840.50/1442
Memorandum of Conversation, by the Under Secretary of State (Welles)
The Canadian Chargé d’Affaires, Mr. Pearson, called to see me this afternoon and left with me the memorandum attached herewith.24
Mr. Pearson told me that he had already discussed the main issues taken up in the memorandum with Mr. Acheson. He said that the present document had been drafted by the Canadian War Council.
After reading the memorandum, I told Mr. Pearson that I found it very difficult to express any opinion counter to the considerations set forth in this memorandum inasmuch as I believed that Canadian participation in the work of this Committee would be in the highest degree useful. I said, however, that the proposal involved questions of very great political significance, quite apart from the question of Canadian participation. I said that, as Mr. Pearson already knew, the suggestion would involve the selection as an additional member of the Relief and Rehabilitation Committee of some occupied country of Europe and it was very apparent that the Soviet Government was firmly opposed to such appointment. I said that it was not necessary for me to stress to Mr. Pearson the great desirability of our working out questions of this character in full harmony and cooperation with the Soviet Government and, for that reason, I was not in a position to give him any reply today to the question raised in his memorandum. I said that full consideration would again be given to this question and that a written response would be addressed to the Canadian Legation.
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