Foreign Relations of the United States, 1949, The Near East, South Asia, and Africa, Volume VI

891.24/9–249

Memorandum by Major General L. L. Lemnitzer ¹ to the Coordinator for Military Assistance Programs (Berkner)

secret

Washington, September 2, 1949.

Subject: List of Military Supply Requirements Submitted by Iran.

In your memorandum of July 27, 1949,² subject as above, you re quested that I keep you advised of any developments concerning Iranian military requirements which might arise through military channels.

Several versions of Iranian military requirements have been received by the Department of Defense: The orginallist, dated 6 June 1949, calling for equipment valued at about $200,000,000; a modified list, dated 8 July 1949, prepared by the Iranian Government after discussion with Major General Vernon Evans, Chief of the U.S. Military Mission, and totaling $175,000,000; General Evans’ own recommendation for equipping the Iranian Army, which, together with appropriate instruction of Iranians in U.S. Service Schools would cost $30,000,000; and finally a recent supplement, prepared by the Iranian Government without consulting General Evans, which re quests sufficient additional equipment for an army of 300,000.

In general, the basic disagreement between Evans and the Iranians is on the size of the army. Evans favors training and equipping the present army of 113,000 men, while the Iranian General Staff is determined to have an army of 300,000 no matter how inadequately trained and equipped. We, of course, are inclined to support Evans’ view, and our Army logisticians are using his recommendations as a basis in reconciling requirements to the funds which are expected to be available.³

1. Special Assistant to the Secretary of Defense on Foreign Military Assistance.
2. Memorandum not found in Department of State files.
3. As recently as August 16, Iranian Military Attaché Mazhari presented the Iranian case for an army of 150,000 men to the Department of Defense, emphasizing that an army of the present size (113,000 men) would be sufficient only for purposes of internal security, whereas the Iranians must be prepared to defend themselves against external aggression (memorandum of August 25 by Mr. Jernegan to Mr. McGhee, 891.20/8–2549).