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RECORDS
ANO
SERVIGE
Mr. Dean Acheson
-2-
August 5, 1953
on this basis I would be inclined to make the following
comments about your list. I wonder if Point 1 - the British
devaluation - is a proper major subject of attention. .Of course
if you mean he whole problem of sterling balances boins at or
that
near the center of the Western economic position, I would have
to agree, and I think we might do well to try to have a real
discussion of this point. In this context it might easily be
true (I simply do not know, and you do) that the negotiations
of late 1949 would be But that specific crisis
central
does not seem to me to be of importance comparable to some of
your other items.
I feel the same way about the Japanese peace treaty. Again
this may be simply ignorance, but I wonder if those negotiations
bring up decisive questions and difficulties of the kind that
we meet in other areas. The whole operation passed off very well;
did this conceal a number of really tough and interesting questions -
in particular, are they interesting to you?
I think that questions 2, 4, and 5 - NATO, Germany, and France -
are all so closely connected that we might do better to try to
examine them under the same heading of policy toward Western
Europe. Here I would include the sterling area question and re-
lationships between us and the U.K. generally. This is certainly
a problem of the first interest, and it seems to me that all of
the points you have suggested need attention and can profitably
be discussed by the seminar.
I feel the same way about Korea. This is probably the most
important thing that happened while you were Secretary. The only
time-saving device I can suggest here is that it might be well if
we laid upon the members of the seminar in this case a specific
requirement that they do some homework on the MacArthur hearings
on this issue. If Butch were willing to designate the pages that
seem to him pretty significant, you might be spared the task of
a chronological survey, and might simply expose yourself to cross-
examination by the seminar. This might get you into the really
decisive issues, and to the kind of thing that the seminar can do,
and the Engs do it without taking us over well trodden ground.
I think that both questions 6 and 8 are of great interest, although
perhaps they will not take us as long as Western Europe and Korea;
there I think your outline already indi cates that there are things
which you want to say, and notions which you want to lay before the
seminar, it might well be advisable for you to indicate
in a little more detail, a meeting or so in advance, what points
are of real interest to you, so that again the seminar members may
do some homework.
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"ocrText": "us\nRECORDS\nANO\nSERVIGE\nMr. Dean Acheson\n-2-\nAugust 5, 1953\non this basis I would be inclined to make the following\ncomments about your list. I wonder if Point 1 - the British\ndevaluation - is a proper major subject of attention. .Of course\nif you mean he whole problem of sterling balances boins at or\nthat\nnear the center of the Western economic position, I would have\nto agree, and I think we might do well to try to have a real\ndiscussion of this point. In this context it might easily be\ntrue (I simply do not know, and you do) that the negotiations\nof late 1949 would be But that specific crisis\ncentral\ndoes not seem to me to be of importance comparable to some of\nyour other items.\nI feel the same way about the Japanese peace treaty. Again\nthis may be simply ignorance, but I wonder if those negotiations\nbring up decisive questions and difficulties of the kind that\nwe meet in other areas. The whole operation passed off very well;\ndid this conceal a number of really tough and interesting questions -\nin particular, are they interesting to you?\nI think that questions 2, 4, and 5 - NATO, Germany, and France -\nare all so closely connected that we might do better to try to\nexamine them under the same heading of policy toward Western\nEurope. Here I would include the sterling area question and re-\nlationships between us and the U.K. generally. This is certainly\na problem of the first interest, and it seems to me that all of\nthe points you have suggested need attention and can profitably\nbe discussed by the seminar.\nI feel the same way about Korea. This is probably the most\nimportant thing that happened while you were Secretary. The only\ntime-saving device I can suggest here is that it might be well if\nwe laid upon the members of the seminar in this case a specific\nrequirement that they do some homework on the MacArthur hearings\non this issue. If Butch were willing to designate the pages that\nseem to him pretty significant, you might be spared the task of\na chronological survey, and might simply expose yourself to cross-\nexamination by the seminar. This might get you into the really\ndecisive issues, and to the kind of thing that the seminar can do,\nand the Engs do it without taking us over well trodden ground.\nI think that both questions 6 and 8 are of great interest, although\nperhaps they will not take us as long as Western Europe and Korea;\nthere I think your outline already indi cates that there are things\nwhich you want to say, and notions which you want to lay before the\nseminar, it might well be advisable for you to indicate\nin a little more detail, a meeting or so in advance, what points\nare of real interest to you, so that again the seminar members may\ndo some homework."
}