134. Memorandum From Director of Central Intelligence Colby to the President’s Assistant for National Security Affairs (Kissinger)1
SUBJECT
- Reaffirmation by Crown Prince Fahd of Saudi Arabia’s Friendship with the United States
SUMMARY: On 8 April Crown Prince Fahd restated Saudi policy of maintaining and promoting friendship and alliance with the United States. Fahd stated that this is the time when the U.S. needs friends and Saudi Arabia would be one—openly and proudly. He then outlined his recent directive to the Central Planning Organization that preferences in the new Saudi Five Year Development Plan would go to Americans. Fahd also briefly discussed the direction of foreign policy and his relations with Khalid. End of summary.
1. On 8 April 1975, [less than 1 line not declassified] met with Crown Prince Fahd in Riyadh to discuss [less than 1 line not declassified] activities in the context of the new leadership changes in Saudi Arabia following the assassination of King Faysal on 25 March. During the course of the meeting, [less than 1 line not declassified], Fahd made the following points which may be of interest to you.
2. Fahd stated, “I am determined that the policy of close working relations with the United States which I began and which has become known as my policy, shall be implemented promptly and fully now that I am in charge. I repeated this to the Central Planning Organization (CPO) [less than 1 line not declassified]. We are going to be allies and friends of the United States—not privately, but openly and proudly—at a time when the United States needs friends. The only thing I ask in return is that the projects and programs which I discussed with your State, Treasury and Defense Department officials in Washington last June (1974) should be supported without complications or delays that could embarrass me.”
3. Fahd had just come from a meeting with the CPO officials at which the proposed new Five Year Plan had been reviewed. This plan, [Page 468] he said had been sitting on King Faysal’s desk for sometime before the assassination, and there had been concern that it would not be approved and implemented in August 1975 as originally scheduled. The plan had been given to him for review and he expected that it might now be approved and started even before August. Preferences in the plan will be given to large U.S. corporations which are willing not only to provide goods and services to the Saudis’ modernization program, but which are willing to bring training and technology with them as permanent contributions to the improvement of Saudi society. Contracts will be awarded to the Japanese, English, Germans, French and others, but the majority will definitely go to the Americans. This decision, which Fahd said was his own, had been given substance in the form of a directive to the CPO President Hisham Nazir.
4. Turning to foreign policy, Fahd said that Saudi Arabia’s relations with Egypt will remain as strong as ever. Secondly, Fahd said he was looking forward with enthusiasm to a successful trip to Iran, which will now be more important since the death of King Faysal. Fahd stated emphatically that there was no problem between him and King Khalid. He confirmed that the King had issued written instructions to all senior officers of the Saudi Government that they were to serve Fahd directly and that Fahd would be managing the administration of the government. This was the King’s decision, Fahd emphasized, and “not the result of my having demanded such authority.”
5. [1 paragraph (1 line) not declassified]
Summary: Colby provided Kissinger with a report on the April 8 meeting between Prince Fahd and a U.S. official on the U.S.-Saudi relationship in the wake of King Faisal’s assassination.
Source: Central Intelligence Agency, Executive Registry Files, Job 80M01066A, Box 10, Folder S–34. Secret; [handling restriction not declassified]. Deputy Director for Operations William E. Nelson signed for Colby.
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