Office of the Historian

313. Memorandum of Conversation0

Washington, July 31, 1961.

SUBJECT

  • Prime Minister Caramanlis’ Letter to the Secretary

PARTICIPANTS

  • The Secretary
  • Howard R. Cottam, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Economic and Regional Affairs, NEA
  • Oliver M. Marcy, Deputy Director, GTI
  • Alexis S. Liatis, Ambassador of Greece

Following an exchange of niceties, the Ambassador handed the Secretary (1) Mr. Caramanlis’ letter to the President,1 and (2) Mr. Caramanlis’ letter, together with its enclosures, to the Secretary.2 The Secretary hastily perused Mr. Caramanlis’ letter and laid it aside, saying that he would be responding to it promptly and that the Ambassador could be sure that the points raised by Mr. Caramanlis would have the direct and careful attention of the United States Government.

In discussing Mr. Caramanlis’ letter, Mr. Liatis made the point that the Greek Prime Minister is personally and most particularly interested in the economic program for Greece. He very much wants to get forward with it this year for a variety of reasons, including the example a prosperous Greece would set for the rest of the underdeveloped world. [Page 613] The Secretary merely commented that as the Ambassador knew the Administration had not yet gotten its foreign aid bill through the Congress: a great deal of what we could do would depend not only upon the authorization but also upon the appropriations bill. We were having difficulty because of the 5-year lending authority which we seek, but the Secretary was hopeful.

As regards the military aspects of the Prime Minister’s letter, the Ambassador had little substantive to add, merely noting that the assist-ance sought would bring it more closely into conformity with NATO requirements, and that essentially what was desired was that the programs already elaborated between JUSMMAT and the Greek Government be expedited.

Again asserting that the Ambassador could be certain that the Prime Minister’s letter would receive our immediate and careful attention, the Secretary raised the question of the Greek position regarding the maximum tariff on tobacco vis-à-vis the EEC. The Ambassador first commented that it was premature for the Greeks to act vis-à-vis EEC since Greece is not yet formally a member of that organization. Following some discussion, he elaborated that the principal difficulty was that tobacco was a very sensitive issue in Greece, and that any Greek action which smacks of being a concession to the United States in respect to tobacco is political dynamite. Following some further conversation during which Ambassador Liatis admitted that he had discussed the issue cursorily with Mr. Caramanlis prior to his departure from Athens, and undertook to review his own files concerning the conversation between Mr. Dillon and Mr. Protopapadakis in Paris, the Secretary asked if he could have his colleagues “snap at the Ambassador’s heels on this matter”. The Secretary concluded that this was an issue we wished to resolve as quickly as possible and the matter was left that the Department would follow up with Ambassador Liatis.

As the meeting was breaking up, the Ambassador asked concerning Berlin and the Secretary’s labors in respect thereto. The Secretary pointed out that he was going to Paris this weekend and following conversations with the British, French and Germans would speak with the North Atlantic Council on Tuesday. Upon his return to Washington he would no doubt be in consultation with the NATO Ambassadors because he foresaw that, as the crisis developed, there would be a great deal to do. He noted in this connection that we were most grateful for Greece’s staunch support as regards the Berlin issue, to which Ambassador Liatis replied that we should never be in any doubt regarding Greece’s position on such matters. The Secretary inquired as to the Ambassador’s personal plans, and was told that the Ambassador would be available in Washington throughout the summer.

  1. Source: Department of State, Secretary’s Memoranda of Conversation: Lot 65 D 330. Confidential. Drafted by Marcy and approved in S on August 9.↩
  2. In his July 24 letter, Karamanlis, after thanking the President for the courtesies extended during his Washington visit, indicated that Ambassador Liatis would be explaining specific Greek needs and concerns to Secretary Rusk. The message was forwarded to the Department of State in airgram A–20 from Athens, August 10. (Ibid., 781.13/8–1061)↩
  3. This July 22 letter outlined Greek economic and military assistance requirements. (Ibid., 781.5–MSP/7–2761)↩