Memorandum, State Department Summary of Telegrams

WLT(NAVAL AIDE) 438 OFFICE OF R THE SECRETARY OF STATE DECLASSIFIED WASHINGTON E.O. 12065, Sec. 3-402 State Dept. Guidelines, March 6, 1982 December 5, 1952 By DEZ2 NLT, Data-11-8r TOP SECRET SECURITY INFORMATION SUMMARY OF TELEGRAMS IRAN We have informed the UK Foreign Office con- cerning a meeting on the Iranian problem which was held December 4 with representatives of the major American oil companies. The discussions assumed that a solution to the problem must be one which would secure British governmental and Anglo-Iranian Oil Company cooperation and which would in- volve equitable settlement of the problem of compensation for the nationalized UK interests. The meeting centered around the manner in which American companies could participate in an ef- fort to move the quantity of oil from Iran that we believe necessary to meet the Iranian financial situation. The talks were inconclusive and will be resumed next Tuesday after the various representatives have had time to consider the problem. It is now contemplated that a Departmental officer, Mr. Nitze, will leave for London following the meeting next week for discussions with UK officials. We are informing the British that we now plan to issue a press release on the question of oil purchases from Iran by US firms at noon Saturday. While this action does not result from the meeting with the US oil companies, it has been forced upon us by greatly increased pressure from the press as to our position on the so-called "embargo" against Iranian oil movements. In this connection, we recall that the Secretary recently informed Mr. Eden in New York he anticipated we would shortly be forced into the position where we could no longer refuse to comment on this situation. TRIESTE Ambassador Gifford has urged UK Foreign Secretary Eden to consider our Trieste proposal, including at least the minimum preliminary approach, as strongly as possible. Eden remains equally positively opposed, preferring to do nothing until after the Italian elections next spring and then, probably, confront the Italians and Yugoslavs with a Zone A-Zone B division. He is not convinced Marshall Tito will accept any other. TOP SECRET SECURITY INFORMATION