840.20/3–1749
Memorandum of Conversation, by the Secretary of State
| Participants: | Mr. Bjarni Benediktsson, Foreign Minister of Iceland |
| Mr. Eysteinn Jonsson, Leader, Progressive Party | |
| Mr. Emil Jonsson, Leader, Social Democratic Party | |
| Mr. Thor Thors, Minister of Iceland | |
| The Secretary | |
| Mr. Gross, Assistant Secretary | |
| Mr. John D. Hickerson, Director, EUR | |
| Mr. Benjamin M. Hulley, Chief, NOE |
The Foreign Minister expressed appreciation of the full and frank discussions with my colleagues on the many questions which he asked. He said he had been a sort of Spanish inquisitor and that the way in which his questions had been answered could not have been more satisfactory. He thought he had all the information necessary to explain the Pact to the people of Iceland. He had no other questions to bring up.
I thanked him for his kind statement and assured him it had been a pleasure to have him and his colleagues here to engage in the talks which this visit made possible.
(A joint press release was agreed to.)
I said that I understood from Mr. Hickerson that the phrase “including the use of armed forces” in Article 5 was troubling the Foreign Minister and that a suggestion had been made that in a brief speech incidental to the signing ceremony, he might mention the special status of Iceland as a country without armed forces. There would undoubtedly be speeches made by each Foreign Minister at that time and I thought it would be proper to follow this suggestion if the Icelandic Foreign Minister so desired. Mr. Benediktsson thanked me but said that he would want to discuss with his colleagues the best manner of handling this and he would not decide it until after his return to Iceland.
[Page 237]Mr. Gross asked about the prospective Icelandic schedule. Mr. Benediktsson said he would be back in Reykjavik on Monday, March 21 and would immediately lay the matter before his colleagues in the Cabinet. After that the various parties would hold party meetings to discuss it and it was there that the real decision would be made. There would then be a public debate in Parliament. Possibly by the end of the week (March 26) the matter would be decided.