43. Telephone Conversation Between President Johnson and the Soviet Ambassador (Dobrynin)1
[Here follow opening comments, during which Dobrynin indicated he had spoken with Chairman Khrushchev several days earlier.]
Dobrynin: And he asked me to give you personally, Mr. President, his regards and his best wishes.
President: Fine, well I appreciate that very much.
Dobrynin: The Chairman frankly thinks, of course, that Tonkin Gulf, Cyprus, or the Congo do not necessarily, in his words, you know, decorate the U.S. policy. Yet, he added, apparently during the election campaigns some unfortunate things occur.
President: Now wait a minute, let me see, I’m not understanding. You said the Tonkin Gulf, Cyprus, and what?
Dobrynin: And the Congo.
President: Yes, Congo.
Dobrynin: Congo, as he puts in his words, do not necessarily decorate, as he frankly thinks, the U.S. policies, but he—
President: Do not necessarily what? Now, I didn’t understand that.
Dobrynin: Do not necessarily, in his words, decorate, decorate the U.S. policy. Yet, he added, apparently during the election campaigns some unfortunate things occur. The Chairman asked me, in conclusion, to tell you, Mr. President, that he, Khrushchev, vote for you, so to speak.
President: Uh-huh.
Dobrynin: Though, he said, that we are not going at all to interfere in the American election campaign-he jokingly added that we are not going at all to interfere in the American campaign, but he said, that he vote for you, so to speak. And once again the Chairman gives you, Mr. President, his personal regards and best wishes.
President: Fine. Well, I think that you understand our situation here. It’s better to leave the election matters up to the American people themselves. We never know how they’ll handle them. Those of us that are candidates always want everybody to support us that will in our elections here, but we never can tell how their support will go, how they’ll vote, and it may look good in September and be bad in November, but we’ll just have to wait and see, and we hope that everything [Page 105] works out, and I appreciate your bringing me the Chairman’s good wishes.
Dobrynin: Yes, and I want you [unintelligible] that asked me to tell you in a personal way, just between him and you.
President: Thank you very much.
Dobrynin: This is necessary.
President: I understand that.
Dobrynin: May I extend to you, Mr. President, my personal regards and give best wishes to you.
President: Thank you, I sure will. Bye.
Dobrynin: Thank you very much.
President: Bye.
- Source: Johnson Library, Recordings and Transcripts, Recording of a Telephone Conversation between Johnson and Dobrynin, Tape 6409.04, PNO 8. No classification marking. Transcribed in the Office of the Historian specifically for this volume.↩