Matthews files, lot 53 D 413: Telegram
The Joint Chiefs of Staff to the Commander in Chief Far East (Clark)
JCS 938085. From JCS to CINCUNC.
Circumstances surrounding UNC nomination Pakistan as indicated in para 2 ur ZX 364561 appear to be somewhat at variance with instructions [Page 970] contained in para 3 of DA 938041.2 Since Congressional leaders were consulted in preparation those instructions and since they were approved by PresUS, it is anticipated that JCS may be queried as to exact circumstances and considerations involved in nomination without having first elicited from Commies statement that they were prepared to accept nomination by UNC of any one of 4 Asian States named by Commies. Request ur comments ASAP.
- In this telegram, dated May 4, Clark transmitted to the JCS and Briggs the record of the May 4 plenary session at Panmunjom, in which Harrison officially nominated Pakistan as the neutral state and stated that, as Pakistan was one of the four Asian countries originally suggested by the Communists, acceptance should be forthcoming. Nam Il, Harrison’s Communist counterpart, refused to agree to a neutral state until the question of physically moving prisoners of war out of Korea to a neutral state was resolved. (Matthews files, lot 53 D 413)↩
- Dated May 2, p. 962.↩