Cablegram 45, SALONIKA, 14 April 1948, 11.45 a.m.
IMMEDIATE SECRET
Your telegram 23, paragraph 2. Following positive steps have been taken, (a) Letters were delivered February 23rd through the Secretary-General to the four Governments offering the Committee’s services to assist the establishment of normal diplomatic and good neighbourly relations and expressing readiness to [visit][1] all four countries for discussions. To date replies received from Greek and Albanian Governments only. Former was co-operative, (our 31) latter non co-operative, our 42;
[matter omitted]
2. Recent Bulgarian complaint, our 44, appears to offer the opportunity of applying instructions in your 13[2], paragraphs 2 and 4 and I intend to move, (a) that the Bulgarian Government be requested for facilities so that impartial examination can be made on both sides of frontiers, and, (b) that services of the Committee be offered as conciliator.
3. Attempts to give observers positive functions, our 29, have not met with much success. No meeting with Albanian frontier officials has been possible. Some eight of the contacts have been made on Yugoslav and Bulgarian frontiers, but Yugoslav guards now refuse even to speak to observers and Bulgarians, formally correct, [do not] discuss any matter relating to border relations without ‘instructions’ which they have never yet received.
[matter omitted]
4. The key to the whole problem remains in the establishing of contact with Northern Governments. I have discussed informally with delegates the possibility of seizing the initiative by visiting or sending a team to the Northern capitals without invitation, but, apart from the difficulty, not one delegate would make such visit uninvited and unless representing and authorised by the Committee, and the Committee as a whole would not authorise such a move.
[matter omitted]
_[1] Words in square brackets corrected from the copy on file AA: A6530, 49/10/8.
[2] Document 88.
_
[AA : A1838, 852/20/1, III]