Office of the Historian

311. Memorandum of a Conversation Between Secretary of State Dulles and Foreign Minister Pearson, Ottawa, September 26, 19551

Ottawa, September 26, 1955

I spoke to Mr. Pearson about the ICC recommendation with reference to the Pathet-Laos situation.2 I expressed the hope that he [Page 686] would look it over very carefully, because we had the impression that the net result was to turn over these two provinces to the Communists and enable them to organize a vote in the provinces in a way which might enable them in turn either to take over or seriously penetrate the Central Government at the forthcoming elections.

JFD
  1. Source: Eisenhower Library, Dulles Papers, General Memoranda of Conversations. Secret; Personal and Private. Drafted by Dulles.↩
  2. The draft “outline of settlement” proposed by the Canadians and Indians was based on four points: 1) restoration of Royal Government authority by appointment by the Royal Government of two governors and one or two high officials for the northern provinces; 2) Royal Government responsibility for election preparations and conduct with safeguards for Pathet Lao participation; 3) guarantee of democratic freedoms; and 4) protection from reprisals. The Indians had wanted a fifth principle proposing integration of Pathet Lao forces into the Lao Army, but Yost successfully argued against this and the Indians agreed to language about integration into the Lao national life. (Telegrams 299, 315, and 327 from Vientiane, September 13, 16, and 19; Department of State, Central Files, 751J.00/9–1355, 751J.00/9–1655, and 751J.00/9–1955, respectively)↩