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  4. Document 79

79. Memorandum of Conversation0

Copenhagen, May 4, 1958, 5:15 p.m.

UNITED STATES DELEGATION TO THE 21ST MINISTERIAL MEETING OF THE NORTH ATLANTIC COUNCIL

PARTICIPANTS

  • United States
    • The Secretary
    • Ambassador Burgess
    • Mr. Elbrick
    • Mr. Reinhardt
    • Mr. Porter
  • United Kingdom
    • Foreign Secretary Lloyd
    • Ambassador Frank Roberts
    • Sir Roderick Barclay
    • Sir Anthony Rumbold
    • Mr. Denis Laskey

SUBJECT

  • Indonesia

The Secretary said that the Sumatran affair had pretty well folded up. It had been a lamentable performance [1 line of source text not declassified].

In the Northern Celebes, however, there was more activity and a rickety amphibious operation had just succeeded, [less than 1 line of source text not declassified]

At the present we were trying to talk with friendly elements in Djakarta to see whether there was any leverage and any prospects of a political solution. The Secretary said he was very skeptical. Although Sukarno was, of course, highly undependable, we were trying to see what was possible in this regard. The leaders in Sumatra were all right, but their troops had refused to fight.

Mr. Lloyd raised the question of open intervention. The Secretary observed that he did not see any possibility of this character which would not have the most disastrous consequences for us throughout the Far East. He said we might have proceeded to recognition of belligerent rights if the rebels had really fought. He concluded by saying that although the situation was very thin, it was not altogether hopeless.1

  1. Source: Department of State, Conference Files: Lot 63 D 123, CF 1006. Top Secret. Drafted by Reinhardt. Dulles and Lloyd were in Copenhagen for a meeting of the NATO Council of Ministers.↩
  2. [text not declassified]↩