Foreign Relations of the United States, 1952–1954, Western Europe and Canada, Volume VI, Part 2

611.42/3–2554

No. 987
The Ambassador in Canada (Stuart) to the Under Secretary of State (Smith)

Ottawa, March 25, 1954.

Dear General: I enjoyed my visit when in Washington last week with the Canadian Delegation.¹ All the Canadian Ministers were enthusiastic, saying it was the best meeting of the kind they had ever attended. I returned to Ottawa on the plane with them and they were quite exhilarated. They came away with the feeling it was our intention to treat them as full partners and give them every consideration in working out our mutual problems in a perfectly fair, frank straightforward way.

As you probably know, Lester Pearson dined with the Secretary Tuesday evening. Mr. Pearson was delighted and came away feeling that they had arrived at a basis of understanding that would bear fruit in future international negotiations.

I had lunch with Mr. Pearson yesterday, and I am perfectly positive that there has been no change in the thinking of the Canadian Government as regards the recognition of Communist China. He, Pearson, said that he thought it was a mistake, particularly in diplomacy, for any country to state that never would it do this, that, or the other thing. He is to make a speech in Parliament tomorrow, outlining foreign policy. He will be followed by the Prime Minister, who I think will deal more specifically with the problems of the Far East, detailing to the Parliament the conclusions that he has drawn as a result of his recent tour.

You will recall that on our last visit I discussed with you the visit of the Governor General to Washington. I spoke to the Secretary about having a luncheon for the Governor General on the Tuesday following the President’s dinner at the White House in his honor. I also indicated to him, and I think I did to you—I certainly did to Sherman Adams—that the Governor General would be highly pleased if he were given an opportunity to address the Congress of the United States. One or two other Governors General of Canada have spoken to the Congress and recently, of course, the Turkish President has addressed the Congress. I hope very much that this can be arranged for I feel that Canada, in the world in which we are living today, is much more important to the United States than is Turkey. I may say that if he is invited to address the Congress he will do a darn good job. He speaks very well and anything he says will be worth listening to.²

I am writing to Livingston Merchant telling him about my conversation with “Mike” Pearson, and also reminding him of the Governor General’s visit.

I think you are aware of the fact that there is a feeling that when the Prime Minister visited Washington last spring there wasn’t quite enough attention shown him. I don’t think he himself cared, but I do hope the red carpet will be pulled out for the Governor General.

With best wishes.

Yours sincerely,

Doug Stuart

1. Several Canadian Cabinet Ministers including the Foreign Minister were in Washington on Mar. 16 for a brief, informal, and unpublicized visit. No other record of this visit has been found in Department of State files.
2. For the text of Massey’s address before a joint session of Congress on May 4, reprinted from the Congressional Record of the same date, see Department of State Bulletin, May 17, 1954, p. 762.