93. Memorandum of a Meeting, Chart Room, Maiatico Building, Washington, January 9, 1956, 12:30 p.m.1
Washington, January 9,
1956, 12:30 p.m.
SUBJECT
- Relationship Between AEC and ICA on Atomic Matters
PARTICIPANTS
- Chairman Lewis Strauss, AEC
- Admiral Paul F. Foster, AEC
- John A. Hall, AEC
- John B. Hollister, Director, ICA
- DeWitt L. Sage, ICA2
- William Sheppard, ICA3
Mr. Strauss stated that he had suggested this meeting because of some apparent misunderstanding of the staff of AEC and ICA as to the jurisdiction and duties of the agencies in atomic matters. Mr. Hollister stated that he understood there were three areas needing clarification:
- 1.
- The responsibility for arranging for the acquisition of research reactors under the President’s offer in his Penn State speech.4 He felt that if the ICA was expected to pay half the cost of the reactors it should have authority to implement the project with AEC technical advice, whereas if the AEC wished to implement the project completely it should ask for the appropriation and make the payments.
- 2.
- Training courses for those countries where there were bilateral contracts. Here again Mr. Hollister felt that if the ICA was to be asked to pay the expenses of the trainees it should have the authority to decide how the courses would fit into the aid program for the particular country.
- 3.
- The Asian nuclear center.5 Mr. Hollister felt it was inconsistent for the AEC to take over complete handling of the bilateral programs and yet ask the ICA to take over the complete handling of the multilateral programs except, of course, for the technical advice.
The following conclusions were reached:
- 1.
- It was settled that the ICA would have no responsibility whatsoever for the acquisition of research reactors under the bilateral plans. Whether the funds required for fiscal year 1957 for the bilateral reactor program should be included in the MSP appropriation request (not to [Page 260] exceed $350,000 for each country, which would include costs of survey and consultant), would be settled later by Messrs. Hollister and Strauss. If it should be settled that MSP funds are to be used by AEC it would be understood that AEC would give ICA a statement of the countries for which such obligations would be required in fiscal year 1957 far enough ahead of the firming up of the Congressional request so that the amount might be decided on. It is understood that no money will be needed for this purpose in FY 1956 and that all MSP allocations to be made by the ICA would be made directly to the Atomic Energy Commission.
- 2.
- It was agreed that the ICA training program would be conducted in the future as it has in the past; that the number and selection of trainees for the training programs from various countries would be subject to the same process as the ICA now uses in selecting trainees and would be handled interdepartmentally in such a way that they could be fitted into a regular ICA country program. ICA would continue to determine the extent to which it can finance atomic energy trainees within the aid program for the particular country. Where ICA has discontinued technical assistance because of a country’s ability to pay its own way, ICA should not be asked to pay for such trainees. If new countries are to be considered, the departments concerned should work the matter out on an ad hoc basis.
- 3.
- It was agreed that ICA would handle completely the Asian reactor problem provided, of course, that all technical advice would be given by AEC.
- Source: Department of State, Atomic Energy Files: Lot 57 D 688, AEC–ICA Relations. Confidential. Drafted on January 16. No other drafting information is given on the source text.↩
- Assistant to the Director, ICA.↩
- Assistant Deputy Director, Office of the Deputy Director, Management, ICA.↩
- For text of Eisenhower’s commencement address at Pennsylvania State University, June 11, 1955, see Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: Dwight D. Eisenhower, 1955, pp. 593–600.↩
- See Document 85.↩