Office of the Historian

501.BC Indonesia/10–2548: Telegram

The Ambassador in the Netherlands (Baruch) to the Secretary of State 1

secret
us urgent
The Hague, October 25, 1948—5 p. m.

725. Embassy has studied with greatest care Department’s 540, October 21 (Gocus 415)2 and relay October 23 from Batavia (Gocus 417)3 and we heartily congratulate Department and Cochran on results negotiations.

We agree desirability expression of satisfaction by Secretary and UN officials on resumption negotiations, but we seriously question soundness of suggestion that Department make any public statements directly, or by implication, critical of the Netherlands Government’s attitude, or of encouraging the American press to do so. Whether we like it or not, public opinion in Netherlands is inflamed in regard to Indonesian questions; moreover, the role and position of US therein is beginning to be questioned or misunderstood in press. World opinion might be organized to pressure Dutch into agreement, but there is danger that they would react in exactly opposite manner and stubbornly push ahead with own course. Embassy believes that US must, at this stage, be careful to avoid any impression of partiality or exerting undue pressure, even though we agree with Cochran that we should continue efforts to induce a reasonable attitude on part Netherlands officials.

Having succeeded in bringing both parties to a resumption of negotiations, we believe that the GOC as a body should do everything it can to promote an agreement. Above all, it is highly important that a favorable atmosphere for the negotiations be created and recognition be secured of the need for both sides to be reasonable and to show readiness to compromise in order to reach a settlement. Finally we submit that responsibilities recently assumed should be shifted from the shoulders of our delegation and the US back to the GOC and UN where it belongs and where England, France, etc., could take their full share in solving this problem with its tremendous responsibilities and implications. I respectfully submit that such a chance may never come again (Embtel 608, September 164).

Baruch
  1. Repeated in telegram 532, October 27, 5 p. m., Usgoc 180, to Batavia.↩
  2. Telegram 927, October 19, p. 421, and footnote 1.↩
  3. Telegram 938, October 23, p. 426.↩
  4. Not printed.↩