Office of the Historian

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

Washington, March 4, 1960.

SUBJECT

  • Determinations under Sections 105(a), 141, and 451(a) of the Mutual Security Act of 1954, as amended,2 permitting the furnishing of military assistance to Tunisia
[Page 894]

The purpose of this memorandum is to recommend that you make the requisite determinations under Sections 105(a), 141, and 451(a) of the Mutual Security Act of 1954, as amended (hereinafter referred to as “the Act”), permitting the furnishing of military assistance to Tunisia as set forth in the attached paper.3

The proposed military assistance to Tunisia is intended to demonstrate United States support for Tunisia as it pursues moderate, Western-oriented policies and to assist Tunisia in meeting its internal security problem. The proposed one-year program of military assistance of $3,500,000 is the first portion of a three-year matériel program and a four-year training program recommended by a United States survey team. A detailed discussion of the background and justification for this program and of the means proposed for presenting it to Tunisia are set out in the attached Annex.3

It is considered that the furnishing of the proposed assistance and the use of funds available therefor under the Act are in furtherance of the purposes of the Act and are important to the security of the United States.

It is, accordingly, recommended that you sign the attached memorandum which contains the determinations required by the Act in order to carry out the proposed military assistance program.

The Secretary of Defense and the Director of the Bureau of the Budget concur in this recommendation.4

Douglas Dillon
  1. Source: Eisenhower Library, White House Central Files. Secret. Another copy of the memorandum shows that it was drafted by Jean R. Tartter, Office of the Deputy Mutual Security Coordinator. (Department of State, Central Files, 772.5–MSP/3–460)↩
  2. For text, see 68 Stat. 832. Regarding amendments of Sections 141 and 451(a), see 70 Stat. 556, 72 Stat. 268, and 72 Stat. 270. Section 105(a) had not been amended at the time the memorandum was written.↩
  3. Not printed.↩
  4. Not printed.↩
  5. Eisenhower signed the memorandum, Presidential Determination No. 60–11, on March 15. A copy is in Eisenhower Library, White House Central Files.↩