NEWS RELEASES
EARLY CANADA-U.S. DISCUSSIONS ON NUCLEAR WEAPONS AND NORAD REVEALED IN DECLASSIFIED DOCUMENTS FROM 1956-57
April 30, 2002 (1:15 p.m. EDT) No. 41
EARLY CANADA-U.S. DISCUSSIONS ON NUCLEAR WEAPONS AND NORAD REVEALED IN DECLASSIFIED
DOCUMENTS FROM 1956-57
Foreign Affairs Minister Bill Graham today announced the publication of the latest volume in the long-running series, Documents on Canadian
External Relations. Volume 23 is the second of two volumes covering the period January 1956 to June 1957.
"A knowledge of the history of Canada's foreign policy is important for all Canadians," said Mr. Graham. "As we chart a new course in the
aftermath of September 11, it is important that our discussions and debates take into account the recurring themes and objectives that reflect
the enduring ideals and interests of our nation. This volume, with its emphasis on Canada's relations with the United States and Europe, will be
especially useful in this regard."
Foremost among the topics dealt with in Volume 23 is Canada's relations with the United States. The volume fully documents for the first time
the Canadian reaction to American proposals to employ nuclear weapons over Canada and to create an integrated North American Air Defence
Command.
This documentary collection also records the government's reaction to the tragic suicide of Canada's ambassador to Egypt, Herbert Norman,
who was hounded by unsubstantiated allegations of disloyalty by a United States Senate subcommittee.
Volume 23 also documents for the first time Canada's reaction to the Hungarian Revolution. It traces the efforts of Lester B. Pearson, the
Secretary of State for External Affairs, and J.W. Pickersgill, the Minister of Citizenship and Immigration, to welcome Hungarian refugees to
Canada. The volume includes, as well, a number of memorandums by R.A.D. Ford, Canada's leading Soviet expert, on Soviet Premier Nikita
Khrushchev's secret denunciation of Stalin and on developments within the Eastern Bloc.
The years 1956-57 were an important period in the development of modern Europe. Volume 23 traces the negotiations for the European
Common Market and explores the debate among officials and ministers as they tried to determine Canada's reaction. In the end, Pearson
ensured that the Canadian position looked past the short-term economic costs to Canada and embraced the political benefits of European
integration.
One of the main themes of Volume 23, like other recent volumes in this series, is decolonization and the collapse of the European empires of
Africa and Asia. The continuing Canadian effort to oversee the French withdrawal from Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos is richly documented in
this volume. So, too, are Canada's early efforts to come to terms with the burgeoning Arab nationalism in North Africa as Tunisia and Morocco
emerge as independent nations.
Documents on Canadian External Relations is a continuing series that publishes the most important documents on the evolution and
implementation of Canadian foreign, political and economic policy. The most recent volumes are available in print and on-line at http://www.dfait-maeci.gc.ca/hist
The previous volume of documents on the period January 1956 to June 1957 was published in June 2001. It focused on Canada and the Suez
Crisis and contained material on the Middle East, the United Nations, NATO and the Commonwealth.
Documents on Canadian External Relations, Volume 23, is available from:
Canadian Government Publishing
Public Works and Government Services Canada
Ottawa, Ontario
K1A 0S9
Tel: (613) 956-4800
Fax: (613) 994-1498
e-mail: publishing@ccg.gcc.ca
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For further information, media representatives may contact:
Media Relations Office
Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade
(613) 995-1874
http://www.dfait-maeci.gc.ca
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