Office of the Historian

77. Memorandum of a Conference With the President, White House, Washington, August 11, 1959, 11:30 a.m.1

Washington, August 11, 1959, 11:30 a.m.

OTHERS PRESENT

  • Secretary Dillon
  • Major Eisenhower

Mr. Dillon told the President that the dispute between India and Pakistan over the Indus waters appears to be fairly well settled. The Vice President of the World Bank has announced that some settlement has been reached and a treaty will be signed next year. For now the [Page 179] World Bank requests assurance that outside funds will be available. The British and Canadians have already sent in their letters of assurance and a similar message is requested of the U.S. This would be done in conformity with NSC 1550.2 The costs will come to $278 million in hard money over ten years, and $238 million in local currency. This involves the U.S. putting up 45% of the hard currency. It will come from ICA and the Development Loan Fund. The Secretary of State and the Director of the Bureau of the Budget concur.

The President approved the writing of a letter of assurance. He said this expenditure is one of our more worthwhile projects. He mentioned also a complaint which he had received from the Secretary of Agriculture recently that other Departments of the Government fail to understand the problems of Agriculture in disposition of surplus products. The President said he had pointed out that Agriculture is represented on many boards and that their viewpoint had not become known through these board actions. Mr. Dillon said that this feeling on the part of Agriculture had never been made known to him.

John S. D. Eisenhower
  1. Source: Eisenhower Library, Whitman File, DDE Diaries. Confidential. Drafted by John S.D. Eisenhower.↩
  2. On May 8, 1956, President Eisenhower approved NSC Action No. 1550, which directed that no promises or commitments involving future U.S. funds for foreign assistance should be made or implied except upon determination by the Executive branch that they cover specified conditions. (Department of State, S/S–NSC (Miscellaneous) Files: Lot 66 D 95, Records of Action by the National Security Council)↩