169. Editorial Note
On January 18, 1962, at its 496th meeting, the National Security Council discussed the Report of the Military Assistance Steering Group, an interagency body formed to examine U.S. military assistance to several nations, including Iran, considered to be “double threat countries,” that is, on the Sino-Soviet periphery and facing both an internal and external security problem. NSC Record of Action No. 2447 records instructions [Page 428] given by President Kennedy in regard to the report, including a directive to prepare “For Iran a report (to be submitted as promptly as possible and not later than 15 February) on a proposed approach to the Shah to achieve a reduction to a force level of 150,000 taking account of relevant political and economic factors.” (Department of State, S/S-NSC (Miscellaneous) Files: Lot 66 D 95, Records of Action by the National Security Council)
The Report of the Military Assistance Steering Group had been submitted by its chairman, Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Politico-Military Affairs, Jeffrey C. Kitchen, to the Secretaries of State and Defense. Copies of the Report and covering memorandum by Kitchen are ibid.,S/S-NSC Files: Lot 70 D 265, Military Assistance Steering Group Report, and NSC Meeting of 1/18/62. Additional documentation relating to the steering group is in the Washington National Records Center, RG 330, OASD/ISA Files:FRC 71 A 4541, Notebook, Steering Group—General. For portions of the December 12, 1961, report dealing with Iran, see Supplement, the compilation on Iran.