Foreign Relations of the United States, 1961–1963, Volume XX, Congo Crisis

151. Telegram From the Embassy in Belgium to the Department of State¹

Brussels, December 6, 1961, 9 p.m.

1005. Congo. Department telegram 1322;² Embassy telegrams 988 and 995.³ I discussed proposals to bring economic pressure on Tshombe (Department telegram 1322) with Spaak last evening.

1. He confirmed Van den Bosch statement (Embassy telegram 995) that when negotiations with Congo re financial problems are successfully completed following restoration of diplomatic relations, GOB will transfer to Congolese Government portfolio which includes shares in Katanga companies now held in trust by GOB.

2. He said while GOB does not apparently have legal authority to prevent private Belgian companies such as Union Miniere from agreeing to transfer of legal seat of corporations to Katanga he would do everything in his power to persuade them not to go along with Katangese Government on this as he agrees with us and is totally opposed to it.

3. I also suggested A) possibility of requiring Belgian companies operating in Katanga to pay dividends on Congo portfolio shares directly to GOC and B) withdrawal technical assistance personnel from Katanga and repatriation dependents of Belgian residents. Spaak was non-committal, saying these matters under study but they raised problems.

4. In conclusion, I mentioned desirability of European airlines servicing Elisabethville suspending such traffic. He said this new idea which he had not considered and he would want it studied before making any comment.

MacArthur

1. Source: Department of State, Central Files, 770G.00/12–661. Confidential. Repeated to USUN, Léopoldville, Elisabethville, London, Paris, The Hague, and Salisbury.
2. Document 145.
3. Telegram 988, December 5, reported that Spaak had told MacArthur that evening that the Belgians and British had almost agreed on a memorandum that they hoped would serve as a basis for agreement between Adoula and Tshombe. Telegram 995, also December 5, reported that MacArthur had taken up the proposals in the first two paragraphs of telegram 988 (Document 145) with van den Bosch that morning and had asked him to bring them to Spaak’s attention. (Both in Department of State, Central Files, 770G.00/12–561)