Office of the Historian

68. Letter From the Assistant Secretary of State for Congressional Relations (Dutton) to Senator J. William Fulbright1

Washington, November 20, 1963.

Dear Senator Fulbright:

In my letter to you of June 26, 1963,2 I informed you that the Department was considering the closing of 14 consulates throughout the world and changing the status of five other posts.

The following posts have now been closed:

  • Salzburg, Austria
  • Santos, Brazil
  • Edmonton, Canada
  • Manchester, England
  • Le Havre, France
  • Cork, Ireland
  • Haifa, Israel
  • Venice, Italy
  • Penang, Malaysia
  • Basel, Switzerland
  • Cardiff, Wales
  • Sarajevo, Yugoslavia

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The Consulate General at Geneva has been closed and the consular work transferred to Bern. Arrangements have been made for the United States Mission at Geneva to perform urgent diplomatic visa services. The consulates at Tangier, Morocco, and Yokohama, Japan, have been made branch offices of our Embassies in these two countries. These offices will continue to perform consular functions. The consulate at Mandalay, Burma, has been reduced in size and its functions limited to political reporting and protective services to American citizens in the area.

Because of the adverse reaction of the foreign governments and other factors, the Department reconsidered the plan to close the consulates at Windsor, Canada and Turin, Italy. These offices will remain open. The citizens of Piedras Negras, Mexico and Eagle Pass, Texas, requested the Department to reconsider the plan to close the consulate at Piedras Negras. This office will remain open for the indefinite future. Further study will be made of United States representation and the requirement for consular services in all of Mexico, including the border posts.

In the case of Basel, the municipal government and certain American business interests there objected strenuously to the closing of the consulate. The Department, therefore, has undertaken a new and detailed study of the situation to ascertain if there is in fact a commercial reason for maintaining the post.

The Department has concluded action resulting from the survey of consular establishments. No further actions are contemplated at this time. The Department will keep you informed of future developments affecting the status of our posts abroad in the normal manner.

Sincerely yours,

Frederick G. Dutton3
  1. Source: National Archives and Records Administration, RG 59, Central Files 1960–63, ORG 8. No classification marking. Drafted by Sinderson of the Office of Budget (OB) on November 14 and cleared in draft by Ribble (EUR), Spector (ARA), Egert (NEA), and Jones (FE).↩
  2. Not printed. (Ibid.)↩
  3. Printed from a copy that bears this typed signature.↩