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

537. Note From Caccia to Herter¹

Washington, March 7, 1960

Dear Chris,

I have been asked to pass to you the attached personal message from the Foreign Secretary.

Yours sincerely

Harold Caccia

Attachment

Message From Lloyd to Herter

TEXT OF MESSAGE

Dear Chris,

Thank you for your letter of March 5. I am glad that you have got safely back to Washington. I hope that you are not too tired by what must have been a very arduous but well worth while journey.

I am glad that we have reached a compromise agreement on the language of the link between Stages 2 and 3. I am grateful to you and your colleagues for their willingness to try to meet our point of view. I do not think that our solution is ideal, but we too tried to find something that you could live with.

The problem in my mind has been one of presentation. Our preoccupation has been to prevent Mr. Khrushchev getting off with an undeserved halo as the man who is for complete disarmament. To start with, the Western plan must look good enough and far reaching enough, subject to the accepted reservations about effective control. If our plan does not look good enough, we shall have given Khrushchev a big propaganda advantage which he will particularly exploit at the Summit.

Ormsby-Gore is going this evening to Paris. I hope that Eaton and he will succeed in bringing the French along. It would be a great pity if they are out of step on disarmament. It will be another damaging blow to N.A.T.O.

With my best wishes,

Selwyn

1. Source: Transmits letter from Lloyd to Herter: applauds compromise on nuclear testing talks position. Secret. 3 pp. NARA, RG 59, Presidential Correspondence: Lot 66 D 204, U.K. Officials Correspondence with Secretary Herter.