Office of the Historian

314. Telegram From the Department of State to the Mission to the European Communities1

Washington, February 8, 1966, 9:29 a.m.

BUSEC 229. Coffee. ECBUS 664.2 Two copies President’s Annual Coffee Report pouched today.3 Report does not deal extensively with [Page 773] possible application of Article 45(3) of Coffee Agreement. President in speech August 17, 1965 to Latin-American Ambassadors (State Dept. Bulletin September 13)4 did say US would continue to strengthen the operation of the Coffee Agreement.

Dept. has worked toward objective tightening Agreement, most recently in December Coffee Council meeting where other consumers were persuaded to accept new requirements for certificates of origin. After April 1, 1966 a certificate of origin will be required on all coffee produced in a member country even if trans-shipped through a non-member country. We feel this is only a first step however as it will not stop shipments of coffee where bags mislabeled to show they are produce of a non-member country.

Clandestine shipments of coffee were very large last year and there is reason to believe they are continuing in substantial volume. For example, US December import statistics show 77,000 bags of coffee imported from Tangier and declared to be of Guinea and Liberian origin. These states are non-members so no certificates of origin required. We would bet however that coffee was actually produced in other African countries that are members of Agreement.

We believe it is only question of time before more stringent meas-ures must be applied by consuming countries to coffee imported from non-members if quota system is to be respected and quota violations eliminated. We are not yet aware if Greece is in business of trans-shipping illegal coffee in important quantities to detriment of International Coffee Agreement, but this is the aspect EEC Commission should focus on if it wants to make constructive contribution to success of Agreement.

Ball
  1. Source: Department of State, Central Files, INCO–COFFEE 4. Limited Official Use. Drafted by Paul E. Callanan (E/OR/ICD/TRP) on February 7; cleared by Bashkin (Commerce), Barbara F. Thomson (EUR/RPE), and George R. Jacobs (E/OR/ICD); and approved by Edward Fried.↩
  2. ECBUS 664 from Brussels, February 4, requested a copy of the President’s annual report to Congress on the International Coffee Agreement and added that because of reports of Greek reexports of coffee to EEC nations, the EEC was interested in the U.S. position of Article 45 of the Agreement, which pertained to development of a more effective quota system. (Ibid.)↩
  3. Not found.↩
  4. Printed in Department of State Bulletin, September 13, 1965, pp. 426–430, and Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: Lyndon B. Johnson, 1965, Book II, pp. 884–889.↩