Foreign Relations of the United States, 1955–1957, Soviet Union, Eastern Mediterranean, Volume XXIV

279. Memorandum of a Conversation, Ambassador’s Residence, Paris, May 10, 1955¹

Paris, May 10, 1955

SUBJECT

• Additional United States Aid to Greece

PARTICIPANTS

• Greek Foreign Minister Stephanopoulos
• Mr. Georges Exintaris
• The Secretary of State
• Mr. Livingston T. Merchant
• Mr. Kenneth T. Young, Jr.

The Greek Foreign Minister came to see the Secretary at the former’s request and took up the following subjects:

1) He said that he was worried over the apparent fact that Austria was to be neutralized. The Secretary clarified this by saying that, whereas Austria intended to declare its neutrality, there was no question of it being neutralized in the sense of being deprived of the means of self-defense. In fact, the Soviets had agreed to the deletion in the treaty of the articles which imposed a ceiling on the size of Austrian post-treaty army and armaments.

2) He then turned to the main subject of his meeting with the Secretary, additional US aid to compensate for the effects of the recent earthquake.² The Foreign Minister discussed the damage and the courageous effort which Prime Minister Papagos had already taken to help the sufferers. He emphasized over and over again that it is not possible for the Greek Government to take care of this situation alone. The budget will be exhausted. Without help there will be much less chance of maintaining in Greece stable internal conditions and carry on with the success of the Greek construction projects such as the oil refinery, hydroelectric plant, and better communications, all of which have given Greece much courage. In order to conserve what has been done the Prime Minister of Greece is obliged to ask for US aid. This has already been taken up with the US Embassy at Athens. The Prime Minister has sent his personal greetings to the Secretary and asked the Foreign Minister to explain the very difficult position of his government. If some additional aid is not forthcoming, it may be necessary to reduce the military expenditures. The Foreign Minister pointed out that any weakening of the Greek army would have unfortunate repercussions on the morale of the people, which in turn would hurt the army because the people are its supporters. Mr. Stephanopoulos then mentioned the return of the Venizelos party on the left. The Greeks regard the future with a certain anxiety lest elections go badly. While the people are actually anti-Communist, they are nevertheless watching the future closely. The Foreign Minister said he did not wish to give the impression that the Greek people would bargain with its liberty and friendship from one side to the other. He merely wished to point out that the situation could be exploited by people who wished to weaken or abolish the army. Greece as a free country is a bastion and must have a stable government holding the confidence of the people. Accordingly, the Foreign Minister appealed to the Secretary to study the request which had been already submitted officially to the United States.

The Secretary stated that he had not seen this request but that he would certainly study it with much sympathy.

As for US aid to Greece, the Greeks have talked to Clair Francis who was quite encouraging about the possibility of using agricultural surpluses. The Greeks also talked to General Gruenther and wished the Secretary and General to discuss this situation.³

Foreign Minister Stephanopoulos and Mr. Exintaris emphasized that the provision of aid should be handled in such a way to have the maximum psychological and moral effect. It should be done all at once and the announcement of aid should be done in one package for psychological effects because the Greeks are very impressionable.

3) Finally, the Foreign Minister raised the question of Cyprus. He thought the British Liberal Party had adopted a reasonable position and hoped that the United States could use its influence with the British. The Foreign Minister and the Secretary noted that while the Liberal Party might represent a large section of British opinion, it had no votes. The Secretary said the US had not intervened directly with the United Kingdom on this matter. Exintaris stated that the recent conversation between Eden and Papagos had gone very badly which had made Papagos, a military personality, very irritated with the British. The Greek Government would hope that the United States could help to arrive at a solution. The Secretary said it would be better to wait until after the British elections.

1. Source: Department of State, Central Files, 881.49/5–1055. Confidential. Drafted by Young. Secretary Dulles was in Paris to attend the Ministerial meeting of the NAC, May 9–11.
2. Between April 19 and May 14, a series of earthquakes hit the port city of Volos in northern Greece. Documentation on US interest in providing assistance and relief is ibid, Central File 881.00.
3. In a June 15 memorandum to Francis, Scott noted that discussions had begun in Athens to provide Greece with $15 million in addition to the $16.5 million already programmed for fiscal year 1956. Half of the additional aid was to be provided through Mutual Security funds and half through the sale of agricultural commodities. (Ibid., 881.00/5–2455)