Foreign Relations of the United States, 1961–1963, Volume XXV, Organization of Foreign Policy; Information Policy; United Nations; Scientific Matters

281. Memorandum From the Assistant Secretary of State for International Organization Affairs (Cleveland) to Secretary of State Rusk¹

Washington, November 26, 1963.

SUBJECT

• President Johnson on the UN

The following indications are available as to President Johnson’s policy on UN affairs:

1. Ambassador Stevenson was invited to meet with President Johnson yesterday afternoon, before the reception in the State Department building. In the course of the 15 or 20 minute talk, the President confirmed his desire to carry on the policy of President Kennedy in the field of international cooperation on outer space matters. (This is also confirmed by the fact that the paragraphs from Ambassador Stevenson’s prospective UN speech on outer space cooperation, which you sent over to the White House for clearance, have been returned with changes that do not affect the main thrust of our recommendation.)

The President had had some homework done on his own previous utterances on international cooperation in outer space, and gave Ambassador Stevenson marked copies of his previous speeches, drawing attention to passages with strong remarks on the subject. A selection of these excerpts, to which the President drew specific attention, is attached at Tab A.²

2. Ambassador Stevenson also discussed with the President the line he intended to take in the short speech he is making this afternoon in the General Assembly, answering on behalf of the U.S. the dozen or more eulogies that will be given in the General Assembly by representatives from other nations. Ambassador Stevenson told the President that it would be useful to put some words in his (the President’s) mouth, in reassuring the Assembly about U.S. policy toward the United Nations. The President said that whatever Ambassador Stevenson said along that line would be alright with him, but to make it strong.

3. At the reception, the President spent 3 or 4 minutes with Secretary-General U Thant; Ambassador Stevenson and I were present. The Secretary-General led off by saying that he had followed with some interest President Johnson’s personal public statements on the UN, and it seemed clear that his interest in and support of the UN was strong. President Johnson replied that his support of the United Nations was “total”. He went on to say something very much like the following: “It would be hard to be a more vigorous and effective supporter of the UN than President Kennedy was, but if I can manage it, that’s what I will be”.³

After the President’s talk with Ambassador Stevenson following the Cabinet meeting Saturday, November 23, the President directed his office to make available to us some quotations from previous speeches about the UN. These quotations are attached at Tab B.

Harlan Cleveland⁴

1. Source: Kennedy Library, Cleveland Papers, President Johnson Transition, Box 20. Confidential. Drafted by Cleveland on November 26.
2. Tabs A and B are not printed.
3. This paragraph was derived from Cleveland’s November 25 memorandum of this conversation. According to Cleveland’s record, President Johnson also mentioned at the end of their talk that he wanted to have U Thant to Washington for lunch sometime soon. (Kennedy Library, Cleveland Papers, President Johnson Transition, Box 20)
4. Printed from a copy that bears this typed signature.