Foreign Relations of the United States, 1961–1963, Volume XXIII, Southeast Asia

246. Telegram From the Department of State to the Embassy in Indonesia⁰

Washington, March 6, 1962, 8:57 p.m.

998. Ambassador van Roijen called on Secretary today to give response Dutch government to Department’s approach (Deptel 990) made on basis Djakarta’s 1586¹ and subsequently 1590.²

1) Dutch agree to Indo proposal that third party be asked to serve by U Thant rather than be appointed by U Thant.

2) Dutch will do everything on their part to maintain secrecy of talks.

3) Also agree there is to be no daily reporting by third party to U Thant as long as understood he will report “when anything new comes up.”

4) Dutch do, however, attach importance to fact of talks taking place being publicized. It was pointed out that Indonesian reference to precedent of French-Algerian talks would mean that fact of talks taking place, though of course not substance of talks, would be made public.

5) They would prefer that locale not be London, but rather somewhere in reach of Washington and New York, preferably within US.

6) Dutch lay great stress on necessity of avoiding any further military preparations and inflammatory statements while talks in progress.

Secretary has asked Dutch consider following individuals for third party role: Ellsworth Bunker, Frederic Boland, Ernest Gross, Eugene Black, Walt Rostow, John McCloy, Hamilton Fish Armstrong. In our view Bunker would be particularly outstanding candidate.

Request you see Sukarno or Subandrio soonest and pass on substance this message including list of names suggested to Dutch.³ You should stress Secretary’s view that Bunker would be absolutely first class. Believe with favorable Indo reaction this message we should be able firm up arrangements for secret talks get under way.

Rusk

0. Source: Department of State, Central Files, 656.9813/3–562. Confidential. Drafted by Stone; cleared by Tyler, U. Alexis Johnson, Buffum, and Rice in draft; and approved by Bell. Repeated to The Hague and USUN.
1. In telegram 1586 from Djakarta, March 4, Jones reported that at U.S. instigation Sukarno had agreed to secret preliminary talks with the Dutch in the presence of a third party. There would be no precondition as long as it was understood that transfer of administration of West Irian (West New Guinea) would be the first issue raised by the Indonesians. Sukarno agreed that the mediator could be asked to serve by U Thant, but there could be no reporting to U Thant by the third party. Sukarno preferred an American of stature, an “honest man,” with no affiliation to the United Nations. According to telegram 990 to Djakarta, March 4, when this information was presented to the Netherlands Embassy in Washington, Schiff asked if Jones had also received specific assurances that threats would cease during the talks. Schiff promised to cable this information to The Hague. (Both ibid., 656.9813/3–462)
2. Telegram 1590 from Djakarta, March 5, reported that Subandrio stressed that the Indonesians did not want the secret talks to be publicized in advance of the discussions. (Ibid., 656.9813/3–563)
3. In telegram 1616 from Djakarta, March 10, Jones reported that Subandrio agreed in general to the points in telegram 998, but felt it important that the talks be publicized as “preliminary discussion, preparatory contact, or the like rather than negotiations.” Subandrio’s first choice for the third party was Rostow, because he was the only candidate he knew. (Ibid., 656.9813/3–562)