147

Evatt to Officer

Cablegram 632 CANBERRA, 1 October 1946

TOP SECRET IMMEDIATE

Please pass following message immediately to officer from Minister together with telegram referred to (our 631 of today).

‘Please see our No.631 [1] to External Affairs Officer containing texts of exchange of messages between Killearn and myself.

The unsolved Indonesian problem is becoming a running sore and the future of the South West Pacific depends to a very large extent upon an early settlement.

You should see the Dutch Foreign Minister with a view to securing Dutch invitation to Australia to participate in the talks. You should not disclose actual messages contained in telegram No.631 but they will give you necessary background information.’

_

1 Cablegram 631 provided Officer with a copy of exchanges between Evatt and Killearn as conveyed to Addison on 1 October. It contained details of Killearn’s letter of 26 August to Evatt stating that ‘to whatever extent the Government of Australia may desire Australian representatives should participate in all decisions that are taken.’ It also contained cablegram 24 of 28 August (Document 90); cablegram 668 of 18 September in which Killearn, referring to the suggestion that an Australian representative should be present at the talks, stated that he had ‘naturally assumed’ that this did not mean the representative should be ‘present personally at the talks.’; cablegram 569 of 22 September (Document 133); cablegram 695 of 28 September (Document 141) and cablegram 116 of 1 October (Document 146).

_

[AA:A1838/2, 401/3/1/1, ii]