Memorandum from Acting Secretary of State James Webb to President Harry S. Truman

DECLASSIFIED E.O. 12065, Sec. 3-402 Guidelines, March 6, 1982 State Dept. DEB NLT, Date 10-22-85 By DEPARTMENT OF STATE WASHINGTON SECRET Rose file September 13, 1951 MEMORANDUM FOR THE PRESIDENT Subject: Visit of His Excellency Elpidio Quirino, President of the Philippines. President Quirino is scheduled to call at 12:30 p.m., Thursday, September 13. Since August 31 he has been at Johns Hopkins under- going a physical check up. After his visit with you he is scheduled to go to New York and then to return by air to the Philippines. These are the topics that he may broach: 1. Japanese peace treaty. You may wish to express to President Quirino your admiration of his statesmanship in giving due weight to the larger issue of the Japanese peace treaty and thereby taking a determined stand for it even though circumstances could not permit accession to all Philippine desires. 2. Pacific Pact. President Quirino believes he originated the concept of regional security in the Pacific and for that purpose called a conference at Baguio in May 1950 of representatives of Australia, Ceylon, Indonesia, Pakistan, and Thailand. The meeting accomplished little. In his address following the signing of the Mutual Defense Treaty on August 30, 1951, President Quirino said: "I have special reason to rejoice at this moment because it was not so long ago, in this same capital, that I took the liberty of proposing the conclusion of a Pacific Security Pact under the initiative of the United States. This is the first fruit of that vision". If President Quirino suggests that arrangements which have already been concluded should now be expanded into a more compre- hensive understanding, you may wish to point out that we would of SECRET course TRUMAN HARRY S.