Cablegram 158A LONDON, 14 November 1944, 7.12 p.m.
IMMEDIATE SECRET
Addressed to the Prime Minister. Civil Affairs.
My telegram 131 of 27th October. [1]
The United Kingdom authorities last night produced a long Aide- Memoire which they describe as ‘result of prolonged inter- departmental consideration of proposals of Commonwealth Government’. (The full text has been sent to you by air mail bag to-day, External Affairs Despatch S.200. [2]) I went this morning to a meeting for a preliminary discussion of the Aide-Memoire but I took the line that they must wait for your considered reply. Meanwhile I rubbed it in that our great concern was the maintenance of British prestige in the Pacific and that we felt there was a grave danger of this slipping back. It was absolutely essential that machinery should be set up in order to avoid developments which might prejudice final settlement in the Pacific area.
BRUCE
_
1 On file AA:A989, 44/655/19.
2 Stirling’s undated dispatch S200 is on the file cited in note 1.
An undated copy of the U.K. aide-memoire is on file AA:A1066, P45/137/3.
_
[AA:A989, 44/655/19]