152. Telegram From the Department of State to the Embassy in the United Kingdom0
141. Eyes Only Ambassador. Please deliver following message from the President to Prime Minister Macmillan soonest. Advise date, time delivery:
“July 6, 1962
Dear Prime Minister: Thank you for your message of July 3, 1962.1 I am encouraged by the prospect of agreement on including a squadron of Lightnings in our spoiling offer to the Indians. This should increase the chance, about which we too are hopeful, that India will end up by delaying indefinitely any purchase of supersonic aircraft.
We suspect that Air Vice Marshal Dutt’s trip to London may be in order to smoke out our position. Therefore I hope you will do what you can to get him interested in the Lightning. Of course, the longer we can draw out the discussions of this matter the better.
We are prepared to send over a small group of experts to discuss in some detail how we might share the cost. If ultimately necessary and desirable, we will find some way to compensate you for three-fourths of the cost of one squadron of Lightnings and ancillary equipment through our participation in joint R & D projects. We would hope to do so in a way which would minimize any early drain on our gold reserves. Having just taken a number of difficult decisions in a variety of fields to improve our balance of payments situation, I would be loath in this case to move too soon in the opposite direction.
I am also concerned over making any offer of Lightnings to India openly a joint US/UK financial responsibility. Lacking as we do any position as “historical supplier” to India, a public offer by us of what in effect would be military assistance to the Indians could have a number of undesirable consequences. The tone of Nehru’s recent discussions has been such that it would be most difficult for me to offer him this kind of assistance in competition with the Soviets at this point. As you know, this is a moment in our legislative process at which the very important financial details of the Foreign Aid Bill hang in the balance. The effect on the Congress of my offering military aid to India on top of our already large economic program there might well be very serious. Accordingly, I [Page 301] strongly prefer that any prospective US sharing of the financial responsibility for Lightnings be kept as quiet as possible.
Therefore, I hope that you can go forward and dangle the prospect of Lightnings before the Indians without revealing any US financial role as yet; meanwhile we will send our team as soon as you feel it appropriate to deal with possible arrangements between us.
Sincerely,
John F. Kennedy”
- Source: Department of State, Central Files, 791.5622/7-662. Secret; Niact; Verbatim Text. Drafted in the White House; cleared by Komer, Kaysen, and by Talbot in substance; and approved in S/S by Slater. Repeated to New Delhi.↩
- See Document 151.↩