Foreign Relations of the United States, 1958–1960, Volume III, National Security Policy; Arms Control and Disarmament, Microfiche Supplement

366. Message From Macmillan to Eisenhower¹

London, August 20, 1958

My Dear Friend,

I am greatly obliged to you for your letter of August 19 in which you gave me the assurance that it is your purpose to be as completely generous with us in the matter of passing information “as the law will permit”. I gladly accept this assurance and I need hardly say that I have every confidence that you are determined to do your utmost for us.

I am sure you will recognise that in this I have a very heavy responsibility. During the past twelve years, we have made immense efforts to develop the nuclear weapons capacity which would enable us to play an effective part in the defence of the free world. We have made good progress and the tests that we are about to hold will take us a further step towards the solution of the two problems of invulnerability and reduction of weight which we must achieve. If our earlier work is not to be wasted, we must have the answers to these two problems. If you can provide us with the information you already have or will obtain in the future, then I can agree to suspension of tests, which I feel really means abandonment, with a clear conscience. Can I be assured that “the law will permit” you to give us this information if we are prevented from getting it for ourselves? If you tell me that I am justified in making that assumption, I can rest assured that the essential defence interests of my country are sufficiently safeguarded.

I am sending you a separate message on the political considerations which seem to me to arise on the timing and nature of any public statement on the results of the Geneva conference.

With warm regards,

Yours ever,

(Sgd.) Harold Macmillan

1. Source: Seeks assurance on release of nuclear testing information. Top Secret. 2 pp. NARA, RG 59, Presidential Correspondence: Lot 66 D 204, Macmillan to Eisenhower.