795.00/12–552

Memorandum of Conversation, by the Secretary of State1

secret

Subject:

  • Korean Resolution in UN

I went over with the President the efforts which we were making to have a resolution in the UN supporting our armistice position. I said that I had the gravest doubt that I could get the GA to support this resolution in view of General Eisenhower’s imminent trip2 and their doubt as to whether the U.S. Delegation in the UN really represented the views of the United States. I spoke of the necessity for the General, if he were well advised, to make some statement setting doubts at rest regarding his support of our armistice position.3

We concluded that it did not seem practicable to raise this matter with General Eisenhower until he had expressed some willingness to go into the broader matter of liaison with us.

  1. The following names were written on the source text: Hickerson, Johnson, Matthews, and Bruce; presumably they received copies.
  2. As promised in his successful Presidential campaign, President-elect Eisenhower went to Korea. He arrived in Korea on Dec. 2 and left late on the evening of Dec. 5. For his published account of the trip, see Mandate For Change, pp. 93–96.
  3. On Nov. 6 Acheson sent Truman a memorandum expressing concern about the effect of Eisenhower’s trip to Korea. For a text, see Truman’s Memoirs, vol. II, pp. 510–511. Attached to the memorandum was a draft statement for Eisenhower which Acheson believed would be “most helpful”; it is not printed. (795.00/11–1052)