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  4. Document 244

244. Memorandum of Conversation1 2

Washington, October 6, 1973.

SUBJECT:

  • Nonaligned Conference and Korea

PARTICIPANTS:

  • Foreign Minister Gyanendra Bahadur Karki, Nepal
  • Ambassador Yadu Nath Khanal, Embassy of Nepal
  • Ambassador Kim Dong Jo, Embassy of Korea
  • Deputy Assistant Secretary Richard L. Sneider, EA

During the course of an afternoon, the Foreign Minister and I, occasionally joined by other two had a rambling discourse. The key points that emerged follow:

1)

Nonaligned Conference

The Foreign Minister was very forthright and strong in his criticism of the nonaligned conference. He felt that the more radical and extreme elements had controlled the conference, overwhelming countries such as Nepal, who are inclined to a more moderate view. He commented that the atmosphere at the conference was “heady.” Sympathetic to the Israeli cause, the Minister thought that the Arab nations might have been encouraged to undertake their attack on Israel by this heady atmosphere. On the other hand, Nepal was trapped into accepting the views of the conference leadership and at best could abstain or give no vocal support to the resolutions it inherently opposed. It could not afford to stand up in opposition to the conference consensus, since the pressure of consensus was just too great to withstand.

2)

Korea

Ambassador Kim and I spent a good deal of time arguing the merits of our position on the Korean resolution at the UNGA. The [Page 2] Foreign Minister was inclined to be sympathetic to the problems faced by the Republic of Korea and recognized the validity of my argument that support for the Algerian resolution could only be destabilizing in Asia with potentially broader and dangerous implications for the region. Consistent with his position on the nonaligned conference, however, the Foreign Minister remained inclined to a position of abstention on both the Algerian resolution and the US-sponsored resolution.

Nevertheless, the argumentation presented him did strike sympathetic notes and he appeared prepared to give the problem some further study.

Comment: I would not give much hope for a switch in the Nepalese vote, but it is worth continuing to work on Nepal.

  1. Source: National Archives, RG 59, Central Files 1970–73, POL 8. Confidential. It was drafted by Sneider.↩
  2. Deputy Assistant Secretary for East Asian and Pacific Affairs Richard Sneider discussed the Non-Aligned Movement and the issue of Korean admission to the UN with Nepalese Minister of Foreign Affairs Gyanendra Karki and the South Korean Ambassador.↩