Foreign Relations of the United States, 1952–1954, Western Europe and Canada, Volume VI, Part 2

711.56352/3–1853

No. 886
The Chargé in Spain (Jones) to the Spanish Minister of Foreign Affairs (Martín Artajo)¹

secret

Madrid, March 16, 1953.

My Dear Mr. Minister: I have thought it desirable to address a personal letter to you in explanation and elaboration of that paragraph of my Note of today’s date relating to legislative provisions for aid to Spain for the fiscal year July 1, 1953–June 30, 1954.

In the foreign aid estimate contained in the Federal Budget which was submitted by the prior Administration on January 9, 1953, provision was made for aid to Spain. Such provision was based on the assumption mentioned in our Memorandum of October 7 [6], 1952,² which accompanied Ambassador MacVeagh’s letter to you of the same date, namely, that mutually satisfactory agreements would be concluded in time to permit the inclusion of suitable provision for aid to Spain in the Budget for fiscal year 1954. It was also assumed that there would be sufficient time during the current fiscal year ending June 30, 1953, to permit the obligation of the $125 million previously appropriated for the implementation of mutually agreed assistance programs. However, should it become impossible to obligate before the end of the current fiscal year some or all of the $125 million which were appropriated for agreed assistance programs, the effect will be to make such unobligated funds available for reappropriation for use in fiscal year 1954. This may well have the effect that new funds for aid to Spain in the fiscal year ending June 30, 1954, which would otherwise be required and which could be justified to the Congress, would be correspondingly reduced. Consequently, as time passes without completion of all the agreements, it will prove increasingly difficult to provide for new funds in the next fiscal year.

The Federal Budget for 1954 and a detailed justification of the estimates it presently contains are now under active study by the new Administration. It will be presented soon to the President for his approval before it is submitted to the Congress. It will thus be apparent to you that the United States budgetary processes are moving along rapidly and the remaining time available for adjustments is thus diminishing.

Sincerely yours,

John Wesley Jones

1. Drafted by Train; a copy was handed by Jones to Yturralde on Mar. 17 and the source text was transmitted along with the note from Jones to Martín Artajo (supra) to the Department of State as enclosure 3 to despatch 737 on Mar. 18.
2. See the enclosure to Document 871.