87. Editorial Note

The International Conference on Laos was scheduled to open at Geneva on May 12, but the heads of the British and Soviet Delegations, Foreign Minister Lord Home and Soviet Foreign Minister Andrei Gromyko, met at noon and failed to agree on seating the Lao factions. Gromyko insisted that since there were three Lao parties discussing the cease-fire at Ban Namone in Laos, there should be three Lao parties seated at the conference: the Phoumi/Boun Oum group (the Royal Lao Government to the West); the political arm of the Pathet Lao, the Neo Lao Hak Xat; and the Souvanna Phouma neutralists (the legal government of Laos to the Eastern bloc). Speaking for the West, Home suggested a compromise whereby there was one empty seat at the conference table with the Lao groups in a separate position coming to the empty seat when called upon to speak. All that Gromyko would concede is that if the three Lao groups were seated, it would be wholly without commitment as to what would happen at the conference.

In a tripartite meeting at Geneva on May 12, at 3:30 p.m., Secretary of State Rusk and French Foreign Minister Couve de Murville heard Home’s account of his discussion with Gromyko and agreed that Home should inform Gromyko that the opening session should be postponed until May 16 so that all governments invited could be present. The [Page 191] interval would allow further thought to the Lao seating question. (Memorandum of conversation, US/MC/2, May 12; Department of State, Conference Files: Lot 65 D 366, CF 1868)

The U.S. master records of the International Conference on Laos during the period in which Secretary Rusk was head of the U.S. Delegation are ibid., CF 1868–1874. CF 1868 contains a complete set of memoranda of conversation by U.S. Delegation members; CF 1869 contains the orders of the day; CF 1870 has the Administrative Series outlining administrative procedures for the conference; CF 1971 contains miscellaneous memoranda, papers, and telegrams relating to administration; CF 1871 contains substantive memoranda, papers, and telegrams; CF 1872 has the minutes of the U.S. Delegation meetings; CF 1873 contains a full set of briefing papers; and CF 1874 has a full verbatim record of the first six plenary sessions.