176. Memorandum From Helmut Sonnenfeldt of the National Security Council Staff to the Presidentʼs Assistant for National Security Affairs (Kissinger)1
SUBJECT
- Romanians Fish for High-Level US Visit
In the attached message (Bucharest 139),2 Ambassador Davis reports a conversation with Romanian party and state chief Ceausescu in which the latter urged that US-Romanian “political relations” be developed, referred to his meeting with President Nixon two years ago3 and expressed hope that the President might some time visit Romania. He also expressed the hope that President Johnson might visit Romania.
I doubt whether Ceausescu would expect this invitation to be taken up, at least any time soon and I think Dick Davis is right in supposing that the Romanians are fishing for a high-level but less than Presidential visit.
I believe this is well worth considering as is the possibility of more or less regular political consultations. This kind of activity, if carried on without excessive fanfare, would be in the category of deterrence diplomacy along the lines of what we have been doing with the Yugoslavs. There are of course pitfalls: if you overdo the deterrence you may bring on the thing you are trying to prevent; if we invest too much of our prestige in our relations we have more of it to lose if things go badly. But given skill and the built-in restraints, both here and in Bucharest, I think the State Department can be encouraged to pursue Ceausescuʼs overture.
My candidate for a trip some time would be Governor Scranton.