IO Files: US/A/360

Memorandum of Conversation, by Mr. G. Hayden Raynor of the United States Delegation Staff of Advisers

confidential
Participants: Andrei Gromyko and Aides, U.S.S.R. Delegation
Mr. Stevenson, United States Delegation
Mr. Bohlen, United States Delegation
Mr. Raynor, United States Delegation

Mr. Gromyko asked Mr. Stevenson and one of his aides asked Mr. Raynor to discuss this matter1 during the recess. The aide stated that the Soviet Union desired the Ukraine for Chairmanship of Committee 3 and Poland for the Vice Presidency. Mr. Gromyko in his conversation did not press this point. The aide also implied very clearly that [in] the informal consultation of permament members with Mr. Lie the night before, which the United States did not attend, there had been agreement to the above.

Following our discussion with Mr. McNeil2 and the meeting of American advisers and taking into account the strong Arab desire for Mr. Malik to have the Chairmanship of Committee 3, we told Mr. Gromyko that while we had undertaken to support Poland for this committee and would continue to do so if he insisted, we felt it might be wiser to try to elect Poland to the Chairmanship of Committee 5. In so doing we explained to Mr. Gromyko that because of the load it would be carrying and of the importance at this time of budgetary considerations, we considered Committee 5 next in importance in this Assembly to Committee 1.

Mr. Gromyko, after some consideration, replied that he could not consider this switch as we had agreed to support Poland for Committee 3, and while he admitted that Committee 5 was of importance to us and to a considerable extent also to the Soviet Union, it was not of importance to a smaller state like Poland and that he believed Poland would not be interested in Committee 5.

Thereupon we assured Mr. Gromyko that we would continue our support of Poland for Committee 3 but warned him that in the light of the support which Mr. Malik had in the Assembly, we did not feel that this election would be by any means an easy one.

  1. Slates for elections.
  2. See infra. Mr. Hector McNeil was Minister of State (Foreign Office) in the British Government and second-ranking official on the British Delegation to the General Assembly.