Office of the Historian

33. Memorandum of a Conversation Between Foreign Secretary Macmillan and Secretary of State Dulles, Secretary Dulles’ Suite, Mark Hopkins Hotel, San Francisco, June 21, 1955, 4:30 p.m.1

BSF MC–1
San Francisco, June 21, 1955, 4:30 p.m.

SUBJECTS

1.
Japan
2.
Formosa
3.
Cyprus

Mr. Macmillan called at his own request on the Secretary at 4:30 p.m. on June 21. His purpose was to continue their private, informal, wide ranging exchange of views.

There was considerable discussion of Japan and its position. The Secretary expressed his disappointment at the failure of the Japanese to pull themselves together for a role of greatness as the Germans were doing under Adenauer. In earlier years the rivalries of Russia, China and Japan maintained an uneasy equilibrium of power in the Asian mainland. Now with Russia and China allied and Japan inert and lacking power, the United States had to maintain more military power in the Pacific area than it would otherwise choose. Were we to withdraw, one could look for a substantial expansion of Communist power throughout the Far East. Mr. Macmillan agreed. He raised the difficult economic problem of Japan and suggested that its natural markets might lie in China. The Secretary pointed out that historically Japan’s trade with mainland China had been relatively limited and suggested that the most profitable outlets for Japan lay in Southeast Asia. In these countries, however, the memories of the Japanese occupation were bitter which complicated the development of trade. There was some discussion of the problem that Japan constituted for both Great Britain and the United States rising from its entry into our markets with low-cost, inferior manufactured goods.

[Here follows discussion of the situation in the Taiwan Straits and Cyprus.]

  1. Source: Department of State, FE Files: Lot 56 F 679, San Francisco Commemorative Meetings—FE. Secret. No drafting information appears on the source text. Livingston Merchant was also present at the meeting, but a note on the source text indicates he missed the first 15 minutes of the conversation. Dulles was in San Francisco for ceremonies commemorating the 10th anniversary of the signing of the U.N. Charter.↩