246. Letter From Sir Winston Churchill to President Eisenhower1
My Dear Ike: There is not much left for me to do in this world, and I have neither the wish nor the strength to involve myself in the present political stress and turmoil. But I do believe, with unfaltering conviction, that the theme of the Anglo-American alliance is more important today than at any time since the war. You and I had some part in raising it to the plane on which it has stood. Now, whatever the arguments adduced here and in the United States for or against Anthony’s action in Egypt, to let events in the Middle East become a gulf between us would be an act of folly, on which our whole civilization may founder.
There seems to be a growing misunderstanding and frustration on both sides of the Atlantic. If they be allowed to develop, the skies will darken and it is indeed the Soviet Union that will ride the storm. We should leave it to the historians to argue the rights and wrongs of all that has happened during the past years. What we must face is that at present these events have left a situation in the Middle East in which spite, envy, and malice prevail on the one hand and our friends are beset by bewilderment and uncertainty for the future. The Soviet Union is attempting to move into this dangerous vacuum, for you must have no doubt that a triumph for Nasser is an even greater triumph for them.
[Page 668]The very survival of all we believe may depend on our setting our minds to forestalling them. If we do not take immediate action in harmony, it is no exaggeration to say that we must expect to see the Middle East and the North African coastline under Soviet control and Western Europe placed at the mercy of the Russians. If at this juncture we fail in our responsibility to act positively and fearlessly we shall no longer be worthy of the leadership with which we are entrusted.
I write this letter because I know where your heart lies. You are now the only one who can so influence events both in UNO and the free world as to ensure that the greatest essentials are not lost in bickerings and pettiness among the nations. Yours is indeed a heavy responsibility and there is no greater believer in your capacity to bear it or true wellwisher in your task than your old friend
- Source: Eisenhower Library, Whitman File. Private and Personal. Eisenhower’s reply to this letter, November 27, is printed in Dwight D. Eisenhower, Waging Peace, 1956–1961 (New York, 1965), pp. 680–681.↩