Office of the Historian

396. Memorandum of a Telephone Conversation Between the Secretary of State and Senator William F. Knowland, September 11, 1957, 2:40 p.m.1

September 11, 1957, 2:40 p.m.

TELEPHONE CALL FROM SEN KNOWLAND IN CALIFORNIA

The Sec said he called K and then explained why the situation does not look good. The Soviets are getting pretty nasty. Gromyko’s press conference2 is one of the most vicious attacks on us and our allies that has been made and contains threats towards Turkey and they are putting the screws on Turkey very hard. The Soviet Amb is seeing Menderes today and there is some reason to think they may deliver an ultimatum.3 Our disposition is to stand back of the Turks and tell them they are members of NATO and if attacked by the Soviets the ME Res would apply and they should not be intimidated. Mansfield4 will get in touch with Lyndon Johnson and the Sec may send someone to Texas to talk with him and K too if he wishes if the situation gets worse as it may tomorrow. K is speaking today and the Sec approved his wanting to lay the foundation to give support by saying we have a vital interest there, that we spell out Turkey is a member of NATO and the Sec added also mention the ME Res. The Sec said reference could be made to the fact which was mentioned in the Pres’ original message to Congress that the Soviets have been trying historically to get control of the area.

  1. Source: Eisenhower Library, Dulles Papers, General Telephone Conversations. Transcribed by Bernau.↩
  2. Reference is to Gromyko’s news conference for Soviet and foreign correspondents in Moscow on September 10. Excerpts from his statement are printed in American Foreign Policy: Current Documents, 1957, pp. 1038–1039.↩
  3. On September 11, the Soviet Ambassador in Turkey delivered a letter to Menderes from Bulganin. The Soviet Government released the text of the letter on September 13 and it was printed in The New York Times on September 14. For excerpts, see American Foreign Policy: Current Documents, 1957, pp. 1041–1043.↩
  4. At 12:30 p.m. that day, Dulles spoke with Senator Mansfield about the Syrian situation. The memorandum of the conversation by Macomber, who was also present, is in the Eisenhower Library, Dulles Papers, General Memoranda of Conversations.↩