Office of the Historian

206. Minutes of the 29th Meeting of the Council on Foreign Economic Policy, Executive Office Building, Washington, October 25, 1955, 4 p.m.1

Washington, October 25, 1955, 4 p.m.

ATTENDANCE

  • Messrs. Hoover, Kalijarvi, Nichols, Morse, Butz, Pendleton, Cooley, Rock, Thorp, Rockefeller, May, Hauge, Davis, Anderson, Johnson, Brundage, Hutchinson, Fitzgerald, Charrette, Smith, Foster, Humphrey, Overby, McCaskill, Dodge, Cullen, McGlauflin

Draft Minutes of the 28th Meeting, Tuesday, October 11, 1955 were approved.2

AGENDA SUBJECTS

CFEP 531. U.S. Policy With Respect to International Commodity Agreements.3

1.
The Chairman summarized and reviewed the proposals in CFEP 531/1 concerning U.S. policy with respect to international commodity agreements. After discussion of the proposed U.S. positions the Council adopted the following policy statement:

“The United States shares the concern of other nations about the problems arising from commodity price and market instability and is prepared to discuss and explore with other governments possible approaches to these problems.

“The United States believes that there are few situations where international commodity agreements may be appropriate or desirable and the United States would be prepared to participate in a particular commodity agreement only when such participation can be demonstrated to be clearly in the national interest of the United States.

“Representatives of the United States will not participate in any discussion or meeting with respect to an international commodity agreement and will make no commitment as to U.S. participation in such an agreement until approved at the inter-agency policy level within the Executive Branch.”

2.
The Council discussion emphasized that the above policy statement was to ensure that United States interests were determined at the policy level prior to any discussion which might lead to misimpressions or implied commitments as to U.S. intentions with respect to new proposals or proposals to renew or withdraw from existing agreements.
[Page 546]

[Here follows discussion of unrelated subjects.]

Paul H. Cullen
Lt. Col., USA
  1. Source: Eisenhower Library, CFEP Records, Minutes. Confidential.↩
  2. Not printed. (Ibid.)↩
  3. Documentation on this subject is ibid.,CFEP 531 Agenda Subject File.↩