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    "label": "Foreign Affairs File, 1940-1953: \"Conferences at Malta and Yalta, 1945\" (galley proofs, Part II)",
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    "seq": 232,
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    "ocrText": "J. 333305MONO-State\nGalley\n660\nUNCORRECTED GALLEY PROOF\nThe first was a request that the United States Air Force be\nallowed to use certain airfields in the vicinity of Budapest in order\nto carry out bombing operations against the Germans. The President\nsaid that at the present time the American bombers based in Italy\nhad to make a long and hazardous flight over the Alps in order to\nreach Germany.\nThe second paper contained a request that a group of United States\nexperts be permitted to make surveys of the effects of bombing in the\nareas liberated or occupied by the Red Army in Eastern and South\nEastern Europe, similar to the surveys that had been made at Ploesti.\nThe paper asked that this group be permitted to proceed at once since\nit was important to examine the damage while the evidence was still\nfresh and the people who had been there during the bombing still\nwere on the spot.\nMARSHAL STALIN said he could grant both these requests and would\nimmediately give the necessary orders.\nIII. Sale of Ships to the Soviet Union after the War 3\nMARSHAL STALIN mentioned that Mr. Stettinius had told Mr.\nMolotov there was a possibility that the United States would have\nsurplus shipping property after the war which might be sold to the\nSoviet Union.\nTHE PRESIDENT said that this would require some changes in legis-\nlation which he hoped to work out so that surplus shipping after the\nwar not needed by the United States and Great Britain could be\ntransferred on credit without any interest. He said after the last\nwar the mistake had been made of attempting to charge interest for\nthe disposal of surplus property but it had not worked. His idea was\nto transfer the ships for a fixed sum on credit which would include the\ncost of the ship less the cost of depreciation, so that in twenty years\nthe entire credit would be extinguished. He said that the British\nhad never sold anything without commercial interest but that he\nhad different ideas.\nMARSHAL STALIN expressed gratification at the President's state-\nment and said this shipping would greatly ease the task of the Soviet\nUnion in the future.\nTHE PRESIDENT replied that he hoped the Soviet Union would\ninterest itself in a large way in the shipping game.\nMARSHAL STALIN said that he thought the President's idea was a\nvery good one and also that Lend-Lease was a remarkable invention,\nwithout which victory would have been delayed. He said that in\nformer wars some allies had subsidized others but this had offended\nthe allies receiving the subsidies and had led to difficulties. Lend-\nLease, however, produced no such resentment, and he repeated his\nopinion of the extraordinary contribution of Lend-Lease to the\nwinning of the war.\nTHE PRESIDENT replied that four years ago, when having a rest on\nhis small yacht, he had thought and thought of a way to help the\nAllies and at the same time avoid the difficulties inherent in loans,\nand had finally hit upon the scheme of Lend-Lease.\n3 This subject and the three succeeding subjects were grouped together in one\nmemorandum by Bohlen, whereas the minutes on each of the preceding subjects\nwere presented as separate memoranda of conversation. The numbering of the\nsubject headings has been altered to run in sequence. The time indicated for\nthe beginning of the discussion of topic III was 3:45 p. m."
}