Office of the Historian

226. Telegram From the Embassy in Finland to the Department of State0

Helsinki, November 10, 1960, 4 p.m.

305. President Kekkonen scheduled depart for Moscow November 20 to seek agreement with Khrushchev re MFN treatment of Soviet trade with Finland in event GOF associates with EFTA. President told me last week in brief meeting that he wanted to have serious discussion with me some time next week before his departure for Moscow and mine for US.

In view Soviet trade-EFTA situation involving strong Soviet pressures on Finland, I earnestly recommend being authorized to give an assurance to the President as a means of strengthening his backbone in [Page 590] the forthcoming negotiations. I would urge that I be authorized to tell him that the US is prepared to provide limited economic assistance if necessary, in the event Soviet economic pressure required this, to insure some form of association between Finland and EFTA. This assurance, which is contained in OCB agreed guidance (Operations Plan paragraph 8),1 if ever it is to be applied with timely and needed effect that time is now.

Sessions
  1. Source: Department of State, Central Files, 760E.11/11–1060. Secret; Priority; Limit Distribution. Repeated to London.↩
  2. Document 222.↩