Office of the Historian

344. Memorandum From the Acting Secretary of State to the President1

Washington, July 27, 1959.

SUBJECT

  • Status of Cuba’s Former President, Fulgencio Batista

In view of the current interest centering upon the status of Cuba’s former President, Fulgencio Batista, now in exile in the Dominican Republic, I enclose for your information a memorandum2 which reviews the factors bearing upon his possible admission to the United States.

This memorandum indicates:

(a)
That Batista is being subjected to considerable pressure, extortions and threats by Generalissimo Trujillo and that he is desperate to leave the Dominican Republic but has been unable to obtain a visa to any country;
(b)
That Batista believes that his lone record of cooperation with the United States entitles him to favorable consideration and that he probably believes that he fled to the Dominican Republic rather than the United States in order to accommodate the United States;
(c)
That, nonetheless, Batista’s presence at this time anywhere in the Caribbean area, including the United States, is a disturbing factor and there would be a seriously adverse reaction in Latin America if the United States now were to grant him a visa.

[Page 576]

In the circumstances, the Department of State’s position is that no public announcement should be made at this time of a denial of a United States visa to Batista and that the Department will intensify its efforts to obtain his admission to a European or other country outside of the area.

Douglas Dillon3
  1. Source: Eisenhower Library, Project “Clean Up” Records, Cuba. Secret. No drafting or clearance information is given on the source text, which bears the handwritten initials “E” and “G[oodpaster]”.↩
  2. Not printed.↩
  3. Printed from a copy that bears this stamped signature.↩