Office of the Historian

700.5 MSP/2–2552

Memorandum by the Assistant to the Director of Mutual Security (Ohly) to the Special Assistant to the Secretary of State for Mutual Security Affairs (Merchant)

secret
Washington, February 25, 1952.
  • Subject:
  • FY 1953 Program—Adjustments in Basic Programming Figures.

Reference is made to the memorandum to you from Mr. Lincoln Gordon dated January 31, 1952 and entitled “FY 1953 Program— Basic Programming Figures”,1 which set forth what were then firm figures for the several major component elements of the Mutual Security Program.

Since the transmittal of the aforementioned memorandum, and as a result of Presidential decisions,2 the figures therein referred to, and specifically itemized in Annex A thereto, have been amended in the following particulars:

1.
“Military Aid for all Areas” has been reduced from $5.4 billion to $5.35 billion.
2.
“Economic Aid and Technical Assistance for all Areas” has been increased from $2.41 billion to $2.475 billion.
3.
“Economic Aid and Technical Assistance for the Middle East and Africa” has been increased from $136 million to $196 million.
4.
“Economic Aid and Technical Assistance for the Arab States” has been increased from $17.5 million to $22.5 million.
5.
“Economic Aid and Technical Assistance for Israel” has been increased from $25 million to $80 million.
6.
“Economic Aid and Technical Assistance for South Asia” has been increased from $90 million to $150 million.
7.
“Economic Aid and Technical Assistance for Southeast Asia and Pacific” has been decreased from $300 million to $245 million.
8.
“Assistance to UNKRA”, in the amount of $55 million, has been eliminated.
9.
“Administration” has been reduced from $90 million to $75 million.

[Page 469]

Necessary adjustments in programming should immediately be made to take into account these revised figures. I am attaching hereto a revised Annex A.

John H. Ohly

Annex A (Revised)

secret
[Washington,] February 25, 1952.

Aid Distribution For FY 1953

(In Millions of Dollars)

Area, Country of Type of Aid
Military Aid for all Areas (Includes funds for U.S. produced end-items, for an estimated $1 billion of offshore procurement in Europe and for military training) 5350.0
Economic Aid and Technical Assistance for all Areas 2475.0
Europe(*) 1805.0
NATO and Germany Country Aid(†) 1400.0
Non-NATO Country Aid(†)(‡) 370.2
Miscellaneous(*) 34.8
Movement of European People 10.0
Technical Assistance 22.0
CARE 2.8
The Middle East and Africa 196.0
Palestine Refugees 65.0
The Arab States 22.5
Israel 80.0
Iran 25.0
Independent African Nations 3.5
South Asia 150.0
Southeast Asia and Pacific 245.0
Southeast Asia (includes $35 million for common use items) 130.0
Formosa (includes $35 million for common use items) 115.0
Latin America (includes contribution to OAS) 23.0
Miscellaneous 56.0
Multilateral Technical Assistance (excludes contribution to OAS) 16.0
Basic Materials Development 40.0
Administration 75.0
  1. Supra.↩
  2. At the Secretary’s Staff Meeting on Feb. 26, 1952, Merchant reported that there had been a meeting the previous day with the President to decide on what had to be done regarding proposals for an additional $55 million for Israel and additional $60 million for India and Pakistan, and Ambassador Locke’s proposal to increase by $100 million the amount recommended for the Middle East region. The notes of the meeting read in part as follows: “The President decided that there would be no change in the ceiling of the program of $7.9 billion. He approved $55 million in addition for Israel, $60 million for India and Pakistan, and $5 million for the Middle East requests. $50 million of the $120 million additional will come from the military end-item program of $5.4 billion; $15 million will come from the administrative side; and $55 million will come from the elimination of a new request for UNKRA.” It was felt that the UNKRA program could be handled by “other means”. (Secretary’s Staff Meetings, lot 63 D 375, “Documents Jan–Aug, 1952”)↩
  3. Does not include $40 million for basic materials development which is listed separately. [Footnote in the source text.]↩
  4. Economic aid for Greece and Turkey are included in the non-NATO figure. [Footnote in the source text.]↩
  5. Economic aid for Greece and Turkey are included in the non-NATO figure. [Footnote in the source text.]↩
  6. Does not include any specific allowance for economic aid to Spain. [Footnote in the source text.]↩
  7. Does not include $40 million for basic materials development which is listed separately. [Footnote in the source text.]↩