<--PREV Doc #1751  |  Memorial Commission Home Page  |  Second Term Table of Contents  |  Presidential Papers Home Page  |  Doc#  |  NEXT--> Doc #1753 Document #1752; January 2, 1961 To Charles AndrÉ Joseph Marie de Gaulle Series: EM, AWF, International Series: de Gaulle ; Category: Cable. Secret The Papers of Dwight David Eisenhower, Volume XXI - The Presidency: Keeping the Peace Part X: Ending an Era; August 1960 to January 1961 Chapter 25: Farewells and Warnings   Dear General de Gaulle:1 The dangerously worsening situation in Laos leads me to write you.2 The evidence is indisputable that the Soviets are conducting a massive air lift in support of the Pathet Lao and others in rebellion against the King of Laos. There is also growing evidence of substantial intervention of indeterminate proportion from North Viet-Nam.3 It is not my purpose to raise with you the legal niceties of the status of the Boun Oum government which, as you know, we have been urging to complete the final steps of applicable constitutional process.4 What I do want to tell you is that we take most seriously this evidence of an effort by the Soviet bloc to bring the Kingdom of Laos under its domination and control. The United States takes very seriously its obligation under the SEATO Treaty as we assume you and the other parties do likewise.5 It seems to me that this is a time when we should make clear to the other side that, whereas from time to time we may differ on tactics and methods, we are nevertheless at one and resolute in the face of any Sino-Soviet threat. I hope we can make this unity clear to the world.6 In closing let me say again how I admire your statesmanship and wisdom and courage in dealing with the terribly difficult problem of Algeria. We were proud to be of some assistance to you during the course of the debate in the United Nations General Assembly.7 My thoughts are with you and my hopes that your leadership will prosper. With warm personal regard, Sincerely 1 State Department officials drafted this message to French President de Gaulle. A copy was sent to British Prime Minister Macmillan (see Herter to Eisenhower, Jan. 2, 1961, AWF/I: de Gaulle). 2 For background on the situation in Laos see no. 1749. 3 On this day Eisenhower had discussed with State and Defense Department officials the JCS and CIA reports that the planned offensive of the Boun Oum government forces against the Pathet Lao and other Laotian Communist forces had broken down and that the Soviet Union and North Vietnam were supplying the insurgents (U.S. Department of State, Foreign Relations of the United States, 1961 - 1963, 24 vols Washington, D.C., 1988 - , vol. XXIV, Laos Crisis [1994], pp. 1 - 4; and Goodpaster, Memorandum of Conference, Jan. 2, 1961, AWF/D). 4 According to Secretary Herter the King of Laos, Savang Vatthana, had called a meeting in Vientiane of the Laotian assembly, purportedly to recognize the Boun Oum government (State, Foreign Relations, 1961 - 1963, vol. XXIV, Laos Crisis [1994], p. 1). 5 For background on the Southeast Asia Treaty Organization see Galambos and van Ee, The Middle Way, no. 974. Although Laos had not signed the treaty, the signatories (the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Australia, New Zealand, the Philippines, and Thailand) had pledged to protect Laotian territory against aggression. 6 On this day Eisenhower had stated that he was "very impatient" with the French on the Laos issue and had added: "The French: The older I get the more disgusted with them I am--not the French people but their governments. De Gaulle is as bad as any of the previous ones" (State, Foreign Relations, 1961 - 1963, vol. XXIV, Laos Crisis, p. 2). 7 For background on the Algerian situation see no. 1740. The United States had abstained from a vote on a resolution recognizing United Nations responsibility in the promotion of Algerian independence. France had boycotted the two-week debate on the resolution, maintaining that the United Nations had no jurisdiction in France’s internal affairs (State, Foreign Relations, 1958 - 1960, vol. XIII, Arab-Israeli Dispute; United Arab Republic; North Africa, pp. 709 - 18; New York Times, Dec. 20, 1960). Although de Gaulle would agree that the situation was "fraught with danger for the future of Laos," he avoided a direct answer to Eisenhower’s request for a display of Western unity. He blamed the disintegration of the Laotian government and the subsequent hostilities on the lack of a "precise and firm agreement" among the Western powers. De Gaulle added that he had appreciated American support in the United Nations during the debate on Algeria, which had "made clear the great necessity for concerted action on the part of our Governments" (de Gaulle to Eisenhower, Jan. 5, 1961, AWF/I: de Gaulle; and Stoessel to Goodpaster, Jan. 18, 1961, ibid.). For developments see no. 1756. Bibliographic reference to this document: Eisenhower, Dwight D. Cable. Secret To Charles AndrÉ Joseph Marie de Gaulle, 2 January 1961. In The Papers of Dwight David Eisenhower, ed. L. Galambos and D. van Ee, doc. 1752. 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/1752.cfm <--PREV Doc #1751  |  Memorial Commission Home Page  |  Second Term Table of Contents  |  Presidential Papers Home Page  |  Doc#  |  NEXT--> Doc #1753

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