Cablegram 558 WASHINGTON, 4 May 1948, 6.20 p.m.
SECRET
FEC 70.
1. Ambassador today handed to Saltzman, Assistant Secretary of State in charge of Occupied Areas, aide-memoire on whaling (your 431). [1] Saltzman undertook to examine the points raised.
2. Mr. Makin then took opportunity to draw attention to recent tendency of U.S. to bypass FEC (your 390 [2] and 420 [3]) and also informed him of his intention to raise these points at next meeting of FEC. He cited cases of Japanese fishing activities, travel of Japanese abroad and importation of Bauxite to Japan. He also referred to SCAP’s press release of 31 March and the maritime safety authority bill as instances of the same tendency.
3. Saltzman said there was no disposition on the part of the U.S.
Government to ignore FEC in matters clearly within its jurisdiction. He promised to examine the case in the light of SCAP’s authority but made it clear that in his view SCAP had acted within his powers.
4. Saltzman also said that U.S. was very concerned at the present time that Japan should be enabled to develop and maintain democratic institutions and to become in due course a free country immune from blandishments from any other country with a different system. He thought that this was also in Australia’s interest and he hoped he would be able to talk to us about this matter when U.S. had further developed their thinking.
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1 Document 323.
2 Document 313.
3 Dispatched 29 April 1948; it instructed Makin to protest against proposed importation of bauxite before the Far Eastern Commission had made a decision on levels of industry.
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[AA: A1838/283, 479/3/4/1, v]