87. Editorial Note
On December 3, President Eisenhower departed Washington on the first leg of a world tour that would take him to 11 countries in 3 weeks, including Pakistan and India. Eisenhower was in Pakistan December 7–9 and flew to Afghanistan on the morning of December 9 for a brief visit, and later that day arrived in New Delhi for the beginning of a 5-day visit to India. Regarding his discussions with Pakistani officials, see Documents 375–377. Memoranda of his conversations with Indian officials are printed as Documents 247–248.
[Page 195]On November 30, the President discussed his upcoming trip with a group of Congressional leaders. Secretary of State Herter also attended the conference. A memorandum of that meeting, drafted by Presidential Assistant Bryce Harlow on December 5, reads in part as follows:
“Secretary Herter commented that the Congressional statements were most encouraging. The trip would have great value. He said, respecting the Pakistan problem, that the Indians and Pakistanis have the eastern boundary settled without any difficulty and are working on the western boundary. He thought it would be a fine thing to include this problem in the President’s discussion.
[1 paragraph (5 lines of source text) not declassified]” (Eisenhower Library, Whitman File, DDE Diaries)