Office of the Historian

114. Telegram From the Embassy in Yugoslavia to the Department of State0

Belgrade, January 2, 1958, noon.

1032. Department pass OSD Paris for CINCEUR. Embtel 1031.1 In course of farewell visit2 to Defense Minister Gosnjak he indicated Yugoslav Government desire purchase spare parts in United States.3 He said he planned to leave some of Yugoslav officers now in training in United States as nucleus for eventual purchasing mission. He hoped that increased Yugoslav exports will create sufficient foreign exchange for payment but if such should not prove the case, Yugoslav Government may eventually ask for assistance in form of credits. I replied that subject to question of priorities with which he was familiar as we had often discussed it I foresaw no major difficulty in purchasing spare parts. If credits were eventually required that would have to be discussed between our governments presumably outside of previous military aid arrangements. Gosnjak said he fully understood this and concluded in expressing hope Yugoslavia “would not be forced to seek spare parts in other regions”.

Riddleberger
  1. Source: Department of State, Central Files, 768.5–MSP/1–258. Confidential. Repeated to Paris.↩
  2. Telegram 1031, December 31, 1957, reported on the second negotiating session between U.S. and Yugoslav representatives on the termination of the military assistance agreement. (Ibid., 768.5–MSP/12–3157)↩
  3. Riddleberger’s appointment as Ambassador to Greece was announced on December 10, 1957. On December 13, President Eisenhower announced the appointment of Karl L. Rankin as Ambassador to Yugoslavia.↩
  4. Documentation on the Yugoslav decision to terminate the mutual defense assistance agreement is in Foreign Relations, 1955–1957, vol. XXVI, pp. 611 ff.↩