Memorandum of Conversation with Secretary of State Dean Acheson, Foreign Minister of Italy Carlo Sforza, John Hickerson, and Dean Rusk

FOP SECDET CLUNET DEPARTMENT OF STATE 214 Memorandum of Conversation 126 DATE: s ARGHIVES 'MATIONAL RECORDS AND 18 April 1949 SUBJECT: Conf PARTICIPANTS: Count Carlos Sforza, Italian Foreign Minister Secretary of State Mr. Rusk Mr. lickerson COPIES TO: s, a, NEA, EUR, Amembassy Rome, SWE 1-1493 Count Sforza, the Italian Foreign Minister came in to see me at his request at 3:30 this afternoon. He opened the conversa- tion by saying that he would be returning to Europe in the next day or so and that he wished to have a very confidential conversa- tion with me before his departure from this country. He said that although be had full confidence in the Italian Ambsssador, he wished to see me without any other Italian official present. Count Sforza said that he was deeply troubled over the Ital- ian colonies problem. He said that he had had frank telks with Nr. Dulles who was sympathotic and understanding of the Italian diffieulties+ lie said that he had talked to lector MeNeil who was frank but not sympathetic and had said no to everything which Count Sforza had suggested. He went on to say that some of his Latin American friends had como to hira with cleims of a two- thirds majority for Italian trusteeship for Tripolitanie and that Melleil seened certain that the UK could get a two-thirds majority for Cyronoica whatever happened to the other colonies. Count Sforza said that he had refused to look at rival claims for certain two-thirds majorities on any of these questions and that one thing he had learned about politics was that nobody could be sure how a vote would turn out until the ballota had been counted. Count Sforza said that he had identified himself with the forces in Italy favoring the closest possible ties with the west end the gradual unification of the free countries of Europe, DECLASSIFIED E. O. 11652, Sec. 3(E) and 5(D) or (B) including Dept. of State letter, Aug TOP SECRET Bas NLT. He : NARS Date 4-21-76