VISIT TO NORWAY OF HOUSE COMMITTEE ON INTERSTATE AND FOREIGN COMMERCE

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP58-00597A000100180004-0
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: U
• Document Page Count: 3
• Document Creation Date: December 15, 2016
• Document Release Date: November 14, 2003
• Sequence Number: 4
• Publication Date: October 3, 1955
• Content Type: AIRPOUCH

STAT Approved For Release 2004/01/12 : CIA-RDP58-00597A000100180004-0
Approved For Release 2004/01/12 : CIA-RDP58-00597A000100180004-0
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Visit to Norway of House Committee on interstate and
Foreign Commerce
F Eight members of the House committee on Interstate and Foreign
Commerce, ace panied by Staff Member Dr. Andrew Stevensoot and Mr.
William Taylor of SAS and Mr. William McEvoy of PAA, have-just visited
Oslo. Members of the Congressional Committee on the Oslo visit were:
Rep. Oren Harris, Chairman / Belk
Rep. John Bell Williams CLiz
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Rep. Walter Rogers ,V
Rep. Charles A. Wolverton
Rep. Joseph P. O?Nara
Rep. James I. Doll .ver
Reps Steven B. Derounian
Congressman Harris exercized effective leadership over the group.
followed,to plan their
The commi.itteewas called t~heischedule ~rasmeetings
program and in each case
The committee arrived fifteen minutes earlya at 7:10 on Friday
evening, September 30. They were met by the Charge d'Affaires, a.i.
and a group of Embassy officers who had been named Escort Officers.
The Congressmen were driven to their hotel in the personal cars of
the Escort Officers.
A press conference was held at the hotel immediately after the
arrival of the committee. Enclosure 1 is a translation of the news
item which ap eared in the Saturday afternoon (October 1) issue of
conservative Aftenposten.
f Embassy wives assisted the Congressman in their Saturday morning
shopping.
At 10-45 a.m. on Saturdays the Committee met in the office of
the Charge d'Affaires for a very snort briefing on the history in
Norway of the Salk polio vaccine and then, accompanied by the Econoz~ic
Counselor, proceeded to the office of Dr. Karl EVANG, Chief of the
L-Norwagian Health Service. An exchange of views took place there on
State Department review
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vaccination against polio and in response to a few general questions
Dr. gang described briefly the extent of socialized medicine in
Norway. It was brought out at the meeting that there bad been some
disappointment in Norway at the impossibility last May of obtaining
the Salk vaccine, that next spring Norway will probably wish to
purchase some of the best vaccine that will be available, that
Norwegian pharmaceutical companies w.11 probably not find it profit-
able to produce polio vaccine, and that the Government laboratory
which might produce the vaccine will probably not be built until
two years from now. Several of the Congressmen commented very favor-
ably on Dr. Evanges presentation of the situation in Norway.
The Charge dfaffaires gave a. lunoheonlbr the visiting congres-
sional committee at the Embassy residence at 12030 p.m. on Saturday.
The total number of guests was 36, including the Minister of Commerce
Arne SU.AUG, the Secretary-Ge *ral of the Foreign Office, R.B. SKYLSTAD,
and a number of prominent Norwegian officials and Norwegian and
American businessmen.
After the luncheon the Congressmen were taken on a three-hour
seeing tour of the city.
In the evening members of the Delegation were entertained in
officers? homes.
At 80
91
45 a.m. on Saturday morning the committee left by air for
Stockholm.
There were no untoward incidents and on the basis of numerous
compliments it appeared that the committee was well pleased with its
stay in Oslo.
8-00597Aa06010.0180004 0
Charge d9affaires, a.i.
Hayden Raynor
L4#'
c . l t Translation of news item appearing in
afternoon edition of AA tenyostenconservative),
October 1, 1955
Enc. 2m Five clippings of news item appearing in
afternoon edition of Aftenposten (conservative.),
October 1, 1955
Approved For Release 2004/01/12 : CIA-RDP58-00597A000100180004-0