501.BC Atomic/7–946
The United States Representative on the Atomic Energy Commission (Baruch) to the Under Secretary of State (Acheson)
My Dear Mr. Acheson: Referring to your letter of July 1st, as to the dissemination of the atomic energy statement, that can best be done by sending copies of the full text to the embassies. General Smith would have had a different idea if he had gotten the full text and not the garbled report prepared for their own purposes in Pravda. I presume that General Smith will, by this time, have received a copy of the full report.
You misunderstood my reference to disarmament. It wasn’t that I wanted to raise the point but to say that a wide opening had been left if there was anybody considering that matter. Everyone discussing atomic energy or other weapons of mass destruction says that elimination and outlawing of war are the only answer. But, as the President and you say, that is not my task. My associates and myself have gone ahead with ours as expeditiously and unremittingly as possible.
I wish there was some way of saying to the Australian Government how helpful Evatt has been, especially in his understanding of the matter and of his driving it forward.
I understand there is to be a meeting of the National Committee for Civilian Control of Atomic Energy, at which the Secretary of the Lilienthal Board of Consultants, by the name of Carroll Wilson, is to speak and, also, Secretary Wallace.13 I hope they understand that the statement delivered by me to the Atomic Energy Commission is the proposal of our Government, the President and the Secretary of State and is not to be considered the Baruch proposal. Word might be sent to them in order that men representing the Government should not be taking a position contrary to the American position.
I know you are being kept posted as to what is going on.
Sincerely yours,
- Henry A. Wallace, Secretary of Commerce.↩