Mitteilungen des Österreichischen Staatsarchivs 37. (1984)
ORDE, Anne: France and the Genoa Conference of 1922
France and the Genoa Conference of 1922 333 protected both French autonomy, and French investors against fluctuations in the sterling-exchange. At a meeting to organise the consortium, held in London in February, the British again proposed a central company with national companies subordinated to it; but supported by the Belgians and on some points the Germans the French got some amendments in the direction of autonomy41). On the general desirability and purpose of the consortium the French were highly dubious. They believed that it was chiefly intended for trading with Russia, and that British and German interests were solely concerned with exporting goods and extracting the maximum possible payments. France, however, had little capital to spare and French industry did not need the Russian market. French, and Belgian, interests were overwhelmingly bound up with the recognition of debts and the restoration of property. The only way of recovering these assets was for property owners to be able to run their businesses again and for the Russian economy in general to be restored42). The French belief that the British were only interested in exporting for cash was not well founded: they were indeed looking for developing trade, but on a longer-term basis, and the French financial representative in London, Avenol, although sceptical about some features of the consortium, thought it had been devised to overcome the defect of the British export credit schemes, namely that they did not help European countries to restore themselves43). Avenol favoured French participation in the consortium, with strict conditions for any government guarantee of funds. Seydoux, assistant director of commercial affairs in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, also came down on the side of participation since at this stage the consortium seemed certain to be formed even if France abstained. The British and Italian governments had promised to guarantee the capital of their respective national groups; the Germans were thought to be committed; and the plan envisaged that the central company would be constituted as soon as three national ones had been formed. In Seydoux’s view, what was done without France would be done against her, whereas participation would perhaps allow the safeguarding of Russian and French interests. But whilst the banking expert, Sergent, thought that without a government guarantee the public would not subscribe, Poincaré told Lloyd George that a guarantee was very unlikely44). When on 7 March Sir Sidney Chapman, the Permanent Secretary of the Board of Trade, came to Paris for talks about the preparations for Genoa, the consortium was no longer expected to work in Russia at all, but was described as a method for facilitating co-operation by the economically stronger powers for the purposes of reconstruction. Dropping Russia put rather a different 41) DBFP 1/19 no. 34 and note 34. 42) Memorandum by Cheysson, 27 December 1921: MAE Relations commerciales 1920-29 105; memorandum by Seydoux, 26 February 1922: PA Millerand 74. 43) Memorandum by Seydoux, 26 February 1922: MAE PA Millerand 74; Avenol to Ministére des Finances, 6 March 1922: Relations commerciales 1920-29 89. 44) Memorandum by Seydoux, 26 February 1922: MAE PA Millerand 74; DBFP 1/19 no. 34.
