297. Letter From the Director of the Foreign Operations Administration (Stassen) to the Under Secretary of State (Hoover)1
Dear Mr. Hoover: Acting on the recommendation made to me in your letter of January 272 that an ad hoc committee be established to consider additional assistance for Iran to support training for the Iranian armed forces, staff of the Foreign Operations Administration met with representatives of the Departments of State and Defense on February 3. I understand that agreement was reached at this meeting on the following points: (a) the program requested by the Country Team, variously priced at $3,752,000 and $4,065,000, is a desirable initial step to support the Iranian training effort; (b) to this end the Department of Defense will provide MDAP funds in the amount of up to $3,500,000 to finance purchases of clothing, training facilities, classrooms, and POL; (c) it is tentatively planned that of this amount, $1,500,000 will be transferred to FOA for implementation of all items except the provision of clothing; (d) the Country Team will consider the desirability of diverting local currency generated under the current Development Assistance to provide immediately a portion of the local currency costs of the package—the dollar value of this additional assistance to be in the amount of $272,000–$565,000; and (e) the Shah be informed prior to his departure from the United States that the general elements of the training support program proposed by the Country Team will be assisted, although no specific dollar amounts will be mentioned.
The foregoing recommendations of the ad hoc committee were discussed by me with Mr. Nolting and representatives of the Department of Defense and the Bureau of the Budget on the afternoon of February 3 and there was unanimous agreement that these recommendations [Page 709] should be supported. The same meeting agreed that the source of the $3,500,000 of dollar financing should be the $20,500,000 of MDAP funds previously earmarked for Egypt which has been the subject of prior correspondence between the Departments of State and Defense.3 Accordingly, we stand ready to approve the programming of the additional assistance in the amount of $3,500,000 and to authorize the United States Operations Mission in Iran to seek agreement with the Government of Iran to reprogram up to $565,000 in rials generated from the present program for immediate support of the training operation. Sincerely yours,
- Source: Department of State, Central Files, 788.5–MSP/2–555. Secret.↩
- Document 292.↩
- For documentation on the earlier question of MDAP funding for Egypt, see Foreign Relations, 1952–1954, vol IX, Part 2, pp. 1743 ff.↩