Office of the Historian

299. Telegram From the Embassy in Egypt to the Department of State1

Cairo, April 23, 1957—4 p.m.

3327. Have just returned from seeing Fawzi to announce our intention give notice to SC tomorrow (Wednesday) of meeting Thursday to report on Suez conversations.

[Page 569]

Fawzi seemed somewhat taken aback by shortness of our notice particularly since he momentarily awaiting Hammarskjöld’s reaction to message sent Sunday.2 Additional day would be helpful. However, he said would attempt make best of situation and probably Egyptian declaration would be issued tomorrow since he fully agreed it should be made public before SC meeting.

Regarding background information in reference telegram Fawzi said he appreciated our frankness and also indication our intention “to give Egypt a break”. He said he was confident we would not have reason regret such attitude because GOE in dead earnest in trying arrive at reasonable solution.3

Hare
  1. Source: Department of State, Central Files, 974.7301/4–2357. Secret; Niact.↩
  2. See telegram 813, supra.↩

  3. At 3:41 p.m. on April 23, Dulles telephoned Lodge and instructed him to proceed the following day to request a meeting of the Security Council for April 25. (Memorandum of telephone conversation by Bernau, April 23; Eisenhower Library, Dulles Papers, General Telephone Conversations)

    Earlier that day during a press conference, Dulles explained in response to questions that when the United States took the Canal question to the Security Council it would not seek specific action, but rather merely report to the Council on the recent talks with Egypt. (Department of State Bulletin, May 13, 1957, pp. 765–766; United States Policy in the Middle East, September 1956–June 1957, pp. 384–386)

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