Office of the Historian

209. Record of Meeting1

Washington, September 17, 1965, 6 p.m.

UNCLEARED SUMMARY OF WHITE HOUSE MEETING ON SOUTH ASIAN PROBLEMS

PARTICIPANTS

  • The President
  • Secretary Rusk
  • Secretary McNamara
  • Under Secretary Ball
  • Mr. Raborn
  • Ambassador Thompson
  • Assistant Secretary Sisco
  • Mr. McGeorge Bundy

The President decided the following on the Indian-Pakistan situation:

1)
We would continue to give the strongest support to the Secretary General and the Security Council. He approved the current draft of the resolution.2 In general we are to emphasize publicly the efforts that we are making through the UN here at the Department and in New York.
2)
No messages would go from the President to Ayub and Shastri for the time being. This might be reviewed in light of whatever Security Council action is taken.
3)
Both Defense and State should develop contingency plans on possible next steps for the President’s review.
4)
No preparatory military moves should now be made in the area.
5)
George Ball is to prepare a memorandum giving the pros and cons on whether we should cut off food supplies.
6)

[8 lines of source text not declassified]

With respect to the three questions the Indians have put to us3 and which have now become public knowledge, George Ball will brief Greenfield on the following line: That the Indians have discussed with us their concern over the Chicom development; we have discussed with them our concern in this regard; and that we will take note of these as we pursue our policy within the Security Council.

  1. Source: National Archives and Records Administration, RG 59, Central Files 1964–66, POL 27 INDIA–PAK. Secret; Sensitive; Exdis. Drafted by Sisco in IO.↩
  2. Apparent reference to a draft of the resolution adopted by the Security Council on September 20 which demanded that a cease-fire between India and Pakistan take effect on September 22. (UN doc. S/RES/211)↩
  3. See Document 208.↩