Adams begins his address by solemnly expressing his doubts concerning negotiations in Paris, accusing France of insincerity. In 1796 the French Directory rejected Charles Cotesworth Pinckney as the United States Minister Plenipotentiary to France. The Directory passed a decree in January 1797 allowing the "capture and condemnation neutral vessels and their cargoes if any portion of the latter are of British fabric or produce," essentially justifying the already institutionalized impressment of American sailors by the French Navy in international waters. Adams refers to the decree as an, "unequivocal act of war on the commerce of the nations it attacks," and states that if the U.S. has the means it can "reconcile nothing with their interest and honor but a firm resistance."