DEPARTMENT OF sTaTE
Memorandum of Conversation
October 23, 1954.
SUBJECT:
Bikini Compensation,
PARTICIPANTS: : Foreign Minister Okazaki of Japan
Ambassador Sadao Iguchi, Embassy of JapanMr. Tanaka, First Secretary, Embassy of Japan
Walter S. Robertson, Assistant Secretary
Robert J. G@. McClurkin, Acting Director, NA.
COPIES TO:
S/AE (2. cc)
L (2 cc)
Embassy Tokyo (2 cc)
FE (2 cc)
NA (4)
OLI (2)
HD (1)
@ - (1 ce)
Mr, Okazaki said that he had originally thought $1 million .
would be enough to satisfy the various Japanese claims in connection
with the damages suffered by Japan as a result of the explosion
of the hydrogen bomb at Bikini. Then Kuboyama died and the
ae
Japanese are finding that even at this late date many tunafish
have to be thrown out because of radioactivity. These facts have
changed the situation. He himself had talked on the telephone to
Tokyo the day before and he is now convinced that one million
dollars will not achieve the purpose of a settlement which will be
generally thought to be satisfactory.
He pointed out that the
Japanese Government has already put out 430 million yen in loans
to people in the fishing industry who have suffered losses,
Some
of the people in Japan have proposed a partial settlement now,
and then continuing discussion of the total amount.
He himself
would rather have it all handled at one time,
His own personal
belief, which had been confirmed with Tokyo, was that it might
possibly be done for $1-1/2 million but that a figure of $2
million would certainly constitute a satisfactory final settlement.
Mr, Robertson said that we understand how difficult this
problem is for the Japanese Government and people, We are deeply
distressed and concerned that the tests should have produced such
unfortunate and unexpected results, ,;He wanted to emphasize that
the expenditures of billions of dollars which we are making in
our atomic program are not only for ourselves but to serve the
dual purpose of protecting the human race from Communist enslave-
ment, and also leading toward the peaceful uses of atomic energy