Foreign Relations of the United States, 1969–1976, Volume IV, Foreign Assistance, International Development, Trade Policies, 1969–1972

104. Memorandum From the President’s Assistant for National Security Affairs (Kissinger) and the Director of the Office of Management and Budget (Weinberger) to the Under Secretary of State for Security Assistance (Tarr)¹

Washington, December 26, 1972.

SUBJECT

• Security Assistance Country Allocations for 1973

We agree that the allocations of 1973 security assistance funds set forth in your letters of November 14, 1972,² provide an adequate interim basis for proceeding under the current continuing resolution consistent with the President’s program, given various uncertainties, including those in Southeast Asia. In connection with the commitment to the F-5E co-production program for Taiwan of funds available under the continuing resolution, we are proceeding with an independent review of that issue based on your memorandum of November 24.³

We also agree that the allocations should be kept under continuing review so that they can be adjusted to meet changing circumstances and reflect further congressional action. In this connection, since it appears likely that recoupments and reimbursements under the Military Assistance Program be larger than you have estimated, the additional availabilities should be taken into account for high priority country programs. At such time as additional resources become available, it would be desirable to reexamine the allocations in the light of circumstances then obtaining before those additional resources are committed. This would permit consideration, for example, of a further allocation to the program to allow Greece some increase in the small materiel component of the presently approved program under the CRA.

• Henry A. Kissinger
• Caspar W. Weinberger

1. Source: National Archives, Nixon Presidential Materials, NSC Files, Subject Files, Box 324, Foreign Aid, Volume II 1972. No classification marking. Forwarded to Kissinger under cover of a December 29 memorandum from Kennedy with the recommendation that, based on a review by his senior staff who agreed that Tarr’s proposal was the most reasonable distribution of the insufficient resources provided by the continuing resolution, he sign the memorandum to Tarr. Kennedy also provided a tabulation on security assistance continuing resolution funding through February 28 enacted by Congress just before adjournment. He concluded that the continuing resolution was $550 million below the President’s request, necessitating drastic cuts in many key programs, noted that the worst-case scenario would be extension of the continuing resolution at current levels through the remainder of FY 1973, and proposed a few areas where additional funds might become available.
2. Document 99.
3. Not found.