Foreign Relations of the United States, 1952–1954, Western Europe and Canada, Volume VI, Part 2

765.00/6–2953: Circular airgram

No. 748
The Secretary of State to Certain Diplomatic Offices¹

secret

Washington, June 29, 1953—6:15 p.m.

The Department is concerned over speculation in moderate Italian political circles regarding the possibility that the Nenni Socialist Party or individual Nenni Socialists might be admitted into some future Italian government.² Although De Gasperi has ruled out such a possibility for the present, the very fact that it is considered seriously by so many moderates is a cause for concern. The Department believes that the Embassy has been correct in following a negative line in discussing the question with Italian officials and believes that the gravity with which we view such a possibility should be made clear in all our associations with Italians in official and political circles.

It is the Department’s view that the inclusion of Nenni Socialists in the government, whether as individuals or as a party, would, in the absence of convincing prior proof of a complete rupture with the Communist Party, bear the seeds of potential calamity both for Italy itself and for our relations with Italy. Not only would it open the way anew to infiltration of the government by Communist agents, but it would also inevitably have the effect of watering down measures against the Communists and of increasing the long-run danger of Italian neutralism.

The Department is particularly impressed by the point made by De Gasperi’s confidential secretary, Paolo Canali, that admission of Nenni Socialists would in all probability result in establishment of a channel through which all Italian secrets, including those pertaining to NATO and US–Italian bilateral relations, might eventually pass to the USSR. The assistance that this would render the latter, not only with regard to purely military matters but also with regard to the USSR’s efforts to divide the West and play upon behind-the-scenes differences in the Western alignment, need not be commented upon. The resulting security problem would thenceforth have to be taken into account by us in our consideration of all sensitive aspects of our relations with Italy.

If you concur, you are authorized to express informally to Prime Minister De Gasperi the satisfaction of the Department that he has apparently seen so clearly the danger from the security point of view of bringing Nenni or any of his followers into the government. You may also wish to explain to him our own views as to the extent of the security problem involved and the attention that we would thenceforth have to give to the question in our consideration of all sensitive aspects of our relations with the Italian Government should Nenni Socialists be admitted.

It is the Department’s view that the above should be reviewed only upon the basis of clear and incontrovertible evidence, which is thus far completely lacking, of a clean, sincere break of the PSI with the Communists.

The Embassy’s comments on the foregoing would be appreciated.³

Dulles

1. Drafted by William E. Knight and cleared with Merchant and Byington. Sent to Rome and repeated to Moscow, HICOG Bonn, The Hague, Luxembourg, Brussels, and Frankfurt for Satterthwaite.
2. Following the June 7 elections the leader of the Social Democratic Party, Giuseppe Saragat, called for the formation of a new government which would include members of the Socialist Party or its leader, Pietro Nenni. On June 29, De Gasperi announced the resignation of his government and his intention to attempt to form a new one. A description of the events leading up to the resignation of the De Gasperi government and the Embassy’s views on the possible composition of a new government are in telegram 5211 from Rome, June 30. (765.00/6–3053)
3. In despatch 83 of July 9, the Counselor of Embassy, Elbridge Durbrow, stated that he and Ambassador Luce had discussed informally with officials of the Italian Foreign Office on July 7 Department views regarding the inclusion of Nenni in any coalition government. He noted, too, that since Luce did not plan to see De Gasperi in the near future, she had discussed the matter with Taviani and Durbrow had discussed it with Ministers Del Balzo and Casardi. Durbrow pointed out that De Gasperi had made it quite clear, even in public statements, that he had no intention of including Nenni or any Nenni-Socialist in a new government. (765.00/7–953)