355. Telegram From Secretary of State Herter to the Department of State0
Cahto 62. For the President from the Secretary.
“Dear Mr. President:
I believe the time has come when you could give us a very real assist at your press conference Wednesday1 in connection with our negotiations. Up until now, there has not been a single indication from Gromyko with respect to any of our proposals or with respect to the modification of his own proposals which would appear to justify a summit meeting. In addition, Khrushchev has made threatening noises from Albania2 in his references to our negotiations which have been far from helpful. Extracts from these statements are being conveyed to Jim Hagerty by CIA.
If you could make it clear during your press conference that developments to date in Geneva do not encourage you to feel a summit conference has been justified, this would, I think, give a real impetus to the possibility of our securing some progress on the Berlin situation which, [Page 819] in turn, might justify such a conference. The private talks to date have gotten us very little further than the public talks except that I think the Russians are now beginning to believe that we will not give up our occupation rights or access rights. A statement by you along the lines suggested in a separate telegram Andy Berding is sending Jim Hagerty3 might well force them to discussions within the limitations we have set.
I have told Selwyn Lloyd that I was wiring you along the foregoing lines and he expressed hearty concurrence.4
Faithfully,
Signed: Chris.”
- Source: Department of State, Central Files, 110.11–HE/6–259. Secret. Drafted by Herter.↩
- June 3.↩
- For extracts from Khrushchev’s speeches at Tirana, May 26 and 31, see Foreign Ministers Meeting, pp. 303–305 and 306–310.↩
- See footnote 5, Document 351.↩
- See Document 352.↩