Office of the Historian

740.0011 EW (Peace)/6–1147

Memorandum by the Acting Director of the Office of European Affairs (Hickerson)1

[Washington,] June 11, 1947.

Subject: Recommendation to the President for a Statement on Italy

discussion

Execution by the President of the instrument of ratification of the Treaty of Peace with Italy2 will afford an opportunity to issue a statement in his name reiterating US views on the treaty as well as US support for a democratic Italy. Through the Italian Ambassador in Washington, De Gasperi has indicated that such a statement would be helpful at this time in securing ratification by the Italian Constituent Assembly.3

recommendation

That the attached draft statement be transmitted to the President with the recommendation that it be issued by the White House on the [Page 549] occasion of the execution of the instrument of ratification of the Treaty of Peace with Italy.4

  1. Addressed through Under Secretary of State Acheson to the Secretary. A handwritten marginal note reads: “I concur. D[ean] A[cheson]”.↩
  2. Instruction No. 3084, June 18, not printed, forwarded the instrument of ratification to the Embassy in France and directed that it be retained by the Embassy until further instructions were received concerning its deposit with the French Foreign Ministry (740.0011 EW (Peace)/6–1847).↩
  3. See memorandum of conversation, by Mr. Samuel Reber, May 10, p. 545.↩

  4. President Truman concurred in the recommendation. On June 14 he ratified the Treaty of Peace with Italy and issued the statement. For text, see Department of State Bulletin, June 22, 1947, p. 1214.

    On that same day Ambassador Tarchiani sent a personal letter, not printed, to President Truman thanking him for his statement (740.0011 EW/6–1447).

    Two days later, in a note to the Secretary, not printed, Tarchiani asked that a message of thanks from the Italian Foreign Minister, Count Sforza, be transmitted to President Truman.

    ↩