Preface
Fredrick Aandahl supervised the planning and compilation of
this volume. William Z. Slany succeeded him as editor in
1975 and directed the process of review, declassification, and final
editing.
David H. Stauffer and John A. Bernbaum
prepared the sections on development of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization
and financial assistance for defense of Western Europe. Mr.
Stauffer and Mr. Slany prepared
the section on the tour of capitals by the Supreme Allied Commander, Europe.
Lisle A. Rose compiled the documents on development of
the NATO command structure, and Mr.
Bernbaum those on the seventh and eighth meetings of
the North Atlantic Council. Mr. Slany edited the materials
on the attitude of the United States toward the conference for the organization
of a European defense community. Charles S. Sampson
prepared the sections on meetings at Bonn, discussions concerning a possible
convening of the Council of Foreign Ministers, meetings of the American, French,
and British foreign ministers at Washington, Paris, and Rome, and the entire
compilation on the German question. The technical editing of the volume was done
by the Publishing and Reproduction Division under the direction of
Paul M. Washington and the immediate supervision of
Anne K. Pond. Francis C. Prescott
prepared the index.
The editors acknowledge with appreciation the assistance provided them by the
historians of the Department of Defense, including those of the Joint Chiefs of
Staff. They are also grateful for the cooperation of the North Atlantic Treaty
Organization, the National Security Council, the Department of Defense, and the
Central Intelligence Agency, all of which facilitated declassification of papers
for release in this volume. Thanks are also due to those foreign governments
that kindly granted permission for publication of certain of their
documents.
David F. Trask
The Historian
Bureau of Public Affairs
Principles for the Compilation and Editing of “Foreign
Relations”
The principles which guide the compilation and editing of Foreign Relations are stated in Department of State Regulation 2
FAM 1350
[Page IV]
of June 15, 1961, a
revision of the order approved on March 26, 1925, by Mr. Frank B.
Kellogg, then Secretary of State. The text of the regulation,
as further amended, is printed below:
1350 Documentary Record of American
Diplomacy
1351 Scope of Documentation
The publication Foreign Relations of the United States
constitutes the official record of the foreign policy of the United States.
These volumes include, subject to necessary security considerations, all
documents needed to give a comprehensive record of the major foreign policy
decisions within the range of the Department of State’s responsibilities,
together with appropriate materials concerning the facts which contributed
to the formulation of policies. When further material is needed to
supplement the documentation in the Department’s files for a proper
understanding of the relevant policies of the United States, such papers
should be obtained from other Government agencies.
1352 Editorial Preparation
The basic documentary diplomatic record to be printed in Foreign Relations of the United States is edited by the Historical
Office, Bureau of Public Affairs of the Department of State. The editing of
the record is guided by the principles of historical objectivity. There may
be no alteration of the text, no deletions without indicating where in the
text the deletion is made, and no omission of facts which were of major
importance in reaching a decision. Nothing may be omitted for the purpose of
concealing or glossing over what might be regarded by some as a defect of
policy. However, certain omissions of documents are permissible for the
following reasons:
-
a.
- To avoid publication of matters which would tend to impede current
diplomatic negotiations or other business.
-
b.
- To condense the record and avoid repetition of needless
details.
-
c.
- To preserve the confidence reposed in the Department by
individuals and by foreign governments.
-
d.
- To avoid giving needless offense to other nationalities or
individuals.
-
e.
- To eliminate personal opinions presented in despatches and not
acted upon by the Department. To this consideration there is one
qualification—in connection with major decisions it is desirable,
where possible, to show the alternative presented to the Department
before the decision was made.
1353 Clearance
To obtain appropriate clearances of material to be published in Foreign Relations of the United States, the
Historical Office:
-
a.
- Refers to the appropriate policy offices of the Department and of
other agencies of the Government such papers as appear to require
policy clearance.
-
b.
- Refers to the appropriate foreign governments’ requests for
permission to print as part of the diplomatic correspondence of the
United States those previously unpublished documents which were
originated by the foreign governments.
