Office of the Historian

258. Memorandum From the President’s Deputy Special Assistant for National Security Affairs (Komer) to President Johnson1

Washington, February 16, 1966, 11:30 a.m.

Saudi Visitor. Here is yet another plea that you receive an Arab special emissary.2 King Faisal wants to send his brother Prince Sultan, we think to talk about Yemen. What probably triggered this is the pending visit of Anwar Sadat, the No. 3 Egyptian, which Faisal fears is a play to get us to back the UAR.

We keep trying to get these clients to realize that a letter will do the trick just as well and no need to send a dignitary to present it. But kings and emperors do these things differently.

So State urgently recommends that you agree to see him. It would only take 15 minutes, and Faisal is a very good friend. However, we’d tell Faisal not to worry about the Egyptian or to embarrass us by sneaking his man in first.

R. W. Komer3

Approve

Work out some other way4

  1. Source: Johnson Library, National Security File, Country File, Saudi Arabia, Memos, Vol. I, 12/63-4/67. Secret.↩
  2. In telegram 691 from Jidda, February 16, Eilts reported that Deputy Foreign Minister Omar Saqqaf had informed him that the King wanted to send his brother, Prince Sultan, to Washington with a special message from him to President Johnson, and had asked if the President could see Sultan either February 21 or 22. The Ambassador had responded that the President’s schedule was always very full, but that he would immediately send the King’s request to the Department. Saqqaf said he did not know the nature of the message, but suspected it would have to do with the Yemen situation. (National Archives and Records Administration, RG 59, Central Files 1964-66, POL 7 SAUD)↩
  3. McGeorge Bundy initialed below Komer’s signature.↩
  4. Johnson added a third option by hand: “I may not be here. Call me—L.”↩