Telegram from President Harry S. Truman to Prime Minister Winston Churchill

EF EDEDE NLT-335 DECLASS dy authority of s. state Dept its to NARS 8-10-12 NL memo to NLT AND Miller 13 P 4-12-73 is NOF SECRET 5 JUNE 1945 SOVERHMENT PRIORITY Initials BRZ Date 5/21/74 : FROM: OPNAV 54 TO : ALUSNA, LOWBONJUN . 5 21 25 0520262 NCR 51x ZERO NUMBER 60, PERSONAL AND TOP SECRET, FROM THE PRESIDENT FOR PRIME MINISTER CHURCHILL. XPARA X I request your concurrence in my issuing the following quoted 160 Colon release to the American press: QUOTE. In the closing days of the fighting in Europe, troops of 22 the First French Army in the Alpine region, crossed the frontier and moved common forward into northwestern Italy, in the Province of Cuneo. Later orders were issued by General Eisenhower, Allied Supreme Commander/ on the Western Front, for the withdrawal of this French force to the frontier in keeping with the arrangements for the occupation and organization of Allied Mil- itary Government in Italy under the direction of Field Marshal Alexander. lage This order was ignored by the French units concerned under the authority of their government. PARA Timely More recently the following events have taken place. On May 30 800 General Doyen, commanding the French Army in the Alps, sent a letter to General Crittenberger, commanding the U.S. Fourth Corps in Northwestern Italy, referring to an attempt to establish Allied Military Government in colon the Province of Cuneo. The letter ends with the following paragraph: INNER QUOTE. France cannot consent that a modification against her will would be made in the existing state of affairs in the Alps Maritimes. 1400 This would be contrary to her honor and her security. I have been ordered by the provisional government of the French Republic to occupy and administer 1300 this territory. This mission being incompatible with the installation of an TRD Page lot. 3