Have just received following cable from General Romulo. BEGINS-
I have just received your communication conveying the reply of
your Government to my personal approach regarding the
possibilities of a conference as suggested by the President of the
Philippines. [1] May I express to you my profound appreciation for
the courtesy of this reply, and request the further favour of
transmitting the following communication from me to His
Excellency, the Foreign Minister of Australia:

'As Philippine representative to New Delhi Conference last
January, I gave strong support to the resolution looking to the
establishment of suitable machinery for consultation among the
countries of South East Asia. I am, therefore, fully aware of the
implications of the resolution, together with the actual
consultations that have since taken place pursuant thereto. I am
authorized by my Government to convey the assurance of your
government that it regards the concept of the regional
organisations within the framework of the United Nations which
emerged at the New Delhi conference as the continuing basis upon
which our common efforts to realise that it must rest, the
proposals of my government to hold a conference is nothing new.

For this reason, I was careful to state that the proposed
conference would be kept wide open, the date and the agenda
thereof being subject to prior agreement among the participating
states.

The New Delhi resolution did not assume that the suitable
machinery for consultation had, in fact, already been established.

While it is true that the actual consultations that have since
taken place have provided us with valuable experience, the form,
procedures and objectives of the contemplated regional association
still remain to be spelled out. This could properly be one of the
agenda items of the proposed conference provided, as already
stated, the participating states agree.

With this assurance, and since the views of our governments are in
substantial agreement, I wish to express on behalf of my
government, the fervent hope that the government of Australia will
consider the possibility of holding the proposed conference in the
spirit and under the conditions above described.'