341. Letter 17 from Johnson to McConaughy1
I have received your letters of October 29 and November 2.
I first want to say that I greatly regret that it was impossible to discuss your TEDUL 42, in particular paragraph 2, with the Secretary until just prior to my meeting yesterday morning. The Secretary’s Madrid trip and then the extreme pressure of his other appointments here made it impossible even to discuss it Wednesday night, so Herman and I were not able to get to him until 8:45 yesterday morning. We talked for about 30 minutes and then I got off my very short 1044 to you before going to the meeting so as to let you know as quickly as possible what had happened. I had prepared for the meeting on the basis of asking Wang questions, and with the shift of emphasis I had no time to prepare anything else and so talked entirely extemporaneously. I don’t feel I made any bad slips and, on the whole, it was probably more effective than sitting and reading a prepared statement.
Our redraft here of the Agreed Announcement is, as you will recognize, simply a plagiarized and adapted version of the opening statement on the subject, which, however, it seems to me, well lent itself to the purpose. It seems to me that all the added “spinach” gives us something with much more political sex appeal and much more to talk about.
In the meeting yesterday I tried to partially lay the ground for introduction of some such draft and, particularly, to try to make the point to Wang that they need not sacrifice their position on Taiwan being a domestic issue by accepting our formula.
In view of the longer gap now between meetings, I plan to send my next summary report by priority rather than niact, and the [Facsimile Page 2] full report by routine. Let me know if this does not work out satisfactorily from your standpoint.
You are entirely right that I would be very reluctant to lose Ekvall. We are used to working with each other and he does very well at a very difficult job, particularly when I start extemporizing and get myself [Typeset Page 479] wound up, as I often do, in long involved sentences which are by no means easy to put into Chinese. I also value his judgment, and particularly his assessment of reactions of the other side. I have had to change every member of my little group here except Ekvall. I would be very reluctant to have any more changes at this time.
I am having to go up to Prague this week-end because of a personnel emergency arising in the staff up there. As I mentioned in my telegram, I plan, as usual, to come back on Tuesday. I talked it over with Rod and Herman, as I could, if essential, have come back on Sunday, but I think that that will give us plenty of time. The Secretary is going to be away in Vienna and Yugoslavia over the week-end.
I sent off to you today my thoughts with regard to the next meeting and will presume that by Tuesday evening we will have your instructions, which I can, if necessary, Rod assured me, discuss with the Secretary Tuesday evening in time to get something back to you before Thursday’s meeting.
My travel to Prague has now been complicated by the fact that they have taken off the early morning plane from Geneva to Zurich, which means there is no way for me to get there except to go up to Zurich Friday evening by train and stay overnight and take the plane to Prague the next morning. However, I can still come back directly, arriving here at 3:45 p.m. Tuesday afternoons.
I was very interested in the conversation with Mehta. It does not shed any light on whether or not they have actually thus far “assisted” anyone, but I would presume from the conversation that they have not done so.
Yesterday and today I have quickly and firmly knocked down several press rumors—one to the effect that yesterday I agreed with Wang on a Foreign Ministers’ meeting, and another today to the effect that the Secretary and Chou have recently exchanged letters.
I will have to cut this short in order to make the pouch, but you can be sure that we will continue to try to keep things [Facsimile Page 3] under control.
I assume the Department will do whatever it considers necessary to keep Hammarskjold informed of our discussion on missing military personnel.
Regards to all.
Sincerely,
American Ambassador
- Source: Department of State, Central Files, 611.93/11–455. Secret; Official–Informal. Johnson signed the original “Alex.” A handwritten note by Robertson next to the last paragraph about missing military personnel reads: “Walter—Has this been done in any way?” An attached handwritten note from Robertson to Sebald reads: “I agree we should advise Hammarskjold of our request for accounting [illegible in the original] personnel.”↩