Foreign Relations of the United States: Diplomatic Papers, 1943, General, Volume I

740.00116 European War 1939/1188: Telegram

The Secretary of State to the Ambassador in the United Kingdom (Winant)

Washington, December 30, 1943—2 p.m.

8229. For Pell. The Department could not authorize you to present to the Commission the tentative draft provisions on the punishment of war criminals contained in L 60g referred to in your 8582, December 9, for the reason that the draft has not been passed upon by other than the Committee which prepared it. Moreover, considerable revision of the draft in the light of more recent developments and trends of thought may be necessitated. Furthermore, it is not clear to the Department whether the Commission will be expected to concern itself with the nature of the tribunal or tribunals and the procedure to be followed following the development of cases and evidence. See for example the statement by the Lord Chancellor on page 2 of the minutes of the meeting of October 20 enclosed with the Embassy’s despatch 12374 of November 22.⁴⁵

The Department has noted the statement in your 8504 of December 7, but so far as it is informed there has been no definite abandonment of the British suggestion that a technical committee, such as that referred to in the Department’s telegram of December 3, should be created to consider these subjects. This is a matter on which the interested governments will have to reach a decision.

If it should be decided that the Commission for Investigation of War Crimes should make recommendations on these additional subjects, the Department will then decide whether the draft to which you have referred, or some modification of it, might be used by you. This does not mean that, subject to what has just been said, you may not draw upon the outlines of the draft in any discussions of the subject with your colleagues.

Hull

45. Despatch No. 12374 and the minutes of the October 20 meeting not printed. Reference is to the Lord Chancellor’s statement that he felt that it might be difficult at the meeting to secure agreement with the Netherlands Government’s proposal that the proposed Commission for the Investigation of War Crimes should also be charged with making preparations for the bringing to trial of war criminals. He proposed that the meeting should take a decision to set up the Commission forthwith but that the question of the scope of its investigations and functions should be reserved for future consideration. (740.00116 European War 1939/1175)