840.48/3995
The British Embassy to the Department of State
Aide-Mémoire
His Majesty’s Government in the United Kingdom have recently been examining the question of relief for territories under German control, and feel it important that the results of this examination should immediately be known to the United States Government.
His Majesty’s Government have reached the conclusion that they must treat Germany and the territories under her occupation on the same footing, since supplies admitted to the occupied territories must inevitably either fall into German hands or release other supplies for the enemy.
There is no doubt that Germany has it in her power to see that the inhabitants of her occupied territories are adequately fed: there may be scarcity, but Germany has or can obtain from sources immediately accessible sufficient supplies to avert famine. The Germans indeed boast of their ability to feed the conquered territories and as recently as June 27th a German broadcast went so far as to say that, while Mr. Hoover’s2 plans for relief in France, Belgium and Holland deserved commendation, the German authorities had already taken all the necessary steps for the feeding of the populations.
While, therefore, His Majesty’s Government appreciate to the full the humanitarian ideals which inspire the desire now becoming apparent to supply relief to the stricken territories, they are convinced that it would be entirely mistaken policy to lengthen the war by allowing Germany to be assisted in the difficulties which confront her and which are of her own creation. Painful as the decision is, they have, therefore, decided that no exemption from contraband control can be accorded for relief goods.
For the reasons given in the second paragraph above, His Majesty’s Government feel obliged to treat unoccupied France for all contraband control purposes in the same way as occupied France. France is well known to be self-supporting in essential foodstuffs and any willingness to allow relief supplies to enter would simply be an encouragement to Germany to remove supplies from France for her own use. His Majesty’s Government cannot, therefore, contemplate any general scheme for facilitating the passage of foodstuffs to the former, although in view of the special problems caused by the influx of refugees into unoccupied France and the dislocation of communications, [Page 538] they have agreed to give safe conducts to Marseilles for certain ships already en route for France with cargoes of food.
His Majesty’s Government realise that their decision may lay them open to criticism, the sincerity of which is beyond question. But their intention is to win the war in the shortest possible time and so to liberate the peoples from Nazi oppression. They believe that this decision will help them to achieve this. They therefore hope that the United States Government will be able to see the question in this light, not as a measure which will inflict avoidable hardships on the helpless, but as one which will shorten the struggle and hasten the day when Germany’s victims can regain their liberty and the world enjoy a prospect of lasting peace.
- Herbert Hoover, former President of the United States.↩