2. Memorandum From Secretary of State Rogers to President Nixon1
SUBJECT
- The OAS General Assembly Meeting
The OAS General Assembly meets in Washington April 4–14 at an important juncture in our relations with Latin America. I will head the U.S. delegation, address this Foreign Ministers’ meeting on the mornon stock pile disposals and ing of April 6, and take part as much as possible in the deliberations.
In the light of peace in Vietnam, East-West détente and the increasing acceptance of ideological pluralism by many nations in the hemisphere, the Latin Americans are pressing us, often in nationalist terms, to redefine our policies on points of divergence (Panama, fisheries, expropriations, international lending institutions and, to a growing degree, Cuba). We have been prevented from being fully responsive by the need to protect our own legitimate national interests.
Similarly, the Latin Americans’ growing external resource requirements prompt them to press us for increasing trade and aid concessions. The advent of your second term has increased their expectations. Our persistent balance of payments problem and the need to deal with many economic problems in a worldwide rather than a hemispheric context, impede our response.
Confrontation in the inter-American economic forums, such as at the recent Bogota meeting, has been frustrating to all concerned, although it is not of the proportions of the UN Security Council meeting in Panama. Our mutual uncertainty and dissatisfaction with the current state of hemispheric relations has moved Galo Plaza, CIAP Chairman Sanz de Santamaria and Venezuelan Foreign Minister Calvani to propose efforts to make the inter-American system more responsive to changing world and hemispheric conditions. This, in essence, should be interpreted as a positive effort to rearrange the North-South relationship.
[Page 4]Strong criticism of U.S. policies will continue at the Assembly. At the same time there is some realization that global problems cannot be resolved in a regional context and that the inter-American system should be utilized for cooperation and accommodation. We will seek to strengthen this tendency and I am hopeful of promoting a more informal and honest dialogue among the Foreign Ministers outside of the public speech-making forums.
We doubt that this Assembly will make final decisions on changes in the OAS, but expect rather an agreement to initiate a high-level inter-American study, the results of which would be considered at a subsequent meeting. Our participation in this process will benefit from our own concurrent study under NSSM 173 which will analyze “situations wherein the pursuit of multiple U.S. interests and objectives is prejudiced by conflicts among them” as well as evaluate the U.S. role in the inter-American system.
Cuba is a special problem, and is almost certain to come up at the Assembly in some form. We can now probably count firmly upon only nine or ten (including the U.S.) votes in favor of the sanctions. This is short of the twelve votes required for a majority, but would be sufficient for the blocking third necessary to prevent formal lifting of the sanctions under the Rio Treaty. Failure to achieve majority support, however, would seriously erode the moral force of the sanctions. We continue to work, though with uncertain prospects, with those who share our position towards achieving majority backing in this fluid situation.
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Summary: In anticipation of the annual meeting of the General Assembly of the Organization of American States, Rogers reported on the state of U.S. relations with Latin America.
Source: National Archives, RG 59, Central Files 1970–1973, OAS 3. Limited Official Use. Documents on the special meeting of the UN Security Council held in Panama City from March 15 to 21 are in Foreign Relations, 1969–1976, vol. E–14. Documents on the annual meeting of the Inter-American Economic and Social Council that took place in Bogotá from January 30 to February 8 are in the National Archives, RG 59, ARA Files: Lot 72D23, 1/30–2/9/73 IA—ECOSOC Meeting—Bogotá.
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