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  4. Document 256

256. Memorandum From the Secretary’s of State’s Special Assistant (Scranton) to the Acting Secretary of State1

Washington, September 4, 1959.

SUBJECT

  • Re Meeting on the Laos Situation in Mr. Murphy’s Office this morning2

First discussed were the United States’ obligations to Laos: [Page 591]

1.
The United States first gave assistance to the Government of Laos in January 1955, as a result of a policy decision.
2.
On several occasions United States Governmental officials had made unilateral statements indicating the United States would support any government in Laos which fosters its own independence.
3.
Since January 1955 the United States has persuaded the Lao Government to take several courses of action and even quietly has helped to choose its leaders, etc.
4.
There are no bilateral obligations in writing.
5.
As a member of the Southeast Asia Treaty Organization, the United States is obligated to protect Laos from and come to its assistance in the event of aggression by means of armed attack.

The present situation:

1.
While it is surmised that at least the Government of Viet Minh [North Vietnam] and probably Communist China are involved in present action in Northern Laos, there is no tangible evidence yet available to this effect; in fact the intelligence reports from the area are very skimpy.
2.
The Government of Laos has appealed to the United Nations requesting “an emergency force” to assist it against the rebellious elements.3
3.
Further, the Government of Laos has drafted a message to SEATO requesting assistance against aggression from the DRV.

Ambassador Smith’s recommendation for a public warning and FE’s suggestion of approaching Khrushchev were then discussed with general opposition to the latter and the suggestion that the former be held in abeyance temporarily until other agreed-upon actions were taken.

Suggestions made at this meeting to be further considered in a meeting with Mr. Dillon to follow,4 were as follows:

1.
Consultation with the British and French representatives in Washington.
2.
Meeting of the SEATO Council of Representatives.
3.
United States military build-up in the Pacific with purposeful leak thereof.
4.
As for the United Nations request made by the Government of Laos, it was suggested that the United States consult with the Secretariat as well as the British and French representatives here in Washington as indicated in suggestion #1.

WWS
  1. Source: Department of State, Central Files, 751J.00/9–459. Secret.↩
  2. This meeting followed immediately the one described supra.↩
  3. For text of the Lao note to U.N. Secretary-General Hammarskjold, September 4, see American Foreign Policy: Current Documents, 1959, p. 1228.↩
  4. See infra.↩