166. Minutes of a Verification Panel Meeting1

SUBJECT

  • SALT

PARTICIPATION

  • Chairman—Henry A. Kissinger
  • State
    • John N. Irwin, II
    • Ronald Spiers
    • Seymour Weiss
    • Raymond Garthoff
    • Amb. Graham Parsons
  • Defense
    • David Packard
    • Paul Nitze
    • Archie L. Wood
  • JCS
    • LTG Royal B. Allison
    • Justice
    • Attorney General John Mitchell
  • CIA
    • LTG Robert E. Cushman
    • Carl Duckett
  • ACDA
    • Amb. Gerard Smith
    • Harold Brown
    • Philip J. Farley
    • Spurgeon Keeny
  • OST
    • Dr. Edward David
  • OMB
    • James Schlesinger
  • NSC
    • K. Wayne Smith
    • Helmut Sonnenfeldt
    • William Hyland
    • Jack Merritt
    • Barry Carter
    • Jeanne W. Davis

SUMMARY OF DECISIONS

It was agreed that:

1)
the Working Group would prepare, prior to the NSC meeting on SALT, a statement on collateral restraints in a defensive agreement, including what restraints are agreed, those that are disagreed and by whom, and draft language for an expression of the restraints;
2)
the three choices for a freeze on offensive weapons (ICBMs only, ICBMs and SLBMs, and SLBMs and heavy bombers) will be put to the President in an NSC meeting for decision; the consensus of the Verification Panel is to try for a freeze on both ICBMs and SLBMs;
3)
based on Mr. G. Smith’s proposal for a simple formulation of a freeze on offensive weapons, with a cut-off date, the Working Group will examine alternatives as to dates, elements of a freeze, and language.

[Omitted here are the minutes of the meeting.]

  1. Source: National Archives, Nixon Presidential Materials, NSC Files, NSC Institutional Files (H–Files), Box H–107, Verification Panel Minutes Originals 1969–3/8/72. Top Secret. The meeting took place in the White House Situation Room.