500.A15A4 Permanent Disarmament Commission/83
Memorandum by the Secretary of State
The Soviet Chargé d’Affaires38 came in and inquired what my attitude was in regard to Mr. Litvinoff’s permanent disarmament organization proposal. After expressing the keen interest of this Government in every effort and plan to promote peace and its readiness at all times to cooperate to the fullest extent feasible, I suggested that the most difficult feature the Litvinoff proposal presented to this Government was the political involvement phase. I then added, without making the slightest commitments, that this Government was closely and sympathetically observing every effort and method intended to promote peace, as it was every feasible chance to cooperate. I left the Chargé with the definite understanding that the political phases of the Litvinoff permanent disarmament organization proposal would not permit this Government to make any affirmative commitments.
The Chargé, having just returned from Moscow,39 then spoke at some length about the immense improvement that he said he observed in conditions in various parts of the Soviet; that developments were very surprising. He referred both to external commerce and to the industrial situation.