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  3. Foreign Relations of the United States, 1969–1976, Volume XI, South Asia Crisis, 1971
  4. Document 322

322. Transcript of Telephone Conversation Between President Nixon and His Assistant for National Security Affairs (Kissinger)1

December 16, 1971, 5:15 p.m.

P: …2 update on everything okay.

K: Everything is now falling into place. The Soviets are tabling a resolution;3 itʼs better than the old one but we still canʼt accept it. We [Page 848] canʼt let it get settled on a Soviet resolution and secondly it is still very one-sided. Now the British are withdrawing theirs.

P: Are they going to support the Soviets?

K: That is unthinkable to me; that they wouldnʼt do. We have a good resolution with the non-permanent members and I have given Bush urgent instructions to get it tabled and told Vorontsov we wouldnʼt accept theirs but hoped it was negotiable and he said it probably was. He said let the people in New York talk about it.

P: What about the exchange of letters?

K: Thatʼs obviously off. Itʼs just as well as far as the Chinese are concerned. We cannot support a Soviet resolution.

P: There is a unilateral cease-fire [omission in the source text].

K: Yes, but we have a problem getting Yahya to accept it. The Indians told the British our [their] offer is good for only 24 hours. She may figure Yahya canʼt move that fast. I have sent a cable4 urging Yahya to accept it at least until the UN acts. This is all tactical maneuvering in the last 24 hours. It is aggravating for the people concerned, but nothing you need to follow step by step.

[Omitted here is discussion unrelated to South Asia.]

P: But you feel good about India–Pakistan?

K: Barring total treachery …

P: On the part of the Indians.

K: And the Russians. The real problem now is cosmetics.

[Omitted here is discussion largely related to dealing with the press.]

  1. Source: Library of Congress, Manuscript Division, Kissinger Papers, Box 370, Telephone Conversations, Chronological File. No classification marking. The President was in Key Biscayne, Florida; Kissinger was in Washington.↩
  2. The transcription begins at this point in the conversation.↩
  3. Vorontsov called Kissinger 35 minutes earlier and read the text of the Soviet draft resolution. (Transcript of a telephone conversation; Library of Congress, Manuscript Division, Kissinger Papers, Box 395, Telephone Conversations, Dobrynin File, Sept 1971–Apr 1972)↩
  4. Document 321.↩