Editorial Note
In Press Release No. 323 of April 6, 1950, the Department of State announced the appointment of John Foster Dulles as Consultant to the Secretary of State. Full text of the release is printed in Department of State Press Releases, 1950, under date. For a partial text, see Department of State Bulletin, April 24, 1950, page 661. Mr. Dulles’ appointment became effective April 19.
Text of Secretary Acheson’s statement of April 6 regarding the status in the Department of Mr. Dulles, Ambassador Jessup, and John Sherman Cooper, also a Consultant to the Secretary, is ibid., page 662.
An unsigned memorandum of a telephone conversation held April 6 between Michael McDermott, Special Assistant to the Secretary for Press Relations, and Charles Ross, Press Secretary to the President (then in Key West, Florida) reads in part:
“[Mr. Ross] said President is looking for somebody who is concerned with the peace treaties who will be working on a global scale but with particular reference to Japan. According to President’s understanding, that job is yet to be filled and looking for a man to fill it, and President said that need not necessarily be a Republican. He wants the best man.”
This paper and its attachments contain additional information regarding the background to Mr. Dulles’ appointment. (110.17 DU/4–650)
Documents in file 110.17 DU for the first half of April 1950 indicate that leading officials of the Department were considering Mr. Dulles for a variety of assignments, including several having to do with Far Eastern questions.
[Page 1161]In a memorandum to the Secretary of April 18 Mr. Rusk stated in part:
“The following are my suggestions about how we might best use Mr. Dulles, subject to his own views and the availability of his time:
- 1.
- First Priority should be given to the development of a bipartisan position on the Japanese Peace Settlement. Mr. Butterworth has made good progress on this in the past two weeks and the subject lends itself to an initial bi-partisan agreement on a matter which has not become a bone of partisan contention. Mr. Dulles should be brought fully into this operation in order to be in position to take a leading role in the international negotiations which would be required.”
Other possibilities mentioned by Mr. Rusk were, in descending order of priority, the development of an agreed bipartisan foreign policy toward the Far East as a whole, an examination of United States strategy in the forthcoming session of the United Nations General Assembly, a reexamination of the Department’s information program, and examination of a number of proposals for further steps in international organization. (110.17 DU/4–1450)
On May 18, upon the nomination of Mr. Butterworth to be Ambassador to Sweden, Mr. Dulles succeeded to the former’s special responsibilities regarding a Japanese settlement.