154. Memorandum of a Conversation Between the Secretary of State and the President, Washington, August 29, 1956, 9:30 a.m.1
[Here follows discussion of developments regarding the Suez Canal crisis.]
(4) I mentioned the attitude of Panama toward the Panama Canal and their conniving with Nasser and apparently deciding on a policy of making the Panamanian nationalization or internationalization of the Canal a major issue of Panama politics. I said this made me feel more than ever the desirability of instituting talks with regard to the Nicaragua Canal. I said I thought we needed to have some alternative. The President authorized me to proceed on this as soon as possible, pointing out that already ships were being built too big to go through the Panama Canal and that a sea level canal through Nicaragua would be much more practical.
[Here follows discussion of matters unrelated to Panama.]
- Source: Eisenhower Library, Dulles Papers, Meetings with the President. Secret. Extract.↩