Office of the Historian

72. Memorandum of a Telephone Conversation Between the President in Thomasville, Georgia, and the Secretary of State in Washington, February 10, 1957, 9:05 a.m.1

Washington, February 10, 1957, 9:05 a.m.

TELEPHONE CALL TO PRESIDENT

The Sec said he would be seeing Eban the next day, as Eban was now in New York, and would give him the memo.2 The Sec said we would have to make the substance public as a US policy declaration, but he did not know when. The Sec said he would telephone the memo to Lodge this morning and have him tell the substance to Hammarskjold before he sees Eban this afternoon. The Sec said he should like it, it should strengthen his hand (Hammarskjold’s). The Sec said he would think Israel would want it made public so as to give their own public opinion a basis for their withdrawing. The Sec asked if the Pres thought in general it was all right. The Pres. apparently said yes, with a suggestion re including a sentence about the pilgrims going to Mecca. The Sec asked what the route was to Mecca, that this was a right granted Israel by the UN and was not really involved in this [Page 119] issue. (The phrase re the pilgrims was added to the draft) The Sec said we propose two overlapping triangles. The Sec said he thought he (possibly King Saud?) brought that up in connection with the control of the Port of Aqaba, but he said the Pres had been the one to talk to him. The Sec said they will probably not be satisfied with this. (They probably the Israelis) The Sec said if they do not withdraw, we will be faced with the sanctions resolution and that will be tough. The Sec added re the draft that following the part about “the sovereign rights of littoral states”, he would add something re “the passage of their citizens on peaceful purposes”.

  1. Source: Eisenhower Library, Dulles Papers, White House Telephone Conversations. Transcribed by Carolyn Proctor. According to Dulles’ Appointment Book, the Secretary conducted business from his home in Northwest Washington on Sunday, February 10. (Princeton University Library, Dulles Papers) The source text indicates that Proctor could hear only Dulles’ side of the conversation. The parenthetical insertions in the source text are Proctor’s.↩
  2. Reference is to the aide-mémoire prepared by Department of State officials and presented to Ambassador Eban on February 11. The version of the aide-mémoire presented to Eban is printed as Document 78. Earlier drafts of the aide-mémoire have not been found in Department of State files.↩