Partial copy of document 3599-PS

         INTERCEPTED DIPLOMATIC MESSAGES SENT BY THE
             JAPANESE GOVERNMENT BETWEEN JULY 1
                    AND DECEMBER 8, 1941

      Printed for the Use of the Joint Committee on the
                        Investigation
   of the Pearl Harbor Attack (79th Congress, 1st Session)
          United States Government Printing Office
                      Washington: 1945

[Pages 228-229]

                           SECRET

From: Rome
to: Berlin
3 December 1941
#985
re your message #985* to Berlin

On this day, at 11 o'clock in the morning, I accompanied by
Ando, called on Premier Mussolini (Foreign Minister Ciano
was also present). I described the developments in the
Japanese-U.S. negotiations in accordance with the contents
of your message #986** to Berlin.

Mussolini: “I have been carefully watching the progress of
the Japanese-U.S. talks from the very beginning and
therefore, am not at all surprised to receive your report.
As a matter of fact, in view of the utter bull-headedness of
the United States and the meddlesome nature of President
Roosevelt, I should say the outcome was nothing but what
should have been expected. One of the aims of the United
States is to make the Far East her own, from an economic
standpoint, I have felt from the beginning that if it was
the intention of the United States to separate Japan from
the Axis first and then intervene in Europe, the United
States was doomed to fail because of Japan’s loyal and
sincere nature.

"As Your Excellency and Your Excellency’s predecessor know,
I wholeheartedly endorse Japan’s policy of creating a New
Order in East Asia. This has been true in the past, is true
now, and will
be so in the future. I am one who is firmly convinced that
Japan has every right to be the leader of the Great East
Asia area.”

I continued by relating to him the contents of your message
referred to in the heading. (With regard to paragraph 3 of
that message, I said that I had been advised that some
arrangements were being made between our Ambassador in
Berlin and Ribbentrop).

With regard to paragraph 2, Mussolini said that should war
break out, Italy would give every military aid she had at
her disposal, i.e., that she would make every effort to keep
the British navy checked in the Mediterranean.

Mussolini: “Recently, the formation of an Italian-German air
force bloc was discussed so as to afford closer cooperation
between the two to apply further pressure on the British in
the Mediterranean. The negotiations on this proposal have
progressed to a point where it may be signed any day now.”

Regarding paragraph 2 again, should Japan declare war on the
United States and Great Britain, I asked, would Italy do
likewise immediately? Mussolini replied: “Of course. She is
obliged to do so under the terms of the Tripartite Pact.
Since Germany would also be obliged to follow suit, we would
like to confer with Germany on this point.”

With reference to paragraph 3, I submitted the French text
of your message #987***, as one proposal, and asked him
whether he preferred it to be separately or jointly. He
replied that as long as it was done simultaneously with
Germany it did not make much difference to him, but if it
were done jointly he thought it would give the impression of
more strength. He said he would confer with Ambassador
Makkenzen.

Mussolini failed to bring up the subject of Soviet Russia,
so the matter was not brought up at all.

In the first part of this message, please correct “N-NKEN
WA” to “KINKENSHA WA.”

25833
JD-1:
(D) Navy Trans. 12-6-41 (W-TT)
-----------
*     JD-1: 6943 (S.I.S. #25552-53)
**   JD-1: 6944 (S.I.S. #25554-55)
*** Not available.