151. Memorandum of Conversation

Source: National Archives, Nixon Presidential Materials, NSC Files, Box 183, Paris Talks/Meetings, Paris Talks, Memos and Miscellaneous, Vol. IV, 12/69–1/70. Secret; Nodis; Paris Meetings. Drafted by Holdridge on December 1. In sending this memorandum to Kissinger on December 1, Holdridge suggested that no distribution be made; Kissinger agreed.

152. Memorandum From the President’s Assistant for National Security Affairs (Kissinger) to President Nixon

Source: National Archives, Nixon Presidential Materials, NSC Files, Box 183, Paris Talks/Meetings, Paris Talks, Memos and Miscellaneous, Vol. V, 12/69–1/70. Secret; Nodis; Paris Meetings; Plus. Sent for information/action.

153. Memorandum of Conversation

Source: National Archives, Nixon Presidential Materials, NSC Files, Box 92, Vietnam Subject Files, Sir Robert Thompson, 1970. Secret; Nodis. Drafted by Holdridge with Lynn’s concurrence. In a December 8 covering memorandum to Kissinger, Holdridge wrote: “Following this session, I asked Sir Robert to elaborate on one point which I thought he had been trying to make but which may not have come through too clearly: was he in effect saying that the GVN civil administration had not moved in behind the security forces to a sufficient degree, and that more attention needed to be directed to this problem? He agreed that this was what he had meant to convey.” Kissinger approved White House distribution only and wrote, “Excellent memcon! HK. Note editing page 1” on Holdridge’s December 8 memorandum. See footnote 3 below for the editing changes.

154. National Security Decision Memorandum 36

Source: National Archives, Nixon Presidential Materials, NSC Files, NSC Institutional Files (H-Files), Box H–213, NSDM Files, NSDM 36. Top Secret; Sensitive. Attached to this memorandum is a 42-page draft paper, January 15, 1970, entitled “An Agreed General Cease-Fire in Vietnam,” prepared by the Ad Hoc Group on Vietnam and transmitted to the Chairman of the NSC Review Group by Sullivan. The paper discusses the major issues involved in an agreed general cease-fire, focusing on the conditions the United States should insist be met in order for it to accept such a cease-fire. The paper also identifies various options and identifies those that represent the minimum condition acceptable to each agency on the Ad Hoc Group. The President met with Rogers and Laird and apparently Mitchell (although he is not listed as a participant) on December 1 from 4:50 to 6:30 p.m. (President’s Daily Diary, December 1; National Archives, Nixon Presidential Materials, White House Central Files) Prior to the meeting, Kissinger called Laird on the telephone and asked him “to take a strong line” at the meeting opposing coupling the holiday cease-fire and a permanent cease-fire. Kissinger also called Mitchell and asked him at the President’s request “to come out against” the “power play by State to ram their permanent ceasefire through.” (Notes of telephone conversations, December 1, 3:15 and 3:22 p.m.; Library of Congress, Manuscript Division, Kissinger Papers, Box 361, Telephone Conversations, Chronological File) No other record of the meeting has been found.

155. Memorandum From the President’s Assistant for National Security Affairs (Kissinger) to President Nixon

Source: National Archives, Nixon Presidential Materials, NSC Files, Box 334, Subject Files, Items to Discuss with the President, 8/31/69–12/30/69. Secret; Sensitive. A handwritten notation by Kissinger reads, “Let’s get list of names for commission”; a handwritten notation by Nixon reads, “To K.” On November 21 Kissinger and Laird discussed the Mai Lai atrocity. (Notes of a telephone conversation, November 21, 3:50 p.m.; Library of Congress, Manuscript Division, Kissinger Papers, Telephone Conversations, Chronological File)

156. Memorandum From the President’s Assistant for National Security Affairs (Kissinger) to President Nixon

Source: National Archives, Nixon Presidential Materials, NSC Files, Box 960, Haig Chronological Files, December 9–16, 1969 [1 of 2]. Secret; Eyes Only. Sent for action.

157. Memorandum for the 303 Committee

Source: Department of State, INR/IL Historical Files, Subject Files, Vietnam, 1969–1970. Secret; Eyes Only.

158. Memorandum From the President’s Assistant for National Security Affairs (Kissinger) to President Nixon

Source: National Archives, Nixon Presidential Materials, NSC Files, Box 92, Vietnam Subject Files, Sir Robert Thompson, 1970. Secret. Sent for action.

159. Memorandum From the President’s Assistant for National Security Affairs (Kissinger) to President Nixon

Source: Library of Congress, Manuscript Division, Kissinger Papers, Box TS 46, Geopolitical File, Vietnam, Vietnam Peace Talks, 28 July 1969–27 February 1970. Top Secret; Sensitive; Eyes Only. Sent for action.

160. Memorandum From the President’s Assistant for National Security Affairs (Kissinger) to President Nixon

Source: Library of Congress, Manuscript Division, Kissinger Papers, Box TS 64, Memoranda to the President, 1969 December. Top Secret; Nodis; Paris Meetings. Drafted by Holdridge on December 16. Sent for information/action. There is no date on the memorandum; the date used is the drafting date.

161. Memorandum From John Holdridge of the Operations Staff of the National Security Council to the President’s Assistant for National Security Affairs (Kissinger)

Source: National Archives, Nixon Presidential Materials, NSC Files, NSC Institutional Files (H-Files),Box H–213, NSSM Files, NSSM 37. Top Secret; Sensitive; Nodis.

162. Editorial Note

163. Memorandum From the President’s Assistant for National Security Affairs (Kissinger) to President Nixon

Source: National Archives, Nixon Presidential Materials, NSC Files, Box 141, Vietnam Country Files, Vol. XIII–2, 11–31 December 1969. Confidential. Sent for information. A notation on the memorandum indicates the President saw it. Kissinger wrote at the top of the page: “Al [Haig]—you should discuss this in Saigon.” Holdridge originally sent a summary of this document to Kissinger in a memorandum of December 18, and Kissinger asked him to prepare it as a memorandum for the President. (Ibid.)

164. Memorandum From the President’s Assistant for National Security Affairs (Kissinger) to President Nixon

Source: National Archives, Nixon Presidential Materials, NSC Files, Box 506, Country Files, Far East, Cambodia, Vol. II, September 1969–9 April 1970. Secret. Sent for information.

165. Memorandum From the Assistant Deputy Director for Coordination in the Bureau of Intelligence and Research (McAfee) to the Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs (Green)

Source: Department of State, INR/IL Historical Files, Country Files, Vietnam, 1969–1970. Secret; Eyes Only.

166. Memorandum From the President’s Assistant for National Security Affairs (Kissinger) to the Senior Defense Attaché in France (Walters)

Source: National Archives, Nixon Presidential Materials, NSC Files, Box 852, For the President’s Files—Vietnam Negotiations, Sensitive, Camp David, Vol. II. Top Secret; Sensitive; Eyes Only. Drafted by Kissinger and William Watts on December 31, 1969; Nixon approved an earlier almost identical draft of this memorandum when Kissinger sent it to him under a covering memorandum of December 30, 1969. Kissinger informed the President that the message would, “place the ball in the North Vietnamese court” and leave it to them “to propose a time and a place.” (Ibid.)

167. Memorandum From the President’s Assistant for National Security Affairs (Kissinger) to President Nixon

Source: National Archives, Nixon Presidential Materials, NSC Files, Box 142, Vietnam Country Files, Vietnam, Vol. XIV–1, January 1–15, 1970. Confidential. Sent for information. Received January 10. This memorandum was based on a “Holdridge/Moor analysis” that the NSC Secretariat sent as telegram WHO00108, January 6, to Nixon in San Clemente. (Ibid.) This memorandum is cited in Kissinger, White House Years (p. 435). The CIA prepared an intelligence memorandum analyzing Giap’s article and Hanoi’s intentions, No. 064/70, on January 14. On February 27 Kissinger sent a copy of the intelligence memorandum to Nixon under a memorandum containing a summary similar to the one in this memorandum. Nixon wrote the following note on the February 27 memorandum: “K. It is important for us to inflict maximum casualties on them now—to engage them not avoid.”

168. Memorandum From the President’s Assistant for National Security Affairs (Kissinger) to President Nixon

Source: National Archives, Nixon Presidential Materials, NSC Files, Box 94, Vietnam Subject Files, Vietnam, U.S. POWs in North Vietnam to April 1970. Secret. Sent for action.

169. Transcript of Telephone Conversation Between President Nixon and his Assistant for National Security Affairs (Kissinger)

Source: National Archives, Nixon Presidential Materials, NSC Files, Box 106, Kissinger Office Files, Country Files, Far East, Vietnam, “S” Mister, Vol. 2. No classification marking.

170. Memorandum From the President’s Assistant for National Security Affairs (Kissinger) to President Nixon

Source: National Archives, Nixon Presidential Materials, NSC Files, Box 91, Vietnam Subject Files, Vietnamization, Vol. II, January 1970–June 1970. Secret; Eyes Only. Initialed by Kissinger. This memorandum is cited in Kissinger, White House Years, p. 435.

171. Memorandum From the President’s Assistant for National Security Affairs (Kissinger) to President Nixon

Source: National Archives, Nixon Presidential Materials, NSC Files, Box 118, Vietnam Subject Files, Vietnam Special Studies Group. Secret. Sent for information. Nixon wrote at the top of the memorandum: “Excellent analysis—Keep on top of it.” A draft of this study with Kissinger’s queries and comments is ibid.

172. Minutes of Washington Special Actions Group Meeting

Source: National Archives, Nixon Presidential Materials, NSC Files, NSC Institutional Files (H-Files), Box H–002, WSAG Minutes, Originals, 1969–1970. Secret; Nodis. The meeting was held in the White House Situation Room. Robert Behr of the NSC staff sent these minutes to Kissinger under cover of a memorandum of February 23; that memorandum indicates Kissinger saw the minutes on March 27. (Ibid.) Copies of the minutes were also sent to U. Alexis Johnson, Nutter, Karamessines, and Vice Admiral Johnson.

173. Transcript of Telephone Conversation Between President Nixon and his Assistant for National Security Affairs (Kissinger)

Source: Library of Congress, Manuscript Division, Kissinger Papers, Box 361, Telephone Conversations, Chronological File. No classification marking.

174. Memorandum From the President’s Assistant for National Security Affairs (Kissinger) to President Nixon

Source: National Archives, Nixon Presidential Files, NSC Files, NSC Institutional Files (H-Files), Box H–071, WSAG Meeting, Laos, January 26, 1970. Secret; Sensitive. Sent for action.

175. Telegram From the Embassy in Vietnam to the Department of State

Source: National Archives, RG 59, Central Files 1970–73, POL 15–1 VIET S. Secret; Nodis. On January 12 Nixon asked White House Staff Assistant John Brown to send Kissinger a memorandum asking that Bunker do “some quiet work” on corruption in South Vietnam. (Memorandum from Lake to Brown, January 21; ibid., Nixon Presidential Materials, NSC Files, Box 142, Vietnam Country Files, Vietnam, Vol. XIV–2, 16–30 January 1970) Kissinger dispatched a backchannel message to Bunker asking him what could be done about corruption in South Vietnam. (Telegram WH003 to Bunker, January 21; ibid., Box 410, Backchannel Messages, Southeast Asia, 1970) Bunker responded in backchannel message 622 from Saigon, January 23, to the White House for Kissinger’s eyes only, on the ways to combat it much as he explained the problem and solutions to Thieu as reported in telegram 1515 from Saigon. (Ibid.) In a January 26 memorandum to Nixon, Kissinger summarized Bunker’s initial response to the request for “quiet work” on corruption and indicated Bunker planned to raise the issue with Thieu in the next few days. (Ibid., Box 142, Vietnam Country Files, Vietnam, Vol. XIV–2, 16–30 January 1970)

176. Memorandum From the President’s Assistant for National Security Affairs (Kissinger) to President Nixon

Source: National Archives, Nixon Presidential Materials, NSC Files, Box 91, Vietnam Subject Files, Vietnamization, Vol. II, January 1970–June 1970. Secret. Sent for information. In his memoirs Kissinger cites the attached CIA study and Nixon’s comments. (White House Years, p. 436)

177. Memorandum for the President’s File

Source: National Archives, Nixon Presidential Materials, White House Special Files, Memoranda for the President, Box 2, 2/1/70. No classification marking. Drafted and initialed by Butterfield.

178. Memorandum From the President’s Assistant for National Security Affairs (Kissinger) to President Nixon

Source: National Archives, Nixon Presidential Materials, NSC Files, Country Files, Vietnam, March 1970. Secret; [codeword not declassified]. Sent for information. In a February 5 covering memorandum Lynn informed Kissinger that this summary was done by John C. Court of the NSC’s Program Analysis Staff based on the Vietnam Special Study Group Enemy Capabilities Panel’s report. Lynn recommended that the summary be sent to the President. A note on the memorandum indicates it was “ret-d, Feb. 20, 1970.” The VSSG’s report, “A Review of Enemy Manpower Indicators in the War in Southeast Asia” SC 14685/69, December 1969, is ibid., Haig Special Files, Vietnam File, Vol. 4 (Jan–Feb, 1970) [2 of 2].

179. Memorandum From the President’s Assistant for National Security Affairs (Kissinger) to President Nixon

Source: National Archives, Nixon Presidential Materials, NSC Files, Box 506, Country Files, Far East, Cambodia, Vol. II, September 1969–9 April 1970. Top Secret; Sensitive. Sent for information. Holdridge sent this memorandum to Kissinger recommending that he ask the President to instruct the Department of State to evaluate the pros and cons of resuming a limited aid program to Cambodia. (Ibid.)

180. Memorandum From the President’s Assistant for National Security Affairs (Kissinger) to the Under Secretary of State (Richardson)

Source: National Archives, RG 59, Central Files 1970–73, DEF 19 US–CAMB. Top Secret; Sensitive. A copy was sent to Packard.