[Ottawa,] September 16, 1941
AID TO RUSSIA
The announcement in this morning’s papers of the personnel of the British Mission under Lord Beaverbrook is likely to raise some question in the press as to why Canada is not participating directly in the discussions which are to take place shortly in Moscow.
During the past three months we have received some hundreds of resolutions from working-class and trade union organizations, encouraging more direct and visible Canadian assistance to the Soviet Union. This demand has had, I believe, a good deal of editorial support, particularly in Western Canada and in the Globe and Mail.
We were kept advised, by the United Kingdom of their preliminary discussions with the Soviet authorities about Russian needs and means of payment, but we had no definite word about the results of the discussions which lately have been taking place in Washington between the Russian Mission , the British Supply Council and the United States Lease-Lend administration. In the first report of Russian requirements, it was indicated that in addition to their expected need for planes, tanks and military equipment, they would require significant quantities of base metals, other industrial materials, plus an unspecified quantity of wheat. We do not know how much wheat the Russians want, where they would take delivery of it, or how they would pay for it. It is probable that the urgency of their direct military needs is such that wheat has been pushed a long way down the priority list, and that the Russians will not make funds or shipping available for wheat until they see a fair prospect of their other needs being met.
Of the things which Russia needs and which we might supply, wheat presents fewer difficulties than aluminum, nickel and cobalt—three metals which have been mentioned as among those most needed by the Soviet Union.
Mr. George Coote of Alberta called at the Department yesterday to enquire whether the Government thought anything could usefully be done at this stage to provide wheat for Russia. He thought that over and above the general desire to sell wheat to any safe destination, there was a pretty strong feeling in the country that Canada should in some way be associated with plans for the United Kingdom and United States aid to Russia at this juncture, and that the threatened shortage of food in Russia resulting from the loss of the Ukraine, might give Canada an opportunity of helping Russia and reducing the wheat surplus at the same time. He referred to the statements Mr. MacKinnon had given the press early in July about the availability of Canadian wheat and flour for Russian needs, and thought that our absence from the coming discussions in Moscow might be construed as evidence that the Government did not want to follow up this lead.
I understand from Mr. Master of the Department of Trade and Commerce that Mr. Crerar proposes to raise the question for consideration in Council this afternoon.
