Office of the Historian

717.5/5–553

Memorandum of Conversation, by the Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Inter-American Affairs (Mann)

secret
[Washington,] May 5, 1953.

Subject:

  • Proposal for a Military Agreement between the U.S. and Nicaragua
  • Participants: Señor Dr. Guillermo Sevilla Sacasa, Ambassador of Nicaragua
  • U—The Undersecretary1
  • ARA—Mr. Mann

The Ambassador called at his request on the Undersecretary and, after presenting the greetings of President Somoza, spoke of the concern of his Government with the growth of communist influence in Guatemala. He said that because of the disparity in military strength between Guatemala and its neighbors to the south there was, in the opinion of Nicaragua, both a danger of communist infiltration from Guatemala into small neighboring republics and a risk that these neighboring states would reach an understanding with Guatemala. Communist influence also exists to a lesser degree in Costa Rica and the communist plan doubtless is eventually to control Central America, Panama and Venezuela. He described the situation in Venezuela as “not good”.

[Page 1378]

The Ambassador then said that Nicaragua, as the traditional and constant friend of the United States, is the logical and strategic place to build up as an anti-communist bulwark. Nicaragua needs arms and is ready to sign a bilateral western hemisphere agreement similar to the ones which exist between the United States and some seven other American Republics. Nicaragua is prepared, he said, to sign irrespective of whether or not similar agreements are signed with other Central American countries.

The Undersecretary said that he valued Nicaragua’s friendship arid shared the Ambassador’s apprehensions concerning the dangers which communism represent in Central America. He said that the possibility of entering into agreements of the kind mentioned by the Ambassador is already under consideration and he instructed Mr. Mann to expedite a decision.

After leaving the Undersecretary’s office the Ambassador informed Mr. Mann that he was very pleased with the conversation.

  1. Walter Bedell Smith.↩