Memorandum of Conversation with Secretary of State Dean Acheson, Ambassador of France Henri Bonnet, and Others

296 EE TRIMAN 5 DEPARTMENT OF STATE ARCHIVES AND RECORDS SERVICE" cort us Memorandum of Conversation 58 DATE: February 16, 1960 SUBJECT: Indochina PARTICIPANTS: M. Henri Bonnet, Ambassador of the French Republie M. Jean Minister Counseior; 07 the French Republic The Secretary Kr. Livingston T. Herchant, Aeting Aesistant Secretary, FE COPIES TO: 3/s WE G 8/MDA EUR FE S/P 1-1493 The French Ambassador called on me this afternoon at his request, indieating that the subject which he wished to diseuss was Indochina and that it was a matter of some urgency. Before recapitulating the contents or the attached aide-semoire which the Ambassador left with me, he stated that he wished to review the attitude of the French Cabinet in the light of recent developmente in Indochina, The Ambassador pointed out that the Freneh dovernment had been engaged for an extended period in a serious and expensive military effort in French Indochina, The Ambassador went on to point out that the recognition of Ho Ch1 Minh by the Peking and Koscow Governments seemed clearly to indicate that it was in this area that the two Communist powers pro- posed to take aggressive action. The second development, to which the Ambassador referred, was the ratification by the French Government of the March 8 Agreemente, followed by recognition on the part of the United States and Great Britain, He vent on to say that the Freneh proposed loyally to carry out the terms of those agreements and to foster the development of democratic institutions and processes in the three Kingdoms. DECLASSIFIED At this STATE LTR. 12.7.79 Project NIT 77.3P By NLT- He NARS, Date 1.21.fo