400.949/7–2152
No. 580
Memorandum by the Deputy Director of the
Office of Northeast Asian Affairs (McClurkin) to the Assistant Secretary of
State for Far Eastern Affairs (Allison)
Subject:
- Japanese Export Controls
Formal invitations have been issued to Japan, Canada, France, and the United Kingdom to meet in Washington on July 28 to adopt measures designed to gain our common objectives in the Far East, including organizational arrangements and initiation of desirable technical studies. Mr. Linder will head the United States delegation. Colonel Carroll Moffatt (Defense), Karl Anderson (Commerce),1 Thayer White (NA), and perhaps Kenneth Hansen (ODMS) will be the other members. The chief of the Japanese delegation will be Mr. Ryuji Takeuchi, Minister of the Japanese Embassy. The other members will be Taichero Matsuo, Deputy Director International Trade Bureau, MITI; Haruki Mori, Chief, First Section Economic Affairs Bureau, Foreign Office; Shigeaki Yamishita, Export Section International Trade Bureau, MITI. We have not been informed by the British, French or Canadians regarding their delegations.
The British are maintaining strongly that Japan should be brought into the existing CG-COCOM structure and stated that France and Canada concur. Moreover, the latest telegram from London reported the British as having strongly desired the meeting to be held in London or Paris. Previous telegrams, however, only indicated that London or Washington would be preferable to our first choice, Ottawa. We have reached interagency agreement on the following initial proposal:
There would be a Far East Consultative Group (FE-CG) parallel to the existing Consultative Group, which would be redesignated the European Consultative Group (E-CG) with representation on the ministerial level. There would be a Far East-COCOM on a level equivalent to the existing COCOM, which would be redesignated the European COCOM. The FE-CG would deal on policy level with economic security measures having an important Far Eastern aspect. The FE–COCOM would deal on a working level with economic security problems within a policy context determined by the FE-CG. Both the FE-CG and the FE–COCOM would [Page 1288] include countries having an important interest in Far Eastern economic security problems, including at least Japan, the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada and France. Countries would be represented in the FE–COCOM by officials having special competence in Far Eastern matters. The E-CG and the FE-CG would meet together jointly as a top policy group to consider security trade problems of common interest to Europe and the Far East.
Coordination of the two Groups would be accomplished by an exchange of information of subjects scheduled for discussion. The two Groups would proceed independently to handle issues within their respective areas of interest. Agreements reached in one Group would be promptly implemented; the other Group would be informed of the decision reached. The two Groups “will meet jointly to consider problems of common interest whenever either Group or a member of either Group believes such a problem exists.”2
[Here follows an outline of the manner in which the proposed organization was expected to function.]