418

Burton to Kirby

Cablegram 342 CANBERRA, 13 November 1947, 7.35 p.m.

IMMEDIATE TOP SECRET PERSONAL

I am very grateful to you for your personal message [1] which I have handed to the Prime Minister and summarised to the Minister.

I would fear your leaving at this stage, and suggest you take risk on full telegrams. You may wish to send down one of the staff. My first personal reaction is that, in view of the lack of Dutch co- operation on both ‘cease fire’ and the question of settlement, a report should be made to the Security Council on progress so far.

If you were to press Van Zeeland to agree to a progress report, he would no doubt report this and you would find a better Dutch reaction.

2. I do not wish to be at all mean on your staff or other requirements on such an important mission. It takes time to get people up there, by which time pressure may have lessened.

However, I will gladly fall in with any requests.

Regards to yourself and wife.

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1 Document 416.

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[AA:A3196, 1947, 0.19054]