95. Editorial Note
In telegram 09810 to Leopoldvlle, September 2, 1961, the Central Intelligence Agency stated that it was very conscious of the fact that the Station had submitted a variety of proposals in recent weeks to which it had received for the most part only a preliminary response. While the [Page 126] CIA realized the Congo and long-range planning were a contradiction in terms, such planning was more feasible now than heretofore but Headquarters felt the need for an overall U.S. approach into which to fit the most meaningful CIA role. This had been discussed with newly appointed Ambassador Edmund Gullion, who planned a country team approach to many problems and hoped to return to Washington with firm field recommendations by the end of the year. Headquarters by no means intended to wait that long to undertake a number of new CIA programs but believed the earliest integration of its efforts into more general U.S. thinking was essential. (Central Intelligence Agency Files, Job 78–00435R, DDO/ISS Files, Box 1, Folder 8, [cryptonym not declassified] Operations)