When published, the book came under criticism by two prominent American historians regarding its coverage of Germany in the weeks before the onset of the war.

He also outlines the details of Germany's influence in preventing the sale of American warships to Greece, their plans for new territories, coaling stations, indemnities and the closing of the Dardanelles to separate the Russian Empire from the Allies during the World War I.

In his memoirs, Morgenthau later wrote that: When the Turkish authorities gave the orders for these deportations, they were merely giving the death warrant to a whole race; they understood this well, and, in their conversations with me, they made no particular attempt to conceal the fact.

When Morgenthau asked both whether the information reaching the embassy was reliable, they regarded it as a mere manifestation of the disorders that had prevailed inside the Armenian provinces for many years.

The ambassador asked the U.S. Government to intervene, but the United States was not a participant in the World War I at the time and could only have made written or verbal protests to the Ottoman authorities.