Office of the Historian

229. Transcript of Telephone Conversation Between the President’s Assistant for National Security Affairs (Kissinger) and the Soviet Ambassador (Dobrynin)1

Washington, October 9, 1970, 10:20 p.m.

D: You are not still in bed?

K: No.

D: Oh good, you see I would like to clarify some points beginning on the Cuba paper2 you gave me dealing with nuclear and atomic things. One is the construction of submarines or surface repair facilities ashore in Cuba. You do not use any reference to nuclear or atomic in points covering this issue in the note. It refers in the heading to strategic systems, is that what is meant concerning repair facilities?

K: We are talking about ships in the above mentioned categories. (i.e. nuclear and atomic)

D: Just would like to be sure, they will ask me. I was under the impression that this was so but I wanted to be sure.

K: Yes, that’s correct.

D: This is important. Thank you. Have a nice weekend.

  1. Source: National Archives, Nixon Presidential Materials, NSC Files, Box 490, President’s Trip Files, Dobrynin/Kissinger, 1970, Vol. 2. No classification marking.↩
  2. See Tab A, Document 228.↩