John F. Kennedy’s Original Signed Order to Continue Foreign Aid to America’s Chief Allies in the Cold War

A crucial document in Cold War history and U.S. relations with Europe, it included the United Kingdom, the Federal Republic of Germany, Turkey, France, Italy, the Netherlands and Japan

Foreign aid first arose as an American policy during and in the wake of World War I, and much of it was food and disaster aid. In the Lend-lease program, which began in 1941, the United States sent large amounts of war materials and other supplies to nations whose defense was considered vital to the defense of the United States. This aid went mainly to Great Britain and the Soviet Union. It was only after the war that U.S. aid became a major instrument of policy, with the American people making large financial contributions to European and other nations for their reconstruction, and with the Cold War, for their defense against the threat of Communism. The Marshall Plan, the Truman Doctrine, and other programs giving aide to Europe, Turkey and Japan were an integral part of the U.S. plan to hem in the Soviets, while also building up and defending allies who were helping it to accomplish its goals.

The Mutual Defense Assistance Act was passed by Congress and signed by President Harry S. Truman on October 6, 1949. It was the first U.S. military foreign aid legislation of the Cold War era, and provided aid to Europe to help fight the Soviet threat to that continent. It was reauthorized in 1950. The next year it was succeeded by the Mutual Security Act, and a newly created independent agency, the Mutual Security Administration, to supervise all foreign aid programs, including both military assistance programs and non-military, economic assistance programs that bolstered the defense capability of U.S. allies. Along with that act came the Mutual Defense Assistance Control Act of 1951, which was an integral part of the American policy of containment of Communism. This required foreign nations receiving U.S. aid to place restrictions on the export of strategic and military items to the Soviet bloc or to other countries which it felt would be detrimental to the foreign policy program of the U.S. The idea was that this would hinder Soviet production and armaments programs, draw American allies into cooperating with the containment policy effort, and preclude funds being sent to those assisting our foes.

The act gave a broad definition of items to be embargoed (they included such categories as transportation materials and petroleum) as well as nations to be embargoed (not just the Soviet Union but a good portion of Eastern Europe, including Poland and Czechoslovakia). It provided that “All military, economic, or financial assistance to any nation shall…be terminated forthwith if such nation…knowingly permits the shipment of such items” to the embargoed nations. Most if not all of America’s allies engaged in some trade with the Soviet bloc that might fall under the law, so this act in effect could have made the continuation of foreign aid to American allies next to impossible. To avoid this unintended consequence, the law provided that in cases not involving actual implements of war, the President could, after consulting with the State Department, Defense Department, and other agencies, on his own authority, continue foreign aid to a nation after taking “into account the contribution of such country to the mutual security of the free world, the importance of such assistance to the security of the United States….and the adequacy of such country’s control over the exports to the Soviet bloc of items of strategic importance,” as well as whether “the cession of aid would clearly be detrimental to the security of the United States.” The President was required to report foreign aid continuance determinations to Congress to make them lawful. Thus, monies authorized in foreign aid appropriations bills and earmarked to be sent to specific allies could not be sent without the President’s signed order to Congress that he was continuing the aid, and doing so pursuant to the act.

Memorandum Signed as President, on White House letterhead, Washington, April 18, 1962, addressed to the Secretary of State, but for the Under Secretary of State George Ball, being President Kennedy’s original order to dispense foreign aid to all of the United States’ chief allies in the Cold War. “Determination under section 103 (b) of the Mutual Defense Assistance Control Act of 1951 and in accordance with the recommendation contained in your letter of April 12, 1962, concurred in by the Department of State, the Department of Defense, the Department of Commerce, and the Agency For International Development, I hereby direct the continuance of United States assistance to the United Kingdom, the Federal Republic of Germany, Turkey, France, Italy, the Netherlands and Japan. You are hereby directed to inform the Chairmen of the six Congressional Committees of this determination pursuant to the reporting requirements of section 103 (b) of the Mutual Defense Assistance Control Act of 1951.” Back then the government fiscal year ended June 30, so this order would have been for aid for the July 1, 1962-June 30, 1963 fiscal year, a time period in which the confrontation with the Soviets in Berlin made this very aid crucial and the Cuban Missile Crisis occurred.

We have never seen, nor did our search of records for the past 35 years turn up, a more important post-World War II presidential order offered for sale, let alone one by Kennedy, of whom very few historical documents of sweeping import reach the market at all.