Office of the Historian

Eisenhower Library, Dulles papers, “Telephone Conversations”

No. 433
Memorandum of Telephone Conversation, Prepared in the Department of State1

[Washington,] December 8, 1954—12:58 p.m.

Telephone Call From Amb. Lodge

L. said Hammarskjold came over and said he had been studying how he would operate under this resolution. He rejected working through the Indians or the British or by cable or letter, and he has decided to go himself. Both agreed this is good. L. read the statement H. proposes to issue after the resolution is passed. The Sec. said we have to be careful they don’t bring these brainwashed fellows to tell him lies. They agreed he should be given a full briefing of what the facts are. L. asked if the Sec. will designate someone to get briefing materials ready. The Sec. asked if L. were going to get the other 4 in.2 L. said they are covered now, and he doesn’t want to recommend changing the resolution. H. said he didn’t like the idea of reporting on the 31st, but L. said he didn’t want to change the resolution. We would be satisfied with a cable. The debate starts this p.m. and they hope to finish tomorrow night.3

  1. Apparently prepared by Phyllis Bernau; the initials “pdb” appear on the source text.↩
  2. A letter of Dec. 7 from Lodge to the Secretary-General called attention to four additional U.S. airmen who had been captured by the Chinese Communists while flying for the UN Command in Korea and who were known to be imprisoned in China; for text of the letter, see UN document A/2843 or Department of State Bulletin, Dec. 20, 1954, pp. 934–935.↩
  3. The General Assembly discussed the subject at plenary meetings 505 through 509, Dec. 8–10. Excerpts from the statements made by Ambassador Lodge during the debate are printed ibid., pp. 935–944. On Dec. 10, the General Assembly adopted without change the resolution submitted by the 16 powers, by a vote of 47 to 5 with 7 abstentions, as Resolution 906(IX).↩