Office of the Historian

64. Briefing note for 369th NSC meeting1

Washington, June 19, 1958
[Facsimile Page 1]
1.
The next item is to report on a review which the President directed of a paragraph in another security policy statement—Par. 27-d on Page 12 of the draft Basic National Security Policy discussed at the Council Meeting on May 1.
2.
This paragraph—which appeared in the economic section of the basic policy paper—proposed, in recognition of the problems of “one-crop” countries, that, for political reasons, the U.S. might “on occasion, join in multilateral examination of price, production, and demand trends” for basic commodities “which might help to promote readjustments between supply and demand and reduce price fluctuations”. Treasury and Commerce wished to add that the U.S. should not discuss the making of, or participate in, any international commodity agreement without Presidential approval.
3.
Mr. Randall called attention to the fact that this paragraph, as proposed by the Planning Board, did not reflect existing CFEP policy of general disapproval of international commodity agreements, or the requirement that CFEP give its advance approval to any participation by U.S. representatives in international discussion of any such agreement, or to U.S. participation in any such agreement.
4.
At the Council Meeting on May 1 it was agreed to delete Paragraph 27–d and to refer it, and an alternative proposed by the Secretary of State, to the Council on Foreign Economic Policy to consider in reviewing the existing CFEP policy on international commodity agreements.
5.
On May 22 Mr. Randall filed with the Council a memorandum report, which is before you, stating (1) the text of the existing CFEP policy on international commodity agreements, and (2) the consensus of CFEP that this policy should be continued in effect. In the light of this review, there appears no need to include any paragraph on this subject in the basic policy statement, and none has been included.
6.
It may interest the Council to know that the CFEP, under the exceptions procedure in its existing policy, recently authorized the Department of State to participate in an international coffee study group and to discuss an international coffee agreement, if such an agreement is proposed by one of the members of the study group. The CFEP also urged State to take every precaution not to imply directly or indirectly, that the U.S. would participate in or police such an agreement.

cc: Mr. Harr

Mr. Lay

Dr. Gleason

Mr. Johnson

  1. Source: Draft basic national security policy paper. Secret. 1 p. Eisenhower Library, Whitman File, NSC Records.↩