12 December 1950: Head of the Economic Division

Arthur F.W. Plumptre, the head of the Economic Division at the Department of External Affairs, responds to Reid’s request for comments. Regarding “The International Crisis,” Plumptre writes that he is in “very full agreement” with the considerations Reid raised when discussing global strategy. However, Plumptre takes issue with Reid’s liberal use of the word “inadequate” to describe Western responses like the Marshall Plan. Plumptre writes that “the real inadequacies of the pre-Korea period were … insufficient attention to the Far East and insufficient maintenance of military power in the West.” To this, and to further comments and suggestions, Reid notes his agreement in the margins with scribbled handwriting of “I agree” and “good point.”