Historical Documents - Office of the Historian

Baghdad, December 19, 1972, 1215Z

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1.: Two recent editorials indicate GOI increasingly concerned by what it perceives as growing collusion among U.S., Saudi Arabi, Jordan and Iran aimed of course at overthrow Baath regime in Iraq.
2.: Party paper Ath-Thawra on Dec 12 cited Saudi ForMin Saqqaf’s statement in Tehran and other statements of Gulf states about foreign danger menacing the region. It says they could only refer to USSR and its friendly relations with Iraq. Editorial speaks of “escalation in conspiracies against Iraqi regime” in which Tehran playing important role and increase in imperialist activities in Gulf, all of which represent “new schemings of American imperialism.” Editorial ridicules those who revive old Soviet bugbear fallacy to promote their own ends.
3.: Official Al-Jumhurriya editorial Dec 17 attacks Iranian-Jordanian contacts and states: “what is now going on is close coordination between Tehran and Amman and some other Arab capitals under overall supervision of imperialistic intelligence services with object of launching fresh onslaught on Arab national liberation movement and on revolutionary Iraq in particular.”
4.: Dec 19 Baghdad observer under headline “US Arms Iran to the Teeth” reports Iran to receive 202 Cobra helicopter gunships and 287 Huey transport helicopters under new arms agreement with US valued at 720 mil dols. Delivery of helicopters to begin in 1974 preceded by massive US training program.

Lowrie

Source: National Archives, RG 59, Central Files 1970–73, POL IRAQ-US. Limited Official Use. Repeated to Amman, Kuwait, Jidda, and Tehran. In telegram 100 from Baghdad, December 27, Lowrie reported that news of Helms’ appointment to Tehran had been characterized in the press as “indicative of role U.S. is delegating to Iran for execution imperialist plans in area.” (Ibid.)↩
Lowrie summarized two recent official Iraqi editorials expressing concern at U.S., Jordanian, and Iranian collusion against Baghdad.↩

Foreign Relations of the United States, 1969–1976, Volume E–4, Documents on Iran and Iraq, 1969–1972