Editorial Note
On January 12, 1953, the Department of State informed the Embassies in the United Kingdom, Italy, France, Belgium, and the Netherlands, [Page 1549] and HICOG offices in the Federal Republic of Germany, that John Foster Dulles was contemplating a trip to their countries in order to confer with leading government officials on “present important problems and in particular with reference to EDC.” (Telegram 4623 to London, January 12, repeated to Rome, Paris, Brussels, The Hague, and HICOG in Bonn; 110.11 DU/1–1253) In the following two days, Ambassadors Gifford, Dunn, Bunker, Cowen, and Chapin, and Acting High Commissioner for Germany Reber replied enthusiastically to the proposal; their replies are in Department of State file 110.11 DU/1–1353 and 1–1453.
Preliminary arrangements were begun on January 14 when the Department of State transmitted three circular telegrams to Western Europe in which the general information-gathering purpose of the trip was outlined, a proposed itinerary was provided, and a request was made that the countries in Western Europe not on the schedule be informed “in such a way as to avoid any heartburn.” (Circular telegrams 761, 762, and 763, January 14; 110.11 DU/1–1453) The schedule of formal meetings with leading government officials in each country was as follows:
Washington
| January 30–Friday | |
| 9:30 a.m. | Depart from Washington |
Rome
| January 31–Saturday | |
| 9:30 a.m. | Arrive in Rome |
| 12:45 p.m. | Courtesy call on President Einaudi |
| 4:30 p.m. | Private meeting with Prime Minister De Gasperi |
| 5:15 p.m. | Meeting with Italian officials |
| February 1–Sunday | |
| 9:40 a.m. | Depart from Rome |
Paris
| February 1–Sunday | |
| 12:30 p.m. | Arrive in Paris |
| 3:15 p.m. | Meeting with U.S. Chiefs of Mission; followed by Stassen’s meeting with SRE and MSA officials |
| February 2–Monday | |
| 10:00 a.m. | Meeting with French Ministers |
| 3:30 p.m. | Courtesy call on President Auriol |
| 4:00 p.m. | Meeting with French officials |
| February 3–Tuesday | |
| 11:00 a.m. | Meeting with Lord Ismay |
| 11:30 a.m. | Attend the North Atlantic Council meeting |
| 12 noon | Meeting with OEEC officials |
| 3:30 p.m. | Depart from Paris |
London
| February 3–Tuesday | |
| 3:40 p.m. | Arrive in London |
| February 4–Wednesday | |
| 10:30 a.m. | Meeting with British officials |
| 3:30 p.m. | Meeting with British officials |
| February 5–Thursday | |
| 9:35 a.m. | Depart from London |
Bonn
| February 5–Thursday | |
| 12 noon | Arrive in Bonn |
| 12:45 p.m. | Courtesy call on Chancellor Adenauer |
| 4:30 p.m. | Courtesy call on President Heuss |
| 5:30 p.m. | Meeting with SPD officials |
| 6:30 p.m. | Meeting with German officials |
| February 6–Friday | |
| 9:25 a.m. | Depart from Bonn |
The Hague
| February 6–Friday | |
| 10:15 a.m. | Arrive in The Hague |
| 12 noon | Courtsey call on Prime Minister Drees |
| 3:30 p.m. | Meeting with Foreign Minister Beyen |
| 4:30 p.m. | Meeting with Minister without Portfolio Luns |
| February 7–Saturday | |
| 9:45 a.m. | Depart from The Hague |
Brussels
| February 7–Saturday | |
| 10:15 a.m. | Arrive in Brussels |
| 1:00 p.m. | Meeting with Belgian Ministers |
| February 8–Sunday | |
| 9:30 a.m. | Depart from Brussels |
Luxembourg
| February 8–Sunday | |
| 10:00 a.m. | Arrive in Luxembourg |
| 11:30 a.m. | Courtesy call on the Grand Duchess |
| 11:45 a.m. | Meeting with Luxembourg Ministers |
| 3:00 p.m. | Meeting with U.S. Observers to the Coal and Steel Community High Authority followed by a meeting with Jean Monnet |
| 6:35 p.m. | Depart from Luxembourg |
Washington
| February 9–Monday | |
| Arrive in Washington |
For a complete schedule of Dulles’ and Stassen’s activities, including briefings, dinners, and meetings with Embassy personnel, see the Conference files, lot 59 D 95, CF 136. Prior to his departure from Washington [Page 1551] on January 30, Dulles stated that the purpose of his trip, which was being undertaken at President Eisenhower’s request, was “to gather information about problems which we and other nations of the Atlantic community must deal with in our common effort to attain peace, security, and economic health.” For the complete text of Dulles’ statement, see the Department of State Bulletin, February 9, 1953, page 217.
A useful supplement to the Department of State central files in the preparation of this compilation was the Conference files, lot 59 D 95, which includes two folders of material relating to the Dulles–Stassen trip. Folder CF 136 contains position papers prepared on each country to be visited as well as topical papers on subjects such as European regional organizations; folder CF 137 includes telegrams and records of the various meetings, correspondence exchanged between the Heads of Government of each country visited and President Eisenhower, and press releases with the texts of Dulles’ arrival and departure statements given at each stop on his trip. Position papers on German problems, prepared for the Dulles–Stassen trip, are also in the CFM files, lot M 88, box 164.