MR. LLOYD GEORGE Suggested that the three nations should all send forces. Great Britain had a battleship in the Black Sea. M. CLEMENCEAU said that France had battleships in the Black Sea also. PRESIDENT WILSON said he would see Admiral Benson about it at once. M. CLEMENCEAU said that this was the application of the principle of the League of Nations. What he asked were we going to do about the Italians at Versailles. MR. LLOYD GEORGE said that the Germans knew the position. M. CLEMENCEAU said his information was that the Germans did not take much interest in the Italian position. PRESIDENT WILSON said that this confirmed the information he had read yesterday. MR. LLOYD GEORGE said that the peace of the world really depended upon the United States of America, France and Great Britain hanging together. M. CLEMENCEAU said that the Italian policy was clearly to lead the Allied and Associated Powers to the point where they could not make peace in common because Great Britain and France were bound by the Treaty of London which President Wilson could not recognise. We ought to let them know beforehand that by not coming to Versailles they had broken the Pact of London to which they had adhered, and by which it was agreed not to make peace separately. We should show that if they broke the Pact of London we were not bound. PRESIDENT WILSON pointed out that it depended upon how the promise not to make a separate peace was interpreted. The Italians had been a party to the Armistice, they had been a party to the preliminary peace, a party (as Mr. Lloyd George pointed out) to the basis of the peace, and a party to the discussions on the peace. On the very eve of the negotiations with the Germans, they had withdrawn on a matter that had nothing to do with those negotiations. M. CLEMENCEAU said that we should let them know that if they withdraw they are breaking the Pact of London, and we are not bound by the Treaty. We must let them know that if Italy breaks it, she must take the consequences. PRESIDENT WILSON said it must be made clear that it was Italy and not France and Great Britain that were breaking the Treaty. M. CLEMENCEAU said the day was coming when this must be made known. PRESIDENT WILSON doubted if it was necessary to let it be known before next Tuesday when the Germans came. M. CLEMENCEAU thought it should be made known before. PRESIDENT WILSON thought it would be sufficient to say that we had signed the Treaty of Peace whereby Italy not signing had broken the Pact of London. M. CLEMENCEAU recalled that when the decision had been taken to invite the Germans to Versailles, President Wilson and Mr. Lloyd George had agreed, but M. Orlando had written to him making all reservations. He had that correspondence. The communication had not been sent to the Germans with M. Orlando's consent. PRESIDENT WILSON said that except as regards certain matters of detail, the main elements of the Treaty with the Germans had been urged with the co-operation of the Italians. They now refused to sign this Treaty unless another Treaty was settled first. MR. LLOYD GEORGE suggested that the Italians ought to be informed if the Drafting Committee were instructed to leave Italy out of the Treaty. PRESIDENT WILSON said that if some communication was sent every day to Italy in this sort of way, she would only be encouraged in her attitude. Surely M. Klotz's reply to M. Crespi was enough. At this point SIR MAURICE HANKEY, under instruction, read extracts from the previous Minutes showing that Mr. Lloyd George had asked M. Orlando whether, in the event of Italy's absence from the meeting with the Germans, the Allied and Associated Powers were entitled to put forward demands on Italy's behalf, and that M. Orlando had made it clear that they were not. ([I. C.] 176 C.)2 MR. LLOYD GEORGE said he had told the Marquis Imperiali that if Italy abstained from being present it would be an end to the Pact of London. Unfortunately there was no note of this conversation. PRESIDENT WILSON recalled that Mr. Lloyd George had told him. 1. (It was agreed that the question should be studied by M. Clemenceau and his advisers, and by Mr. Lloyd George and Mr. Balfour, and that a form of communication to Italy should be prepared for consid eration. 2. (The draft of a letter from M. Klotz to M. Crespi prepared by Mr. Philip Kerr was read and approved (Appendix I). M. Clemenceau took the letter to communicate to M. Klotz.) German Ships in Belgium and 2 [bis]. There was a short discussion on this question, in which reference was made to a scheme that had been drawn up between British and United States Experts. 3. MR. LLOYD GEORGE read the following telephone message from Mr. Keynes:— "Mr. Keynes said that there had been a meeting with the Belgians at which were present M. Loucheur, an American representative and 3 * Ante, p. 210. himself. The Belgians had made a number of new demands, the following being the most important:— (1) To waive all claims for repayment of loans to Belgium on the ground that we were going to get them out of Germany. (2) Out of the first £100,000,000 sterling that we were going to get as priority, we should make no claim for repayment of certain reconstruction loans which we and the United States (French) had made to Belgium since the Armistice on condition that they were repaid out of the first money received by Belgium from Germany. (3) The Belgians wanted to get after the first £100,000,000, 15 per cent. of any monies paid over by Germany until their total reparation demand was satisfied. In the end, the Americans, M. Loucheur and Mr. Keynes had agreed to recommend to their respective authorities one concession, namely, that in regard to number (2)." PRESIDENT WILSON said that M. Lamont had given him rather a more hopeful message to the effect that an understanding might be reached. Plenary Meeting. 4. The Note from the Secretary General of the Conference, dated May 1st, 1919 (Appendix II) was read To Be Communicated and the following decisions were taken : Peace Terms Are 1. To hand over to the Germans the credentials of the Delegations of Bolivia, Ecuador, Peru and Uruguay. 2. To place the aforesaid four Powers among the Powers to which the Treaties are to be communicated before being delivered to the Germans. Guarantees 5. MR. LLOYD GEORGE handed to M. Clemenceau a memorandum by General Sir Henry Wilson, criticising the scheme of gradual withdrawal at intervals of five years from the German provinces west of the Rhine. General Wilson had considered that the scheme was worked out on a wrong basis, and the first withdrawal should be from the south and not from the north. The Meeting then adjourned until 4 p. m. at the Quai d'Orsay. Appendix I to IC-179B Copy of Letter To Be Sent by M. Klotz to M. Crespi 2 MAY, 1919. DEAR SIGNOR CRESPI: I have much pleasure in acknowledging receipt of your letter of April 30th in which you suggest certain amend ments in the draft of the clauses of the Treaty with Germany relating to reparation. I feel somewhat at a loss as to how to deal with your request, because, as you remind me, the Italian representatives withdrew from our deliberations on April 22nd and have taken no part in them since. I am, however, very glad to note your criticisms and suggestions and have communicated them to the American and British representatives. I should like further to take this opportunity to inform you that the representatives of America, the British Empire and of France have been obliged to take very important decisions in regard to the draft Treaty with Germany since they have been deprived of the advice and assistance of the Italian delegation. In particular I wish to bring to your notice the following important decision regarding the question of reparation : "Les dommages de guerre, conséquences des hostilités sur l'un des fronts de combat, sont réparés par l'Allemagne et ses Alliés au prorata de l'effort militaire et navale fourni par chacun d'eux sur ce front. Les proportions seront déterminées par la Commission des Réparations." I am anxious to communicate this decision to you because it specially affects Italian interests. Appendix II to IC-179B [Note From the Secretary General of the Conference] NOTE: MAY 1, 1919. Guided by the preamble of the Treaty providing the "resumption of official relations" with Germany, the Drafting Committee have been of opinion that Bolivia Peru should be included in the Allied and Associated Powers which are to resume those relations. The above mentioned Powers, as is well known, did not declare war upon Germany but merely severed diplomatic relations with her. It will be noticed, however, that Uruguay has performed acts of war (Germany ships). 'For translation, see footnote 1, p. 388. According to Article I of the Regulations those Powers have been admitted to the work of the Conference and have since the beginning taken a part in it. If the view of the Drafting Committee is correct it will be expedient: 1.-to hand over to the Germans the credentials of those four Delegations. 2.-to place the aforesaid four Powers among the Powers to which the Treaty is to be communicated before being delivered to the Germans. |