Office of the Historian

List of Abbreviations and Symbols

Editor’s Note—This list does not include standard abbreviations in common usage; unusual abbreviations of rare occurrence which are clarified at appropriate points; and those abbreviations and contractions which, although uncommon, are understandable from the context.

  • A, Office of the Assistant Secretary of State for Administration
  • A/, series indicator for documents of the General Assembly of the United Nations
  • A/C.6/L, series indicator for documents of the Sixth Committee of the General Assembly of the United Nations
  • A/CN.4, series indicator for documents of the International Law Commission of the General Assembly of the United Nations
  • A/MS, Management Staff, Bureau of Administration, Department of State
  • ACEP, Advisory Committee on Export Policy
  • AEC, Atomic Energy Commission
  • A.F. of L., American Federation of Labor
  • AG, Attorney General
  • AIOC, Anglo–Iranian Oil Company
  • AMC, Additional Measures Committee of the United Nations (for prosecution of the Korean war)
  • AMP, additional military production
  • AOA, American Overseas Airlines
  • AR, Annual Review (of North Atlantic Treaty Organization force levels and goals)
  • AR, Office of Regional American Affairs, Department of State
  • ARA, Bureau of Inter-American Affairs, Department of State
  • ARAMCO, Arabian American Oil Company
  • AV, Aviation Policy Staff, Department of State
  • B.A., Bricker Amendment
  • B/D, barrels (of oil) per day
  • BL, Black List (an export control measure)
  • BNA, Office of British and Northern European Affairs, Bureau of European Affairs, Department of State
  • BOB, Bureau of the Budget
  • BOP, balance of payments
  • BOT, Board of Trade (British)
  • C, Office of the Counselor, Department of State
  • CA, circular airgram
  • CA, Office of Chinese Affairs, Department of State
  • CAA, Civil Aeronautics Administration
  • CAB, Civil Aeronautics Board
  • CB, Companion of the Bath (British)
  • CBE, Order of the British Empire
  • CEA, Council of Economic Advisers
  • CF, Conference folder
  • CFEP, Commission on Foreign Economic Policy (Randall Commission)
  • CFEP, Council on Foreign Economic Policy
  • CG, Coast Guard
  • CG/COCOM (CG/CO.COM), Coordinating Committee of the Paris Consultative Group of nations working to control export of strategic goods to Communist countries
  • CHINCOM, China Committee, a permanent working group of the Paris Consultative Group of nations working to control export of strategic goods to Communist countries
  • CIA, Central Intelligence Agency
  • C.I.O., Congress of Industrial Organizations
  • circagam, circular airgram
  • cirtel, circular telegram
  • CMC, Collective Measures Committee, United Nations
  • CMG, Companion of St. Michael and St. George (British)
  • COCOM, Coordinating Committee on export controls, located in Paris
  • COD, cash on delivery
  • CP, Commercial Policy Staff, Bureau of Economic Affairs, Department of State
  • CP, Contracting Party to GATT
  • CSAGI, Comité Spécial de l’Anée Géo-physique Internationale (Special Committee on the International Geophysical Year)
  • CSC, Coal and Steel Community
  • CY, calendar year
  • D, member of the Democratic Party in the United States
  • Dem, Democrat; Democratic Party
  • Depcirctel, circular telegram originating in the Department of State
  • DepSecDef, Deputy Secretary of Defense
  • Dept, Department (usually the Department of State)
  • Deptel, Department of State telegram
  • DMB, Defense Mobilization Board
  • DMS, Director of Mutual Security
  • DOD, Department of Defense
  • DOT, dependent overseas territory
  • DSA, Defense Shipping Authority
  • DSO, Companion of the Distinguished Service Order (British)
  • Dulte, series indicator for telegrams from Secretary of State Dulles while away from Washington
  • E, Bureau of Economic Affairs, Department of State
  • ECA, Economic Cooperation Administration
  • ECE, Economic Commission for Europe
  • ECOSOC, Economic and Social Council of the United Nations
  • ED, Investment and Economic Development Staff, Office of Financial and Development Policy, Department of State
  • EDAC, Economic Defense Advisory Committee
  • EDC, European Defense Community
  • EDT, Office of Economic Defense and Trade Policy, Department of State
  • EE, Office of Eastern European Affairs, Department of State
  • Embdes, Embassy despatch
  • EPU, European Payments Union
  • ERP, European Recovery Program
  • EUR, Bureau of European Affairs, Department of State
  • EUR/RA, Office of European Regional Affairs, Bureau of European Affairs, Department of State
  • E–W, East-West
  • EWT, East-West Trade
  • Excon, series indicator for telegrams, airgrams, and despatches dealing with export controls
  • Exim (Eximbank), Export-Import Bank of Washington
  • FAO, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
  • FBO, Division of Foreign Buildings Operations, Department of State
  • FCC, Federal Communications Commission
  • FCN, Friendship, Commerce, and Navigation (treaty)
  • FE, Bureau of Far Eastern Affairs, Department of State
  • FOA, Foreign Operations Administration
  • FTC, Federal Trade Commission
  • FY, fiscal year
  • GA, General Assembly of the United Nations
  • GATT, General Agreement or Tariffs and Trade
  • GNP, gross national product
  • GOP, Grand Old Party, Republican Party
  • H, Office of the Assistant Secretary of State for Congressional Relations
  • HICOG, United States High Commissioner for Germany
  • H.J. Res., House of Representatives Joint Resolution
  • HMG, His (Her) Majesty’s Government
  • H.R., designation for legislation introduced in the House of Representatives
  • IAC, Intelligence Advisory Committee
  • IBRD, International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (commonly known as the “World Bank”)
  • IC, Division of International Conferences, Department of State
  • ICAO, International Civil Aviation Organization
  • ICCTU, International Confederation of Christian Trade Unions
  • ICDV (IC/DV), Import Certificate and Delivery Verification
  • Ice, Iceland
  • ICEM, Intergovernmental Committee for European Migrants
  • ICFTU, International Confederation of Free Trade Unions
  • I.C.J. (ICJ), International Court of Justice
  • IDAB, International Development Advisory Board
  • IFC, International Finance Corporation
  • IGY, International Geophysical Year
  • IIA, International Information Agency
  • IIAA, Institute of Inter-American Affairs
  • ILC, International Law Commission of the United Nations General Assembly
  • ILO, International Labor Organization
  • IMF, International Monetary Fund
  • INR, Bureau of Intelligence and Research, Department of State
  • IRO, International Refugee Organization
  • ITO, International Trade Organization
  • IWG, Intelligence Working Group (of the Economic Defense Advisory Committee)
  • JCS, Joint Chiefs of Staff
  • L, Office of the Legal Adviser, Department of State
  • L/E, Office of the Assistant Legal Adviser for Economic Affairs, Department of State
  • L/SFP, Office of the Assistant Legal Adviser for Special Functional Problems, Department of State
  • L/T, Office of the Assistant Legal Adviser for Treaty Affairs, Department of State
  • MAAC, Military Assistance Advisory Committee
  • MAAG, Military Assistance Advisory Group
  • MAP, Military Assistance Program
  • MDA, Mutual Defense Assistance
  • MDAP, Mutual Defense Assistance Program
  • ME, Middle East
  • MEA, Middle East Airlines Company
  • MEDO, Middle East Defense Organization
  • MFN, most favored nation
  • MSA, Mutual Security Agency; Mutual Security Act
  • MSP, Mutual Security Program
  • MSTS, Military Sea Transport Service
  • MTSAC, Mutual Trade Security Advisory Committee
  • MWM, metalworking machinery
  • NA, Office of Northeast Asian Affairs, Bureau of Far Eastern Affairs, Department of State
  • NAC, National Advisory Council on International Monetary and Financial Problems
  • NAT, North Atlantic Treaty
  • NATO, North Atlantic Treaty Organization
  • NE, Office of Near Eastern Affairs, Department of State
  • NEA, Bureau of Near Eastern, South Asian, and African Affairs, Department of State
  • NGRC, National Government of the Republic of China
  • niact, night action, communications indicator requiring attention by the recipient at any hour of the day or night
  • NIE, National Intelligence Estimate
  • NSC, National Security Council
  • NSRB, National Security Resources Board
  • O/FE, Office of Far Eastern Operations, Foreign Operations Administration
  • OAS, Organization of American States
  • O.B.E., Officer Order of the British Empire
  • OBF, Office of Budget and Finance, Department of State (to June 1953)
  • OCB, Operations Coordinating Borad
  • ODM, Office of Defense Mobilization
  • ODMS, Office of the Director of Mutual Security
  • OEEC, Organization for European Economic Cooperation
  • OFD, Office of Financial and Development Policy, Department of State
  • OIR, Office of Intelligence Research, Department of State
  • OIR/GE, Special Adviser on Geography, Office of Intelligence Research, Department of State
  • OIT, Office of International Trade, Department of Commerce
  • OMP, Office of International Materials Policy, Department of State
  • OSD, Office of the Secretary of Defense
  • OSP, offshore procurement
  • P, Bureau of Public Affairs, Department of State
  • PAA, Pan American World Airways, Inc.
  • PAB, Public Advisory Board for Mutual Security
  • PAC, Permanent Agricultural Committee (of ILO)
  • PAD, Petroleum Administration for Defense
  • PBOS, Planning Board for Ocean Shipping, NATO
  • PC, participating country (in COCOM)
  • PED, Petroleum Policy Staff, Bureau of Economic Affairs, Department of State
  • PIC, Public Information Committee
  • PICMME, Provisional Intergovernmental Committee for the Movement of Migrants from Europe
  • PL, Public Law
  • POC, Psychological Operations Coordinating Committee (to September 1953)
  • POL, petroleum, oil, lubricants
  • Polto, series indicator for telegrams from the United States Permanent Representative at the North Atlantic Council
  • Pres, President
  • PSA, Office of Philippine and Southeast Asian Affairs, Bureau of Far Eastern Affairs, Department of State
  • PSB, Psychological Strategy Board
  • PSF, President’s Secretary’s Files
  • QC, quantitative controls
  • QR, quantitative restrictions
  • R, member of the Republican Party in the United States
  • R, Office of the Special Assistant for Intelligence, Department of State
  • RA, Office of European Regional Affairs, Bureau of European Affairs, Department of State
  • res, resolution
  • RFC, Reconstruction Finance Corporation
  • RN, Royal Navy (British)
  • ROK, Republic of Korea
  • S., designation for legislation introduced in the United States Senate
  • S/ISA, Director for International Security Affairs, Department of State (abolished in 1951)
  • S/MSA, Special Assistant to the Secretary of State for Mutual Security Affairs
  • S/P, Policy Planning Staff, Department of State
  • S/S, Executive Secretariat, Department of State
  • SA–M, Special Assistant to the Secretary of State for Press Relations
  • SC, Security Council of the United Nations
  • SCAP, Supreme Commander, Allied Powers, Japan
  • SE, Special Estimate
  • SEATO, Southeast Asia Treaty Organization
  • SEC, Securities and Exchange Commission
  • SFRC, Senate Foreign Relations Committee
  • SHAPE, Supreme Headquarters, Allied Powers, Europe
  • S.J. Res., Senate Joint Resolution
  • SOA, Office of South Asian Affairs, Bureau of Near Eastern and South Asian Affairs
  • SRE, United States Special Representative in Europe
  • STEM, United States Special Technical and Economic Mission
  • SUNFED, Special United Nations Fund for Economic Development
  • TAC, Technical Assistance Committee, United Nations
  • TAC, Trade Agreements Committee (Interdepartmental Committee on Trade Agreements)
  • TAC, Transit Authorization Certificate
  • TCA, Technical Cooperation Administration
  • Tedul, series indicator for telegrams to Secretary of State Dulles while away from Washington
  • Topol, series indicator for telegrams to the United States Permanent Representative at the North Atlantic Council
  • TRC, Office of Transport and Communications Policy, Department of State
  • TWA, Trans World Airlines, Inc.
  • U, Office of the Under Secretary of State
  • U/FW, Office of the Special Assistant to the Under Secretary of State (Fisheries and Wildlife)
  • UN, United Nations
  • UNA, Bureau of United Nations Affairs, Department of State
  • UNAMC, United Nations Additional Measures Committee (for prosecution of the Korean war)
  • UNE, Office of United Nations Economic and Social Affairs, Department of State
  • UNESCO, United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization
  • UNETAP, United Nations Expanded Technical Assistance Program
  • UNICEF, United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund
  • UNKRA, United Nations Korean Reconstruction Agency
  • UNRWA, United Nations Relief and Works Agency
  • UnSecState, Under Secretary of State
  • UNTA, United Nations Technical Assistance
  • ur, your
  • USA, United States Army
  • USAF, United States Air Force
  • U.S.C., United States Code
  • USDel, United States Delegation
  • USEUCOM, United States Army, European Command
  • USG, United States Government
  • USIA, United States Information Agency
  • USIE, United States Information and Educational Exchange Program
  • USIIA, United States International Information Agency
  • USIS, United States Information Service
  • USN, United States Navy
  • USOM, United States Operations Mission
  • USRO, Office of the United States Special Representative in Europe
  • USUN, United States Mission at the United Nations
  • VOA, Voice of America
  • VOR, very high frequency omnidirectional range
  • WE, Office of Western European Affairs, Bureau of European Affairs, Department of State
  • W.H., White House
  • WHO, World Health Organization, United Nations
  • WL, White List (export control measure)
  • WP, Working Party (member of intersessional committees set up under GATT)