Foreign Relations of the United States, 1981–1988, Volume XXXVIII, International Economic Development; International Debt; Foreign Assistance

4. Memorandum of Conversation¹

Washington, February 23, 1981

SUBJECT

• Exchange of Views on North-South and Energy Issues

PARTICIPANTS

• E—Myer Rashish
• Jean-Claude Paye, Director of Economic and Financial Affairs, MFA, Paris

Note: Paye unexpectedly dropped in to chat with Rashish while his Foreign Minister was meeting with Secretary Haig. The two chatted for about an hour until they were called in to participate in the Haig/Francois-Poncet meeting.²

In response to Rashish’s inquiry about economic issues that Francois-Poncet will be raising with Haig, Paye said that the Foreign Minister would want to discuss the Mexico Summit. In the French view, the Mexico Summit should be used to reinforce the cracks in the G–77 and to serve as a “reciprocal pedagogic exercise” in which the developed countries would try “to teach” the LDCs that their economic development was being restrained by OPEC oil price increases. Paye indicated that such a controlled agenda could serve the purposes of the industrialized countries, especially if this could lead to some break with OPEC in the G–77. Paye indicated that the Summit might be postponed until September which is the last possible date on which Lopez-Portillo could host such a Summit.

With respect to global negotiations, Paye took a highly political view: If the industrialized countries have the necessary procedural safeguards which would protect the competence of the specialized agencies, then the global negotiations should continue. He expressed skepticism about the economic value of the results, but indicated that the political costs of not having global negotiations were much too high. He felt that the plenary sessions as opposed to the detailed specialized agencies’ sessions should be used to permit the G–77 to vent steam on the issues. Rashish indicated that there are many in the Administration outside of the State Department that would not view the end of the global negotiations as a disaster and if no economic benefits or concrete results were envisaged, then it begged the question as to why engage, in such global discussions. Rashish also indicated that Paye’s view of the process may be too rational.

[Omitted here is discussion of energy and the Ottawa Summit.]

1. Source: Department of State, Bureau of Economic Affairs, Office of Economical and Agricultural Affairs Files, Official Economic Summit Files, 1975–1991, Lot 93D490: 1981 Ottawa Summit—General E Summit Records. Limited Official Use. Drafted by Jacques Gorlin (E); cleared by Rashish. Copies were sent to Hormats and Maresca.
2. An unknown hand bracketed this paragraph. Documentation on the Haig meeting with François-Poncet is scheduled for publication in Foreign Relations, 1981–1988, vol. VII, Western Europe, 1981–1984.