304. Editorial Note
On October 16, 1963, the Somali Government presented an aide-memoire to the U.S. Embassy in Mogadiscio stating that when it had previously complained to the U.S. Government regarding large-scale U.S. military aid to Ethiopia, it had received assurances that the United States would not permit its military aid to Ethiopia to be used for aggressive purposes. It noted that the Somali Government had every reason to believe that these weapons were primarily intended by the Ethiopian Government for use against the Somalis under its domination or against the Somali Republic itself, and declared that experience had shown that Ethiopia had no compunction about using these modern weapons against defenseless men, women, and children, as the massacres committed since 1960 had shown. Thus, the Somali Government was justified in placing responsibility for Ethiopian aggression on the United States, since its military aid had permitted Ethiopia to carry out its policies of repression and aggression; and it asked the U.S. Government to reconsider its policy of providing large-scale military aid to Ethiopia. (Airgram A-192 from Mogadiscio, October 16; Department of State, Central Files, DEF 19-3 US-ETH)
On October 18, the U.S. Government responded that the program of U.S. military assistance to Ethiopia had begun long before the Somali Republic became an independent country and thus could not be construed as being directed against Somalia. It pointed out that the agreement between the United States and Ethiopia stated that the Ethiopian Government would use this assistance exclusively to maintain internal security and legitimate self-defense, and that it would not undertake any act of aggression against any other nation. (Telegram 238 to Mogadiscio; ibid., POL 32-1 ETH-SOMALI)