Executive Order 8077—Amending the Foreign Service Regulations of the United States

By virtue of and pursuant to the authority vested in me by section 1752 of the Revised Statutes of the United States (22 U.S.C. S 132), it is ordered that the Foreign Service Regulations of the United States be, and they are hereby, amended as follows:

1. Chapter XII of the Foreign Service Regulations is prescribed as follows:

CHAPTER XII

INTERCOURSE WITH FOREIGN GOVERNMENTS

XII-1. Correspondence with the governments of foreign countries. The diplomatic representative shall conduct all direct correspondence with the government of the country to which he is accredited.

In the absence of a diplomatic representative, a consular officer may, when necessary, correspond directly with the government of the country to which he is assigned.

XII-2. Condolences and felicitations. When an occasion arises in a foreign country calling for condolences or felicitations of an official nature, diplomatic representatives shall be governed by the current rules on the subject established by the Department of State.

XII-3. Representation of foreign interests by diplomatic and consular officers. Diplomatic and consular officers may, upon request and with the approval of the Department of State, temporarily assume the representation of foreign interests. They may not, however, perform any duty for a foreign government which involves the acceptance of an office.

2. That portion of the first sentence of section V-21 which reads 'provisions of sections 174 and 453 of Part II of the Foreign Service Regulations', is amended to read 'provisions of section XII-3 of the Foreign Service Regulations'.

SECTIONS OF REGULATIONS CANCELED

The following provisions of the Foreign Service Regulations of the United States are hereby canceled:

PART I

Sections XV-8 and VIII-18.

Chapter XIX.

PART II

Sections X-174, XXIV-437, and XXIV-453.

FRANKLIN D ROOSEVELT

The White House,
April 4, 1939.