Office of the Historian

228. Memorandum of Conversation0

Washington, June 15, 1958, 5:10–6:45 p.m.

SUBJECT

  • Cyprus

PARTICIPANTS

  • The President
  • Department of State: The Secretary, The Under Secretary, Mr. Rountree, Mr. Macomber, Mr. Hanes
  • Department of Defense: Deputy Secretary Quarles, Gen. Twining
  • CIA—Mr. Allen Dulles
  • USIA—Mr. George Allen
  • The White House—Mr. Arthur Minnich

After discussion on another subject, the Secretary raised the problem of Cyprus. He gave the President cable 3509 from Athens to read.1

The Secretary then read cable 3536 from Athens2 aloud stating that the Government of Greece was prepared to abandon both Enosis and self-determination in favor of self-government under the British, and [Page 652] wants the United States to support this initiative promptly, preferably early this week in NATO. Averoff stated that the GOG is prepared to “tell” Makarios that “This is it”.

The Secretary said he wished to urge Lloyd most strongly not to make the Parliamentary announcement of the British plan for Cyprus on Tuesday as planned.3

The President authorized this, and said it was important also to speak to Macmillan. He therefore asked that a second message go from him to Macmillan urging the same thing. The Secretary thereupon drafted such a cable to Whitney, and the President approved it.4

  1. Source: Department of State, Central Files, 747C.00/6–1558. Secret. Drafted by Hanes.↩
  2. Document 222.↩
  3. Document 227.↩
  4. In telegram 8955 to London, June 15, Dulles instructed Whitney to see Lloyd and urge postponement of the British statement on Cyprus pending discussions in the North Atlantic Council. He warned that a public statement was likely to aggravate the crisis. (Department of State, Central Files, 747C.00/6–1458)↩
  5. Telegram 8956 to London, June 15, instructed Whitney: “President and Secretary have fully discussed matter of Parliamentary announcement of U.K. Cyprus plan. President wants Ambassador Whitney to tell Prime Minister he greatly hopes Prime Minister can defer Parliamentary presentation pending further NAC discussions.” (Ibid., 711.11–EI/6–1558)↩