Office of the Historian

55. Memorandum From the Director of the Secretariat Staff of the Department of State (Gleysteen) to the Deputy Staff Director of the NSC Under Secretaries Committee (Ruser)1

Washington, June 30, 1969.

SUBJECT

  • Under Secretaries’ Committee Action Assignments

We have gone through our NSC files and have compiled a list of NSC Under Secretaries’ Committee action responsibilities. The result is as follows:

  • —NSDMs 2 and 3—The Under Secretaries’ Committee was assigned certain general responsibilities.2
  • —NSDM 8—The Under Secretaries’ Committee was assigned certain responsibilities in connection with crisis anticipation and management.3
  • —NSDM 12—The Under Secretaries’ Committee was directed to examine REDCOSTE proposals and to coordinate and monitor U.S. preparations for offset negotiations.4
  • —NSDM 13—The Under Secretaries’ Committee was to supervise the preparation of a strategy paper on Okinawa negotiations.5
  • —NSDM 17—The Under Secretaries’ Committee was directed to supervise the preparation of certain documents relating to this NSDM.6
  • —NSDM 18—The Under Secretaries’ Committee has been assigned the task of reviewing the annual underground nuclear test program and requests for authorization of specific tests.7
  • —NSSM 43—In this document the Under Secretaries’ Committee was directed to submit a series of recommendations to implement the President’s proposals to the NATO Ministerial Meeting in April.8
  • —NSSM 25—The Under Secretaries’ Committee became involved in a study of the relationship of Plowshare to the Limited Test Ban Treaty.9 Mr. Kissinger’s memorandum of May 19 called for further study of this subject.10
  • —The Under Secretaries’ Committee has been seized with the problem of the Pacific Islands Trust Territory.
  • —The Under Secretaries Committee has studied the question of the Brazilian DE construction program.
  • —The Under Secretary was involved in the Working Group called for by NSSM 4 to review US foreign aid policy.11
  • —The Under Secretaries’ Committee has studied US aid to the Japanese space program (memorandum of May 19).12
  • —The Under Secretaries’ Committee is studying the question of the Dutch interest in U.S. assistance in the development of nuclear submarines (memo of May 20).13

DG
  1. Source: National Archives, RG 59, General Files on NSC Matters, Box 15, NSC/USC Memos. Secret.↩
  2. Documents 11 and 12.↩
  3. Document 31.↩
  4. NSDM 12, “NATO,” April 14. (National Archives, Nixon Presidential Materials, NSC Files, NSC Institutional Files (H-Files), Box H–209, National Security Decision Memoranda, NSDM 12.)↩
  5. NSDM 13, “Policy Toward Japan,” May 28. (Ibid., Box H–210)↩
  6. NSDM 17, “Relaxation of Economic Controls Against China,” June 26. (Ibid.)↩
  7. NSDM 18, “Review of Underground Nuclear Tests,” June 27. (Ibid.)↩
  8. NSSM 43, “Implementation of President’s Proposals to NATO Ministerial Meeting,” April 15. (Ibid., RG 59, S/S–NSSM Files: Lot 80 D 212)↩
  9. NSSM 25, “Cape Keraudren Nuclear Excavation Project and Limited Test Ban Treaty,” February 20. (Ibid.)↩
  10. Memorandum to the Acting Secretary of State. (National Archives, RG 59, General Files on NSC Matters, Box 15, NSC/USC Memos)↩
  11. NSSM 4, “U.S. Foreign Aid Policy,” January 21. (Ibid., S/S–NSSM Files: Lot 80 D 212)↩
  12. NSC–U/SM 16, May 19. (Ibid., Lot 81 D 309)↩
  13. NSC–U/SM 17, May 20. (Ibid.)↩