99. Editorial Note
On March 18, 1961, George W. Ball left for Europe to explain the administration’s new foreign aid program and to participate in the meeting of the Development Assistance Group (DAG) in London March 27-29. Founded in early 1960, DAG was composed of the representatives of the United States, Canada, United Kingdom, France, Italy, Federal Republic of Germany, Netherlands, Belgium, Portugal, European Economic Community, and Japan. For text of the note delivered to the DAG member nations in preparation for Ball’s visit, see Document 98.
From March 19 to 22, Ball had informal sessions in Bonn with German Finance Minister Franz Etzel, representatives of the German Foreign Office under the chairmanship of Hilger van Scherpenberg, Economic Minister Ludwig Erhard, and Defense Minister Franz Josef Strauss. For texts of memoranda of Ball’s two conversations with Van Scherpenberg on the morning and afternoon of March 20 and of the informal minutes issued by the two sides on March 22, see the Supplement.
From March 23 to 26, Ball visited Paris. On March 23, he conferred with French Finance Minister Wilfrid S. Baumgartner, Foreign Minister Maurice Couve de Murville, and other French officials, and he attended an OEEC Council meeting on March 25.
After flying to London on March 26, Ball met with A.F.W. Plumptre, head of the Canadian DAG delegation. For reports of the morning DAG meeting on March 27 and the subsequent meeting restricted to the heads of delegation, see Documents 101 and 102. Memoranda of Ball’s conversations on this European trip and memoranda summarizing the DAG sessions, March 27-29, are in Department of State, Conference Files: Lot 65 D 366, CF 1817, 1819, and 1821. For texts of two resolutions adopted at this DAG meeting, March 29, and the communique, March 30, see Department of State Bulletin, April 17, 1961, pages 553-556.