749.00/9–2051: Telegram
The Acting Secretary of State to the Embassy in Czechoslovakia 1
priority
niact
189. Reurtel 213, Sep 13, 7 p.m., para 2.2 Balloons wld carry unsigned msg providing factual account train episode3 and reception and handling of passengers aboard. Leaflet wld also contain fol message “31 of the passengers choose to remain in the West, 77 chose to return to their homes, wives, husbands and children and have been freely permitted to go back. These 77 chose to defer personal freedom until the day when their country and their people can together regain freedom for all. It will take time, just as Engineer Konbalinka’s plans did, to switch the track that will shunt Czecho off its present road to Moscow and on to the main line that leads to freedom and justice for all.”
Reverse of leaflet bearing pictures of trains, engineer and fireman wld have fol msg from Konbalinka stating: “People of Czecho, [Page 1416] I beg you, for your own good, not to believe that ‘Amer agents’ were involved in freedom train episode. It is just one more of the many lies spread by the Muscovites. Mr. Trusa and I planned the project entirely alone because conditions as so many of you know them at home have become unbearable for us.”
Ur 217, Sep 144 and 222, Sep 17.5 Pls cable niact ur judgment 1) whether balloon operation within next few days shld be undertaken; 2) on contents proposed leaflet and 3) whether operation wld seriously prejudice efforts for release Oatis.
Imperative have reply tommorrow.6
- Drafted by Joyce (S/P) and Higgs (EUR/EE) and approved by Bonbright and apparently also by Acting Secretary Webb, Counselor Bohlen, Assistant Secretary Barrett, and S/P, Director Nitze.↩
- Not printed.↩
- Regarding this episode, see Document 708. Regarding the propaganda balloon project of which the launching referred to here was a part, see Sargeant’s memorandum to Webb, Document 636.↩
- Telegram 217 admitted the temptation to recommend the return of the Czechoslovak “freedom train” “one wheel at a time” as “wonderfully satisfying after boorish Commie behavior” but expressed doubt as to whether such action would really advance American interests and therefore recommended early return of the train. (749.00/9–1451)↩
- Not printed, but see footnote 3, supra.↩
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In telegram 246 from Praha, September 22, Briggs replied that the proposed balloon operation should be undertaken immediately and expressed the belief that the broader issues at stake were sufficiently important to justify the project even at the risk of postponing a period of stabilized U.S.-Czechoslovak relations which might be the prerequisite for Oatis’ release. (749.00/9–2251)
Telegram 200 to Praha, September 26, informed that the proposed balloon operation began on September 26 and was expected to continue until 10,000 balloons containing 8,000,000 messages had been released. (749.00/–2651)
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