512. White House News Release, Washington, November 5, 19561
The President has just received a letter from Chairman Bulganin which had been previously released to the press in Moscow. This letter—in an obvious attempt to divert world attention from the Hungarian tragedy—makes the unthinkable suggestion that the United States join with the Soviet Union in a bipartite employment of their military forces to stop the fighting in Egypt.
The Middle East question—in which there has been much provocation on all sides—is now before the United Nations. That world body has called for a cease-fire, a withdrawal of foreign armed forces and the entry of a United Nations force to stabilize the situation, pending a settlement. In this connection, it is to be regretted that the Soviet Union did not vote last night in favor of the organization of this United Nations force. All parties concerned, however, should accept these United Nations resolutions promptly and in good faith.
[Page 1008]Neither Soviet nor any other military forces should now enter the Middle East area except under United Nations mandate. Any such action would be directly contrary to the present resolution of the United Nations which has called for the withdrawal of those foreign forces which are now in Egypt. The introduction of new forces under these circumstances would violate the United Nations Charter, and it would be the duty of all United Nations members, including the United States, to oppose any such effort.
While we are vitally concerned with the situation in Egypt, we are equally concerned with the situation in Hungary. There Soviet forces are at this very moment brutally repressing the human rights of the Hungarian people. Only last night the General Assembly in emergency session adopted a resolution calling on the Soviet Union to cease immediately its military operations against the Hungarian people and to withdraw its forces from that country. The Soviet Union voted against this resolution, just as it had vetoed an earlier resolution in the Security Council. The Soviet Union is, therefore, at this moment in defiance of a decision of the United Nations, taken to secure peace and justice in the world.
Under these circumstances, it is clear that the first and most important step that should be taken to ensure world peace and security is for the Soviet Union to observe the United Nations resolution to cease its military repression of the Hungarian people and withdraw its troops. Only then would it be seemly for the Soviet Union to suggest further steps that can be taken toward world peace.
Since Chairman Bulganin has already released his letter to the President, it is proper now to release a letter written by the President yesterday to the Chairman about the situation in Hungary.
[Here follows the text of Eisenhower’s letter of November 4 to Bulganin concerning the situation in Hungary.]
- Source: Department of State Bulletin, November 19, 1956, pp. 795–796. Delivered by Press Secretary Hagerty.↩