May 9, 1956

At lunch with Lamb.
Lamb was in Okinawa for the past five weeks and returned to Japan only recently. I asked him if he had received any report on our election campaign from his embassy in Seoul. He said that just before he left for Okinawa he had heard that President Rhee will easily win his third term and that Lee Ki Poong's victory is 90 per cent assured.
I asked him what the Embassy wrote of Chang Myun and the answer was that the Embassy is not betting too much on Chang's victory, I further asked him if Strom was still in Tokyo. Lamb said he did not know but that Cameron the first secretary came to Japan last Friday and left on Sunday and that he will leave Korea to enter the War College. Lamb said that even diplomats enter the war college for research work so that they will be able to cope with military affairs while pursuing their diplomatic careers. Parsons graduated from the college, Lamb said and that he will, if SD OK's it, enter the college too.
Concerning an ambassador to Korea, Lamb said that someone in the American Embassy in West Germany will most likely become the American Ambassador to Korea. Lamb: "Parsons left last Friday and he will go to Laos as ambassador, not minister. Official publication of his assignment is withheld until an agrement is received. However, it is a fact that Minister Parsons will be assigned to Laos."
Lamb asked me if there was any hope of the Omura talk being discussed again and I gave him the detailed story of our short negotiations.
Lamb: "I believe Nakagawa will have to return for the problem to he solved. Even with the Philippine reparation issue, we believe that if Nakagawa had not gone to Manila, the issue would not have been solved. He is the most promising of foreign ministry officials and is the only person who can put some sense into the heads of the ministers and bureau chiefs. He is every clever man.
Concerning K-J relations, Nakagawa, Morishita and even Shigemitsu want to solve the problem of the Omura case by making concessions but the other ministry does not wish to adjust its differences. The U.S. was keenly interested in seeing the preliminary talk lead to Kim-Sawada meetings and was waiting for a chance to lead the two countries into understanding, but the failure of the Omura problem has disappointed the SD very much. At present the troubles in the Middle East is keeping the U.S. very busy. All attention is centered in that area and there is no time left for consideration of K-J problems at the present time."
Yiu: "When Dulles and Robertson were in Korea, they received memoranda from the Korean government concerning K-j problems. Have you head anything about them. What is your personal opinion?"
Lamb: "The SD has made a careful study of the memoranda but is keeping them only as references since the Korean side gave them to Dulles and Robertson for such purpose and no other. From what I have heard, there are some points which the Japs might agree and some which the Japs will not.As they have been doing so in the past, Shigemitsu and Allison in everyone of their meetings discussed K-J relations and each time Shigemitsu expressed his hope of settling them, but the foreign minister being himself only a robot has little or no voice in his government's decisions."
Yiu: "What do you think of the fishery talk between Japan and the Soviet Union?
Lamb: "Frankly, the Japanese government has never approach ed the U.S. for opinion or advice. But the U.S. has a very deep concern over this matter and since this is a fishery problem, it is very difficult for the U.S. to say anything in consideration of the tripatite fishery pact she concluded with Japan and Canada. But the sentiment of the fishery people in the U.S. toward Japan is very bad. In Seattle, it is worse than in other places and the American fishery prople blame the Japanese for their failure to catch more fish instead of blaming their own lack of fishing technics. Concerning Japan's fishery issue with the Russians, the American people are not in sympathy with the Japanese but side with the Russians. And with the presidential elections at hand, the government does not want to put any pressure on the people and therefore is not saying anything. As it is with the Rhee Line and in most everything else, the U.S. is tonguetied."
Yiu: "Have you heard anything concerning the activity of the International Red Cross representatives during their stay in Japan. Do you know whether or not they visited the Omura camp?"
Lamb: "We were rather concerned about it and asked the Foreign Ministry about the matter but were informed that they had not visited the Foreign Ministry. I do not think anything important was discussed. It is only an inspection trip to find out what the Koreans and Japanese have to say and they hane no power to mediate between the two nations. it is a fact-finding mission. I understand they did not visit the Omura camp.
The UN Syrian delegate was told to get out of the U.S. if he continues to use the U.S. as a platform to attack Israel which is a friendly nation. Amb. Yang is doing the same in the U.S. but he has not been told to leave the country.
Concerning the NNSC in Korea, it will be withdrawn in less than two months. We have a whole pile of memos and copies concerning the withdrawal but since it is a confidential matter we do not make them public."