Foreign Relations of the United States, 1952–1954, Germany and Austria, Volume VII, Part 1

Secretary’s Memoranda of Conversation, lot 64 D 199

No. 325
Foreign Secretary Eden to the Secretary of State ¹

secret

[ London , January 7, 1954?]

Many thanks for your message suggesting that we should have a preliminary meeting with Monsieur Bidault to complete our plans before the Berlin Conference.²

I entirely agree that we should have a meeting of this kind. The preparatory work already done has shown that we are all three in broad agreement on essentials but we must also discuss our tactics before we meet Mr. Molotov.

While I have nothing against Paris as a meeting place, I wonder whether it would not be more convenient for us all, given the uncertainties about flying weather, if we arranged to meet in Berlin. We could arrive on Friday, January 22, and we should then have the 23rd and, if necessary, the 24th for our talks. This would enable the High Commissioners and our own staffs to be with us in Berlin, to complete all the technical preparations for the four-power meeting and to be available for our preparatory talks.

I have serious doubts about inviting Dr. Adenauer to meet us. Our preparatory consultation with him is going very well and, so far as I know, there are no major problems which need to be discussed personally by us. If such problems should arise, we can think again. As I understand it, our preparatory meeting will be mainly about the tactical handling of the meetings with Mr. Molotov, with which Dr. Adenauer is not directly concerned. If we invite him to meet us, we may give a false and undesirable impression that there are major difficulties on which we have had to carry him along with us, or, alternatively, on which he had tried to tie our hands before the Conference.

I cannot help feeling also that, if we met Dr. Adenauer before the Conference, we would also have to invite the Austrian Foreign Minister, or Austrian public opinion would be offended. I cannot think this is either necessary or desirable.

May I say in conclusion that I also am very much looking forward to meeting you again and to working together in Berlin.

I am sending a similar message to Monsieur Bidault.³

1. The source text was attached to a memorandum of conversation by Merchant, dated Jan. 7, which indicated that Ambassador Makins had left Eden’s message with Secretary Dulles on that day.
2. Document 321.
3. Bidault had received his copy before de Margerie delivered his reply to Dulles’ message, and in his comments de Margerie stated that Bidault was not impressed with Eden’s reasons for holding the meeting in Berlin, but would go along with the idea if Dulles approved it. (Telegram 2529 from Paris, Jan. 7, 396.1 BE/1–754)