131. Memorandum From the Executive Secretary of the Department of State (Read) to the President’s Special Assistant for National Security Affairs (Bundy)1
SUBJECT
- Leased Line With Embassy Moscow
For more than ten years we have sought without success to establish a direct, exclusive communications link between the American Embassy in Moscow and the Department of State. Such a link would assure prompt transmission of messages, which now are sent via Soviet commercial channels, sometimes with delays.
In February of 1964 Gromyko told Ambassador Kohler that the Embassy could have a leased teletype line in late 1964. In December of 1964, however, the Soviet Foreign Ministry claimed that a leased-line was not possible due to a shortage of available facilities. The Foreign Ministry offered us Telex service instead. While Telex would not be a facility available for our exclusive use, it would be an improvement over present arrangements. After exhaustive efforts to obtain the leased line, we informed the Foreign Ministry on September 9 of this year that [Page 334] a Telex would be acceptable, but reiterated the hope that a leased line could be established as soon as possible. We are according the Soviet Embassy in Washington Telex service on a reciprocal basis. Technical arrangements for beginning service have almost been completed and service for our Embassy and the Soviet Embassy will begin simultaneously.
- Source: Johnson Library, National Security File, Country File, USSR, Vol. X. Limited Official Use. According to another copy, this memorandum was drafted by William H. Edgar (SOV) and cleared by Toon and Stoessel. At the bottom of the memorandum Bromley Smith, NSC Executive Secretary, wrote in a note to Francis Bator: “What a pity-and a real loss to the U.S. No one who ever lived through a Cuban missile crisis could accept the inadequate communication facilities to our Embassy in Moscow.”↩
- Lawrence Eagleburger signed for Read.↩