409. Editorial Note
During the evening of October 19, Saudi Counselor Husayni conveyed to Chargé Heath a message from King Saud indicating that the King had offered his good offices to reduce tension between Syria and Turkey and had asked that the United States use its influence to persuade Turkey to accept the mediation. (Telegram 1207 from Beirut, October 20; Department of State, Central Files, 682.83/10–2057) The following day, the Saudi Arabian Government publicly announced that King Saud had offered to mediate the dispute and that both Syria and Turkey had accepted the King’s offer and had agreed to send missions to Saudi Arabia within the next 2 days. On October 21, the Turkish Government officially announced its acceptance of Saud’s offer. The Syrian Delegation at the United Nations, however, issued a statement indicating that reports of mediation between Syria and Turkey were not in conformity with the facts. For texts of the Saudi, Turkish, and Syrian statements, see American Foreign Policy: Current Documents, 1957, page 1052, footnotes 98–100. Ambassador Lodge expressed United States [Page 725] support for Saud’s offer during a speech before the United Nations General Assembly on October 22. For text, see Department of State Bulletin, November 18, 1957, pages 776–777.