751J.00/4–3053: Telegram
The Ambassador in France (Dillon) to the Department of State
priority
[Received 6:20 p.m.]
5755. Department pass USUN. Repeated information priority Saigon 239, London 1208, USUN New York 57. Re Deptel 5444.1 I saw Bidault this afternoon and found him opposed to taking Laos case to Security Council. He feels that if the UN were the organization it was supposed to be, the case should naturally go before it, but in view of the strong position of the Arab countries in the UN and their feelings toward France, he could not foresee fair treatment. There would be a demand that Ho Chi Minh be heard and made a party to the dispute which would increase his stature and diminish that of France. Bidault considers that there is now a concern both in France and in the United States amounting almost to panic about the Indochina situation which is not justified by the facts of the situation. These are his personal feelings as government has not made up its mind.
There was long discussion of subject at Cabinet meeting yesterday with no definite conclusion reached. Full report of meeting, including verbatim quotes, appeared in this afternoon’s edition of Le Monde. This report states Mayer, Auriol and Letourneau favored taking case to UN but that Bidault opposed this course violently. Bidault mentioned article to me and said that description of his opposition and arguments which he used as they appeared in Le Monde were accurate. He deplored article and said that information for it had not come from him. This probably accurate as article appears to be form of pressure on Bidault by those wishing to appeal to UN. In closing Bidault said that he hoped to be able to give me an informal memorandum in a few days setting out government position and reasons for it. This indicates that he expects government to reach a decision shortly.
[Page 529]I have heard from unofficial sources two additional possible reasons for Bidault’s position: First, that taking case to UN would damage prestige of France in French Union, and second, that it would set a precedent for UN to take jurisdiction in Moroccan and Tunisian cases.
Contents of Deptel 5444 also communicated to Latournelle by Minister this morning. Latournelle told him that working level of Foreign Office was now in favor of going to UN but Bidault strongly opposed.