59. Editorial Note
On April 24, the Co-Chairmen of the Geneva Conference on Indochina represented by the Foreign Ministers of the Soviet Union and the United Kingdom, released an appeal for a cease-fire in Laos. Also released at the same time was a message from the Co-Chairmen, British Foreign Secretary Lord Home and Soviet Foreign Minister Gromyko, to the Government of India calling for the reactivation of the International Control Commission and calling for convocation of an international conference on Laos. (Texts in American Foreign Policy: Current Documents, 1961, pages 999–1001)
[Page 139]On April 25, the Department of State released a public statement welcoming the Co-Chairmen’s proposals, but stating that the “first essential step” was to put the cease-fire into effect before the convening of the conference. The Department of State promised that the United States would “observe the situation on the ground in Laos very closely.” Furthermore, it was the U.S. understanding that the role of the International Control Commission would be limited to verifying the cease-fire and that the United States hoped the Commission would be able to proceed to Laos as soon as feasible. (Ibid., page 1001)