DEPARTMENT OF STATE Memorandum of Conversation
DATE: February 12, 1952
SUBJECT: Italian Situation
PARTICIPANTS: The Italian Ambassador, Mr. Tarchiani The Secretary of State Mr. Byington, WE
COPIES TO: S/S G EUR EE WE Embassy, Rome
The Italian Ambassador said that Prime Minister De Gasperi was becoming increasingly preoccupied with the internal situation in Italy. He hoped that during the course of the conversations in Lisbon De Gasperi would have an opportunity to speak personally with the Secretary of State on this subject. The Italian Government was confronted by the forthcoming administrative elections this spring in the south and by the national elections which were now only one year away.
The Communist Party apparently has unlimited funds to finance its activities and is becoming increasingly active in the south. The government is hard put to offset the Communist campaign that the costs of rearmament will lower the present low standard of living for the worker.
Prime Minister De Gasperi's government at the same time faces increasing opposition on the part of the land owners who oppose its policy of agrarian reform and on the part of the industrialists who do not approve of the fiscal reform and of its consequent increase in taxes. These two programs which are politically necessary in Italy have the effect of alienating financial support which is also desperately needed by the government.
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It was, of course, not appropriate for him to go into the matter other than to the extent of bringing it to the Secretary's attention.
The Secretary replied that he had been fully informed of the situation in Italy and that he was deeply interested in it. He said that he would look forward to talking personally with Prime Minister De Gasperi at Lisbon.
Ambassador Tarchiani then referred to the Italian note to the Soviet Union, the text of which he had given to Mr. Perkins yesterday, and inquired whether the Secretary had any views in that regard. Other than expressing general agreement with the Italian action, the Secretary did not pursue the matter.
Ambassador Tarchiani also touched on the negotiations between Italy and Yugoslavia concerning Trieste and referred to his explanation to Mr. Perkins yesterday of the difficulties in the way of an agreement. He characterized the Yugoslav proposals as most unreasonable and expressed pessimism with regard to the possibility of a favorable outcome.
EUR:WE:HMByington, Jr.:fa