1. For correspondence concerning this agreement, see pp. 18 ff. For text of agreement signed November 15, 1935, see Department of State Executive Agreement Series No. 91 or 49 Stat. 3960.