611.0031 Executive Committee/8–645: Telegram
The Ambassador in the United Kingdom (Winant) to the Secretary of State
[Received 8:45 p.m.]
7903. For Wilcox and Thorp63 from Hawkins and Stinebower. At first meeting with British on commercial policy on August 4 the first reaction to our proposed procedure was that it would be difficult to [Page 88] line up the nuclear countries by separate diplomatic talks. Some of their countersuggestions might enhance the difficulty of selecting the nuclear group. For example, they tentatively suggested a first meeting of nuclear group to discuss purely procedural matters.
For our further discussions it would be most useful to have the Department’s views as to indispensable minimum of nuclear list, both politically and economically. The Ottawa talks as reported to ECEFP (Executive Committee on Economic Foreign Policy) rather envisaged the following: US, UK, the four Dominions, India, USSR, France, Belgium, Netherlands, Czechoslovakia, China, Cuba, Brazil. British hope China can be omitted, strongly urge Argentina. Obviously essential that list be kept to a minimum but that it cover a substantial part of the world’s trade and have a representative coverage.
If possible please send Department’s political and economic judgment on the nuclear list before Friday.64 [Hawkins and Stinebower.]