Foreign Relations of the United States, 1952–1954, United Nations Affairs, Volume III

320.14/11–2552

Memorandum by the United Nations Adviser, Bureau of Far Eastern Affairs (Bacon), to the Officer in Charge of Indonesian and Pacific Island Affairs (Coerr)

confidential

[Washington,] November 25, 1952.

• Subject:
• Visiting Mission to the Trust Territory of the Pacific, 1953.

The Trusteeship Council, on November 20, selected the members of the Visiting Mission which is to go to the Trust Territories in the Pacific: i.e., the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands, New Guinea, Nauru and Western Samoa. Members selected for the Mission are: UK, France, Dominican Republic and Syria. The Mission is to depart about February 9 and return about May 20. The itinerary is to be worked out by the Mission in consultation with the Secretariat and the Administering Authorities concerned. The Mission will probably spend about two weeks in our Trust Territory.¹

Comment: The composition of the Mission is not ideal from the U.S. point of view. The UK has designated as its representative Mathieson, who has been unfriendly in his attitude both to the U.S. and to American personnel in New York. It is probable that he will have considerable influence with his French colleague also. For this reason FE believed it to be desirable to have as friendly non-administering members as possible such as China or Thailand in preference to Syria. Syria has not yet served on the Trusteeship Council and accordingly would not have adequate background for asserting a strong position in the Mission in support of U.S. policy even if the Syrian representative should wish to do so. FE attempted to have the draft position paper amended so as to advise our Delegation for its background information and for such use as it might appropriately make of the Department’s preference in the composition of the Mission. UND was, however, opposed to giving any guidance to our Delegation and it was not until Sandifer had discussed the matter with Mr. Johnson that UNA was willing to do anything in this direction. Mr. Johnson suggested that we might reasonably suggest if opportunity offered that as the Mission was going to the Pacific at least one Far Eastern state might be included. On the morning of November 20 Mr. Sandifer telephoned this suggestion to Mr. Gerig. It was, however, apparently too late to influence the situation. It is unlikely that the Mission composed as indicated above will present as favorable a report upon our administration of the Trust Territory as did its predecessor.

1. Consideration of arrangements for sending a visiting mission or missions to the Trust Territories in the Pacific in 1953 was the sole substantive item taken up by the Trusteeship Council at the second part of its 11th Session, which sat at New York from Nov. 19 to Dec. 3, 1952. See United Nations, Official Records of the General Assembly, Seventh Regular Session, Report of the Trusteeship Council Covering Its Eleventh Session (Second Part) (Supplemental No. 4 A). Unpublished documentation is in ODA files, lot 62 D 225, “Visiting Missions.”