Office of the Historian

A/MS files, lot 54 D 291 (V), “Passports”

Memorandum of Telephone Conversation, by the Assistant Legal Adviser for United Nations Affairs (Meeker)

[Washington,] July 1, 1952.
  • Subject:
  • Passports for 3 (7) aliens.

I called Mr. Winings this morning to inquire whether the Immigration and Naturalization Service might not consider that our understanding concerning passports, in the case of United Nations officials, would apply by strict analogy in the case of an officer of the International Bank who is unable to obtain a passport but possesses a laissez-passer and either an expired national passport or other official documents showing his identity and nationality.

Mr. Winings said he recalled very clearly the discussions which had been held between officers of the Department of State and the Department of Justice earlier this year on the subject, and he recalled that the Department of Justice had then taken the position that the passport regulations were regulations which the Department of State itself [Page 221] made and interpreted; on that basis the Immigration and Naturalization Service had accepted the interpretation of the regulations relating to UN officials.

Mr. Winings inquired how much of an extension would be involved if the interpretation of the passport regulations were applied by analogy to the officials of UN specialized agencies. I told him that we had considered this question and had concluded (a) that it would not affect all of the classes of persons entitled to come to the United States under the Headquarters Agreement, and (b) that the number of international officials involved would be very small, since most of the specialized agencies had their headquarters outside the United States and in any event very few of their officials were unable to secure passports.

Mr. Winings asked whether the Department of State had sent to the Department of Justice any communication regarding application of the passport regulations interpretation to specialized agency cases. I told him that the Department had not, and that the purpose of my telephone call was to see if the matter might not be dealt with on an informal basis. He said that he could not give an immediate answer, and that he would want to talk with policy officers of the Immigration and Naturalization Service. He thought they might wish to have a formal communication from the Department of State. Mr. Winings:said he would let us know in a few days.