103. Telegram From the White House Situation Room to President Johnson, in Texas1
CAP 66596. Mr. Rostow has asked this message to be sent to you. Arrangements have been made to inform Secretaries Rusk and McNamara.
From Prime Minister to the President.
Like you, I am sure we must keep in being the essential arrangements which have deterred aggression in the Atlantic area. I should be [Page 302] the last to want to break down the framework within which the United States has sustained the defence of Europe and a German contribution has been made possible under satisfactory safeguards. Whether the balance of deterrence in Europe need be maintained at its present level is something which we must study urgently together. Indeed, we already have studies in hand: A prime concern must certainly be to work for matching reductions on the Soviet side. You may recall that I told you when we met that Kosygin showed considerable interest in matched reductions.2
Against this background I am very ready to agree to the tripartite talks which you propose. On my return to London I shall give urgent consideration to these with my colleagues. I feel bound to say, however, that we should be most reluctant to enter into such talks without bilateral discussions with you first. Obviously the well-being of NATO depends very largely on agreement between its three leading countries, and I realise that you do not want to give any impression of ganging-up with us against the Germans. But since we both keep troops in Germany at a heavy cost in foreign exchange, we share a special interest in these talks: and it seems to me essential that we should first consider our position together. I will arrange for a Minister or Ministers to be ready to go to Washington this week. Unless we concert our position, there is the risk of the Germans playing us off against each other.
As I emphasized to you when we met at the end of July,3 my major concern at present is to take effective action to safeguard sterling, both in its own right and as the first line of defence for the dollar. We have taken drastic measures to cut down spending power at home. We are also determined to deal directly with the drain of foreign exchange abroad. A major and urgent part of this is the need to stop the haemorrhage of foreign exchange flowing from the stationing of our forces in Germany, and what is at stake for us is the success of our programme of economic measures in defence of the currency. If what we are doing is going to result in a lasting cure, we must move fast and I am glad to see that you accept that some of the decisions with which we are now faced cannot await the outcome of tripartite talks.
For this reason I am sure you will understand that we cannot afford to hold up the talks in NATO, on which we have already embarked and of which the next round indeed begins on Monday.4 I hope that your representatives will be authorised to make a substantive contribution to these talks.
[Page 303]Similarly, the Anglo-German Mixed Commission already has an agreed timetable and programme of work and in view of the need to secure the highest possible German financial contribution we could not contemplate any interruption of the Commission’s work.
Let us then advance on all these fronts at once. When you have heard from Erhard, we must consult again about a time and place for our talks. We shall be ready at any time.
- Source: Johnson Library, Bator Papers, Trilaterals, Box 19. Secret. A stamped notation at the top of the first page reads: “Sent WHCA 1966 AUG 29 00 08.” The original date of the message from Prime Minister Wilson is not legible on the source text. President Johnson was at the LBJ Ranch August 26–30.↩
- This meeting has not been further identified.↩
- See Document 102.↩
- Presumably August 29.↩