Message to the Congress Transmitting 32d Report on Lend-Lease Operations.

To the Congress of the United States:

I am transmitting herewith the Thirty-second Report to Congress on Lend-Lease Operations, for the period from April 1, 1950, to March 31, 1951, inclusive.

During the period covered by this report, a supplement to the Lend-Lease Settlement Arrangement of April 15, 1948, was signed with Brazil and final settlement commitments were signed with Colombia, Costs Rica, and Mexico, while Bolivia, Ecuador, and El Salvador liquidated the amounts which were outstanding on their lend-lease accounts incurred within the terms of their respective lend-lease agreements.

The major development in lend-lease activities during this period was the resumption on January 15, 1951, of formal across-the-table negotiations with representatives of the U.S.S.R. In preparation for these negotiations, the Secretary of State discussed with me the major points involved and I approved his recommendations, the objectives of which are: just and reasonable compensation to the United States for the civilian-type lend-lease supplies remaining on hand in the Soviet Union at the end of the war; the return to the United States, pursuant to a request submitted in accordance with the provisions of the master lend-lease agreement, of those defense articles transferred to the U.S.S.R. under lend-lease procedures which I have determined to be useful to our Government; and the payment by the U.S.S.R. of satisfactory compensation to United States owners of patented processes which are being used in the U.S.S.R. in oil refineries supplied under the lend-lease program. Despite the continued efforts of the United States negotiators to reach a satisfactory settlement, no substantial agreement on several of the major issues has yet been achieved. These negotiations are described more fully in the report itself.

Other lend-lease activities during the period covered by this report include negotiations for settlements with other countries and, also, the management of fiscal, administrative, and policy matters arising from and related to the lend-lease settlements which already have been concluded with certain of our Allies of World War II.

HARRY S. TRUMAN