Mitteilungen des Österreichischen Staatsarchivs 37. (1984)
ORDE, Anne: France and the Genoa Conference of 1922
France and the Genoa Conference of 1922 329 so there was no Soviet undertaking in advance. The charge that in this respect too Briand had made unrequited concessions was another factor in his fall. Thus whilst Poincaré’s new government did not contemplate reversing French acceptance of the conference, suspicion of it continued among ministers, officials, politicians and the press; and preparations for it included defensive measures designed to minimise the dangers to the French position. In a memorandum dated 31 January 1922 Poincaré declared that France could only take part if the Soviet government accepted the Cannes conditions; existing treaties must in no way be called into question; the conference must not usurp the functions of the League of Nations; the renunciation of interference in the internal affairs of other countries must not apply to the veto on the restoration of the Hohenzollems and Habsburgs; and the non-aggression pledge must not deprive the Allies of the right to take coercive measures against Germany under the peace treaty. Poincaré insisted on the most careful preparation for the conference, and asked a number of questions about the outline agenda agreed at Cannes11). The French concern that the peace treaties must not be touched is self-explanatory. Briand insisted at Cannes that reparations constituted an inter-Allied question which could only be discussed by the Supreme Council17 18), and Poincaré reiterated the point in his ministerial declaration19). When the British, fearing endless delay and argument, declined to reply in writing to Poincaré’s requests for explanations, especially on major political points, the Czechoslovak Foreign Minister Beneä acted as a go-between in arranging a meeting between Lloyd George and Poincaré at Boulogne on 25 February. Here Lloyd George consented to the postponement of the conference until April, to allow more time for preparation, and he agreed that the substance of reparations, and the Allies’ rights could not be discussed. He still hoped, however, that the discussion of economic recovery would allow reparations to be tackled indirectly19). The French concern for the League of Nations was based on the same kind of consideration. There was a certain suspicion in London as well as in Paris that Lloyd George wished to create at Genoa a new political organisation to take the place of the League, which he was inclined to accuse of impotence on account of the abstention of the United States and the non-admission of Germany and Russia, whereas the French regarded the League as bound to support the treaties20). Lloyd George maintained to BeneS that neither the United States nor Russia would take part in matters left to the League, and he made it plain to Poincaré on 25 February that he did not want Russian matters 17) Documents diplomatiques. Conférence économique internationale de Génes, 9 avril - 19 mai 1922 (Ministére des Affaires Etrangéres, Paris 1922) 18-22, where it is dated 1 February. Outline agenda for the conference DBFP 1/19 no. 21 appendix 3. 18) DBFP 1/19 no. 20; 1/20 no. 2. ,9) DBFP 1/19 no. 26-34. “) Saint-Aulaire (London) to Poincaré, 17 January; memorandum by Service de la Société des Nations, 21 January 1922: MAE PA Millerand 72.
