URGENT FOR THE ACTING PRIME MINISTER FROM THE PRIME MINISTER

MOST SECRET

Your telegram No. 218. [1] My view coincides with yours that under
the present circumstances it would be most undesirable to have
Japanese Service Attaches in Australia.

I agree that the line to take with the Japanese Legation is that
our policy in this regard is one of mutual agreement and
reciprocity. We should point out that after the war we will of
course be very glad to receive Japanese Service Attaches and to
send our own Service Attaches to Tokyo, but that at the present
time, owing to war conditions, we do not wish to extend our
Service staffs abroad.

I do not think however that we should use the second argument
which you mentioned, i.e. that owing to military restrictions
activities of Attaches would be circumscribed. The Japanese would
no doubt reply to this that they maintain five Military, three
Naval and one Air Attache in London.

I consider that it would be unwise to agree to accept a Naval
Attache as this would open the door for further demands. I do not
think that the Japanese can reasonably hold against us the
exchange of Naval Attaches with the United States. We had an
Australian Minister in United States and an American Minister at
Canberra for a considerable time before the exchange of Ministers
with Japan.

Have discussed matter with United Kingdom authorities and they
agree with our view.