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Cablegram From Embassy in Washington to Department of External Affairs

Cablegram, Washington, 28 September 1951

1721. URGENT CONFIDENTIAL

Our 1704[1]

Ratification of the Japanese Peace Treaty and Tripartite Pact Wilcox,[2] Chief of Staff to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, has substantially confirmed what the State Department Officials told us. Wilcox said he understood a good deal of preparatory work would have to be done by the State Department before the treaties could be formally presented to the Senate. Even if this were done in time it was highly unlikely that the Senate would do more than conduct one or two formal hearings and then let the matter stand over until January. Senate members would certainly try to get away by mid-October, although it was difficult to forecast whether they would have disposed of all the other business by then.

_1 26 September. It advised that the ratification of the Japanese Peace Treaty by the United States would almost certainly have to stand over until January 1952 when the matter would be brought before Congress as early as possible. It added that the United States Government still intended to present the tripartite Security Treaty for ratification at the same time as the Japanese Peace Treaty. Cablegram 1222 (27 September) to Washington requested information on US thinking about the procedures and functions of the proposed council and about the likely timing of the ratification of the Treaty.

2 Francis O. Wilcox.

_

[NAA : A5460, 217/6, iii]