PM Transcripts

FOR PRESS: 04N16 ' 8,, A~ fCPM . No. 1/ 1968
UNITED STATES AND BRITISH GOVERNMENT MISSIONS
TO VISIT AUSTRALIA
Statement by the Prime Minister, the Rt. Hon. John McEwen
The Prime Minister, Mr McEwen, announced today that a high
level mission from the United States would arrive in Canberra this week for
talks with the Austral'. an Government on the effects of the balance of payments
programme outlined In President Johnson's message to the United States on
1 Jan uary, 1968. Mr McEwen said the miusion would be led by the Under-Secretary
of State for Political Affairs, Mr Eugene V. Rostow. He would be accompanied by
the Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for East Asia and Pacific Affairs, Mr
Robert Barnett and other officials.
The Economic Committee of Cabinet would meet In Canberra on
Thursday and would have talks with the visiting mission on Friday.
The mission would have talks in Tokyo before flying on to Canberra,
Whtlo In Canberra it woWd explain to members of the Cabinet the new US economic
programme. Mr McEwen said that Cabinet Ministers would discuss with the
mission the Implications for Australia of the programme.
A second mission led by the Under-Secretary of State, Mr Nicholas
Katzenbach, has gone to Europe for talks with the governments of the major
trading countries there.
Mr McEwen said that the Foreign Affairs and Defence Committee
of the Cabinet was also preparing for talks In the following week with a mission
from Britain led by the Secretary of State for Commonwealth Affairs, Mr George
Thomson. Mr Thomson would be accompanied by the Permanent Under-
Secretary of the Commonwealth Office, Sir Saville Garner, an Under-Secretary
of the Commonwealth Office, Mr J. 0. Morton, and an Under-Secretary of the
Ministry of Defence, Mr F. Cooper.
This mission would visit Kuala Lumpur, Singapore and VWellington
and was due In Canberra on 11 January. Talks would be held in Canberra on
the following day and the mission would leave for London on 13 January.
The mission would discuss with the Australian Government
economic and defence aspects of the review which was being made by Britain
of her spending at home and abroad following devaluation.
Mr McEwen said that advice was received only at the weekend
from the two governments that the missions were coming.
CANBERRA, 2nd January, 1968.