[Secret]
From: Tokyo
To: Vichy
November 12, 1941
Purple
#528
In
the face of the ever-straining international situation, the army is endeavoring
to perfect as quickly as possible military facilities in French Indo-China. As
a result, they now face a great need of making certain preparations in North
Indo-China which would be in violation of the NISIHARA-MARUTAN agreement,
especially the clause which forbids occupation by the army of the area south of
the river Auju [a]. The French Indo-China authorities, I understand, claiming
that they could not permit the Japanese Army to make such preparations because
they consider the restrictions stipulated in the agreement still valid, refuse
absolutely to recognize the demands of the Japanese Army. However, at the time
the treaty for the joint defense was concluded, in anticipation of just such a
case as this, we saw to it that a clause was inserted to the effect that the
treaty includes cancellation of the restrictions stipulated in the
NISIHARA-MARUTAN agreement. Therefore, urge them to issue at once definite
instructions to the French Indo-China authorities to withdraw their claim and
then wire me the results.
Army 24915 Trans. 11/18/41 (NR)[a] Kana spelling.
(EXHIBITS OF JOINT COMMITTEE , EXHIBIT NO. 1 INTERCEPTED DIPLOMATIC MESSAGES SENT BY THE JAPANESE GOVERNMENT BETWEEN JULY l AND DECEMBER 8, 1941)