Foreign Relations of the United States, 1947, The British Commonwealth; Europe, Volume III

SWNCC Files

¹

The Acting Secretary of State to the Secretary of War (Patterson)²

secret

[Washington,] 5 March 1947.

My Dear Mr. Secretary: Subsequent to our meeting Wednesday morning, February 25 [26], 1947, President Truman approved in principle the measures which you endorsed for immediate aid to Greece and Turkey as set forth in the memorandum entitled ‘Position and Recommendations of the Department of State Regarding Immediate Aid to Greece and Turkey’.³ Congressional leaders have been informed of the nature of the problem and the urgency of the need for our assistance to these countries. They also approve in principle the general program for aid.

In the course of our discussions on the Greek and Turkish problem, frequent reference was made to the fact that this is only part of a much larger problem growing out of the change in Great Britain’s strength and other circumstances not directly related to this development. I believe it important and urgent that study be given by our most competent officers to situations elsewhere in the world which may require analogous financial, technical and military aid on our part.

I have asked Assistant Secretary Hilldring as Chairman of the State–War–Navy Coordinating Committee, to direct the attention of that committee to this important problem and, in consultation with the Treasury Department, undertake a thorough study to be submitted to me or Secretary Marshall as soon as possible.⁴

Sincerely yours,

[

Dean Acheson

]

1. State–War–Navy Coordinating Committee.
2. Attached as Enclosure “B” to SWNCC document SWN–5231, March 18, 1947.
3. For documentation regarding this subject, see vol. v, pp. 1 ff.
4. The State–War–Navy Coordinating Committee, at its 55th Meeting on March 11, 1947, agreed to appoint an ad hoc Committee to study and report on the problems incident to possible requests which might be made to the United States by foreign governments for substantial economic, financial or technical assistance, or for military equipment. Mr. W. A. Eddy, Department of State, Brig. Gen. George A. Lincoln, War Department, and Rear Adm. E. T. Wooldridge, Navy Department, were designated by their respective departments to serve on this committee. Document SWN–5231 was circulated by the SWNCC Secretariat to the ad hoc Committee.