891.00/1–246: Telegram
The Secretary of State to the Ambassador in Iran (Murray)
4. The Iranian Ambassador12 has informed the Department that the Iranian Government, in considering whether to bring Iran’s case before the General Assembly of the United Nations during the meeting this month in London, desired to have assurance in advance that the United States and Great Britain would support the Iranian position. In the absence of such assurance, the Iranian Government would hesitate to take a step which would further widen the breach between Iran and the Soviet Union without accomplishing any constructive results.
The Ambassador has been informed that while the American Government has in no way changed its policy as regards Iran, which is [Page 293] based firmly on the Declaration regarding Iran and on the United Nations Charter, the American Government could not undertake to give advance assurances of the position it would take in any case of this kind to be brought before UNO. The United States has friendly relations with both the Soviet Union and with Iran, and for us to give advance commitments to either side would not be in harmony either with those friendly relations or with the spirit of the United Nations. The Ambassador was authorized, however, to assure his Government that the United States intends to carry out the commitments which it made when it signed the Charter of the United Nations, and that it intends fully to support the principles of the Charter in any matters which may be presented to the UNO.
As regards press reports which have recently appeared from London to the effect that the United States and Great Britain are discussing the Iranian question in an effort to prevent its being brought before the UNO, you may inform the Iranian Government that the United States is of the view that any member of UNO should be entirely free to present its case to that organization.
- Hussein Ala.↩