AMERICAN POLICY TOWARD SPHERES
                    OF INFLUENCE
 
                         Summary
 
     Much of the underlying paper is a record of the back-
ground facts concerning what we know of the spheres of in-
fluence arrangement between the British and Soviet Govern-
ments in their relations as regards Rumania, Bulgaria,
Greece, and Yugoslavia. It is supposed to have become ef-
fective in the early summer of 1944, and, as a result of
American objections, to have been limited to a three-
month period, which would have expired in September,
though in some respects at least it appears still to be
operative.
 
     Our position (pp 2-3) is that while we acknowledge the
usefulness of arrangements for the conduct of the war, we
cannot give our approval to such plans as would extend be-
yond the military field and retard the processes of broader
international cooperation. The paper refers also to the ar-
gumentation of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (annex to the paper)
setting forth the importance from the point of view of Ameri-
can national interest of preventing if possible a contest
for power between the British and Soviet Governments.