740.5/2–751: Instruction
The Secretary of State to the Legation in Iceland
No. 27
Sir: There is enclosed a copy of a letter from General Burns of the Department of Defense dated February 6, 19511 transmitting a draft2 to be used as the basis of negotiations with the Icelandic Government with a view to concluding a bilateral agreement between the United States and Iceland, implementing the military operating requirements contained in the NAOR Short and Revised Medium-Term Defense Plans. You are instructed to conduct these negotiations in which you will have the assistance of a military team and from time to time of a Department officer. When a text has been agreed to, you will submit it to the Department for instructions as to signature.
A copy of the enclosure may be given to the Foreign Minister of Iceland as soon as you consider it advisable. You should explain orally to the Foreign Minister that an additional annex on “Civil Air Operations” is being prepared and will be transmitted to him as soon as possible.
Very truly yours,
- Burns enclosed in his letter a draft of an agreement “which embodies the views of the Department of Defense as to the scope and substance which such an agreement should contain,” and informed the Department of State that Defense was prepared to send a military team to Iceland to assist in the discussions. (740B.5/2–651)↩
- Department of Defense draft dated February 2. Article IV stated that the agreement was to remain in effect for the duration of the North Atlantic Treaty unless the two Governments modified or terminated it by mutual consent. No mention was made of the number of foreign troops to be stationed in Iceland or which Government had the right to determine the number of troops. A copy of the February 2 draft is in Department of Defense files.↩