86011.01/11–1945
Memorandum of Conversation, by the Deputy Director of the Office of European Affairs (Hickerson)
Mr. Balfour83 handed me this afternoon the attached paraphrase of a telegram dated November 17 from the Foreign Office84 in regard to the proposed Foreign Office guidance to the press in connection with the publication of the British note to Tito of some days ago.
I told Mr. Balfour that we had been considering this matter further and had reached the conclusion that on balance it would be preferable not to publish our note at this time. I added that we had not yet received a reply from Tito and that this was given informally to the press some days ago as a reason why we could not at this time publish our note. I went on to say that the present does not seem to be an especially timely moment to publish the notes. In the circumstances I said that we felt that it was preferable not to publish either our note or for the British to publish their note at this time. Mr. Balfour asked what I thought of the telegram on press guidance. I answered that since we feel that it would be preferable not to publish the notes at this time, I had read the telegram very hastily and had no views to express on it at this time.
Mr. Balfour said that he agreed that it would probably be preferable not to publish the notes at this time, and that he would so recommend to the Foreign Office.