Editorial Note

A second military coup in Syria took place on August 14 (see Secretary Acheson’s memorandum of September 19 to the President, page 1635).

Faiz el-Khouri, the Syrian Minister, called on Mr. McGhee on August 15. Harlan B. Clark’s memorandum of their conversation expressed the Minister’s hope that “the United States and other great powers would not move as quickly to recognize the new government as it had with respect to the Zaim Government, and specifically that recognition would not be extended until democratic institutions were clearly functioning again in Syria. He said that the fact that the United States Government, which professed to be a leading exponent of the principles of democratic freedom, had unhesitatingly recognized the dictatorial Zaim Government had greatly surprised people in the Near East. In the same way they wondered when they saw the United States giving unqualified support to the King of Saudi Arabia whose autocratic regime had no semblance to western democratic [Page 1633] systems. Mr. McGhee said we appreciated Faiz Bey’s frank comments in this regard but pointed out that we had given very careful consideration to all factors involved before extending recognition to the Zaim Government. It was certainly true that the United States wished to support the development of democratic liberties in the Near East but that we had found from long experience that the withholding of recognition did not always achieve the desired objective and in fact it sometimes appeared to have the opposite effect. It was also true that in giving support to King Ibn Saud we by no means failed to be mindful of the needs of the Saudi people and were assisting him and indeed even influencing him in ways which would bring benefit to the whole nation.” (890D.00/8–1549)

Mr. Clark was an officer of the Division of Near Eastern Affairs.