<--PREV Doc #1084  |  Memorial Commission Home Page  |  Second Term Table of Contents  |  Presidential Papers Home Page  |  Doc#  |  NEXT--> Doc #1086 Document #1085; March 2, 1959 To Christian Archibald Herter Series: EM, AWF, Dulles-Herter Series The Papers of Dwight David Eisenhower, Volume XX - The Presidency: Keeping the Peace Part VII: Berlin and the Chance for a Summit; March 1959 to August 1959 Chapter 16: A "staunch bulwark" resigns   Memorandum for the Acting Secretary of State: Subject: Limited release of information on letter from Prince Sihanouk I have studied your memorandum of February 28, 1959 in which you recommend that we orally inform the governments of Thailand and Viet-Nam of the substance of Prince Sihanouk’s letter to me of February 23, 1959. I think that in view of the circumstances this must be done.1 However, in view of the unusual nature of such an action, I think some explanation is called for. Therefore, please instruct the officials who inform the governments of Thailand and Viet-Nam to stress (1) that we habitually treat such communications between heads of government as strictly confidential, and (2) that it is only the circumstance of Sihanouk’s release of his letter to the Australian, British, and French mission chiefs that prompts us to pass its substance on to the other governments concerned.2 1 For background on U.S.-Cambodian relations see Galambos and van Ee, The Middle Way, no. 882. On recent relations between the two governments and on tensions between Cambodia and the neighboring countries of South Vietnam and Thailand see State, Foreign Relations, 1958 - 1960, vol. XVI, East Asia - Pacific Region; Cambodia; Laos, pp. 228 - 33, 246 - 47, 252 - 64, 267 - 82, 285 - 88; see also Norodom Sihanouk, My War with the CIA: The Memoirs of Prince Norodom Sihanouk, as related to Wilfred Burchett (New York, 1973), pp. 104 - 9. Prime Minister Norodom Sihanouk had written Eisenhower regarding threats along Cambodia’s borders by forces intent on overthrowing the government. The threatening countries were strong, Sihanouk maintained, because of economic and military aid supplied to them by the United States. He asked that Eisenhower ensure that U.S. assistance to South Vietnam and Thailand was "not used improperly to foster political or territorial ambitions against non-Communist neighbors." If this could not be done, he asked that Eisenhower "at least supply us with the means to defend ourselves" (Sihanouk to Eisenhower, Feb. 23, 1959, AWF/I: Cambodia). On February 25 Acting Secretary Herter had suggested that Eisenhower send an interim reply to the Cambodian leader as quickly as possible to let him know that his appeal was receiving Eisenhower's attention (Herter to Eisenhower, Feb. 25, 1959; and Eisenhower to Sihanouk, Feb. 26, 1959, both in ibid.). Herter had subsequently told Eisenhower that Sihanouk had given copies of the letter to Western diplomats in Phnom Penh and had mentioned it in an oral presentation to all diplomatic and consular mission chiefs, including representatives from Communist countries. "Prince Sihanouk appears to view the letter as he would a diplomatic note, and therefore has not perceived the need to keep it in strict confidence" (Herter to Eisenhower, Feb. 28, 1959, AWF/D-H; see also Telephone conversation, Eisenhower and Herter, Mar. 2, 1959, Herter Papers, Telephone Conversations). 2 For developments see no. 1123. Bibliographic reference to this document: Eisenhower, Dwight D. To Christian Archibald Herter, 2 March 1959. In The Papers of Dwight David Eisenhower, ed. L. Galambos and D. van Ee, doc. 1085. World Wide Web facsimile by The Dwight D. Eisenhower Memorial Commission of the print edition; Baltimore, MD: The Johns Hopkins University Press, 1996, http://www.eisenhowermemorial.org/presidential-papers/second-term/documents/1085.cfm <--PREV Doc #1084  |  Memorial Commission Home Page  |  Second Term Table of Contents  |  Presidential Papers Home Page  |  Doc#  |  NEXT--> Doc #1086

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