Office of the Historian

560. Memorandum of Conversation1

Washington, April 21, 1960, 1–3 p.m.
[Facsimile Page 1]

SUBJECT

  • Disarmament

PARTICIPANTS

  • Secretary Herter
  • Under Secretary Dillon
  • Mr. Dwinell
  • Mr. Farley
  • Mr. Foster
  • General Gruenther
  • Mr. McCloy

1. Disarmament Organization

The Secretary said that a good deal of thought had been given in the Executive Branch, both in the White House and the State Department, to the question of organization for disarmament policy development and negotiations. He had discussed the question with the President and also with Mr. Gates, Mr. McCone, Dr. Kistiakowsky, and other interested officials. The arguments for centering disarmament efforts in the White House and in the Department of State had been carefully examined and compared. The President has now authorized an expanded and up-graded disarmament effort in the Department of State reporting [Typeset Page 2041] directly to the Secretary. At the Secretary’s request Governor Dwinell reviewed State Department plans for an expanded effort and the status of administrative actions to put these plans in motion.

There was extended discussion of the proper location of the coordinating center for U.S. disarmament efforts. Mr. Foster said that he applauded the decision to undertake such coordination and an expanded planning and studies activity. He had himself long supported such a move. Though he felt it should be in the White House, he recognized the arguments for locating the effort in the Department [Facsimile Page 2] of State and was quite willing to see whether that solution could be made to work.

General Gruenther and Mr. McCloy also welcomed the move and emphasized the importance of obtaining an experienced individual of recognized stature to head the program. They also emphasized the importance of centralizing all State Department disarmament activities under such an individual. There was some discussion of possible candidates for such a position.

2. Geneva negotiations

The Secretary and Mr. Farley reviewed briefly the status of the Geneva ten-power disarmament negotiations and the nuclear test suspension negotiations and prospects for discussion of disarmament and nuclear testing at the Summit.

  1. Source: Coordinating center for U.S. disarmament efforts. Confidential. 2 pp. NARA, RG 59, Secretary’s Memoranda of Conversation: Lot 64 D 199.↩