Foreign Relations of the United States, 1950, East Asia and the Pacific, Volume VI

790.5/3–1050: Telegram

The Secretary of State to the Embassy in Australia

secret

Washington, March 21, 1950—2 p. m.

50. Davis¹ at his request called today on Asst Secy for FE and asked for Depts elaboration of Secys San Fran speech dealing with Pacific² which he said had aroused great interest in Austral. Asked re point 6, Butterworth said Secy intended to convey gen accord with objectives of six points made by Min External Aff which he very much welcomed but did not of course associate this Govt with Spender’s specific elaboration of any one of them.³ Butterworth stressed our belief initiative for any Pacific or Asiatic assn must be indigenous. Butterworth also said it seemed to us that if initiative for any such assn which might have econ and cultural aspects as well as polit came from an Asiatic country it might have more chance of success.

Butterworth told Davis Burton had indicated Spender was considering asking you questions reported urtel 71 Mar 10 and he felt sure Min External Aff already knew answers: for example that question 2 answered itself and bespoke of desirability of Asiatic initiative. Question 1 was hypothetical but of course it is not for US to evaluate initiative but for initiative to be efficacious and US position was that it had indicated on more than one occasion that it regarded with full sympathy development of regional assn of Asiatic and Pacific area but could not in advance of advent of such a movement offer any promise of US participation.

Butterworth took this occasion to ask Davis why Austral Govt had refused to accept Baguio invitation. Davis replied in effect that definite refusal had not been put forward altho Austral had no intention of going and confirmed that Spender was shortly paying a courtesy visit to Manila.

Acheson

1. Owen Davis, First Secretary of the Australian Embassy.
2. Reference is to Secretary Acheson’s address on United States policy toward Asia, delivered before the Commonwealth Club of California in San Francisco on March 15; for text, see Department of State Bulletin, March 27, 1950, pp. 467–472.
3. In his San Francisco speech, Secretary Acheson expressed approval of Spender’s address before the Australian House of Representatives on March 9. Spender had concluded his remarks with the enumeration of six principles through which the democracies of the world could avoid war and preserve their way of life. In point 6, he urged that thought be given to the creation of more effective methods of cooperation in areas of common interest. For an extract from the speech, see Spender, Exercises in Diplomacy, pp. 16–17.