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

765.00/12–2253

No. 759
The Supreme Allied Commander, Europe (Gruenther) to the Ambassador in Italy (Luce)

secret

[Paris,] December 18, 1953.

Dear Mrs. Luce: After receiving your letter of December 11,¹ I discussed the problem, outlined in it, with Secretary Dulles, Secretary Wilson, Mr. Nash, and General Christiansen. I also took the liberty of giving a copy of your letter to Mr. Dulles. Today, Mr. Tracy Voorhees informed me that he will see you in Rome early next week in connection with some of the off-shore procurement aspects.²

Secretary Dulles told me that he was going to mention the matter in one of his talks with Prime Minister Pella. However, I do not know the result of that conversation.³

. . . . . . .

From time to time the North Atlantic Council has studied the question of anti-communist measures within NATO, but thus far, without concrete results. It would appear that a considerable amount of preparatory work is still required before the Council will be able to formulate a policy in this field which will be of any real value.

I am glad that you wrote your letter, because it has given everybody on the U.S. side something to think about. We at SHAPE will continue to study the problem actively because, regardless of our technical responsibility, we cannot afford to let a dangerous military situation develop without initiating action to correct it.

Minister Taviani is coming to Paris shortly after January 15th, and I have already arranged to see him in connection with Italian defense matters. I shall discuss with him at some length the subject you have raised. If, prior to that time, you or General Christiansen have in mind any specific points that I can use in my discussion with Signor Taviani, I shall be grateful if you will let me have them.

I trust that you will have a very Merry Christmas. Mrs. Gruenther joins me in best wishes to the Luce family.

Sincerely,

Alfred M. Gruenther

1. Supra.
2. In a letter to Merchant of Dec. 22, Edward Page of USRO in Paris wrote that Voorhees would not go to Rome because of poor flying conditions but that he was returning to Washington toward the end of the month. Attached to this letter was a memorandum of Dec. 21 which furnished background information concerning the establishment in 1953 of the NATO Special Committee to study ways to combat Communist subversion. (765.00/12–2253)
3. Dulles’ conversation with Pella in Paris on Dec. 16, which dealt almost entirely with the Trieste question, was described in telegram 2319 from Paris, Dec. 16, scheduled for publication in volume viii. Dulles did not raise the OSP question with Pella.