Memorandum of Conference With the President

May 16, 1960 MEMORANDUM OF CONFERENCE WITH THE PRESIDENT May 16, 1960, 3 PM Others present: Messrs. Herter, Merchant, Houghton, Bohlen, Thompson, Kohler, Berding, Smith, Achilles, Gates, Irwin, Hagerty, Major Eisenhower, General Goodpaster The President reviewed briefly the course of the morning's meeting in which Khrushchev had been completely intransigent and insulting to the United States and had presented impossible demands. The President said that these were wholly unacceptable. Mr. Bohlen and others suggested that the President should quickly make a full statement, on the assumption that the Soviets were going to do so. Mr. Hagerty suggested that in addition to this statement, Mr. Bohlen should brief the press on just what happened. There was discussion as to whether there were to be any further meetings, during which the consensus seemed to be that Macmillan suggested that provisionally it be planned to meet at 11 AM to- morrow; General de Gaulle entertained this suggestion without taking a position on it. The President said that the net effect of Khrushchev's remarks pertaining to his trip to Russia was that the invitation was with- drawn. The President said that simply saved him the necessity of turning it down given the nature of the statement the Russians had made. The President asked that a statement be prepared at once, and suggested that Mr. Bohlen take the lead in drafting it. DECLASSIFIED E.O. 11652, Sec. 11 MR 76-56 #53 By J.V. Date 2-18-71