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The Minister in Panama (Summerlin) to the Secretary of State
[Received 12:50 p.m.]
59. President Arias announced at a press conference yesterday that if no agreement is reached on points which Panama considers vital or of fundamental importance the proposed new United States–Panama Treaty would not be signed. He stated further that agreement had already been reached on matters of secondary importance and on some matters considered by Panama to be fundamental but that “there are others still pending in which this country is so interested that she would prefer to have no treaty than to allow that they be dispensed [Page 901] with in the discussions now under way at Washington.” Dr. Arias did not specify what he considered “fundamental points”.