Options Identified


74. Summary of Conclusions of a Special Coordination Committee Meeting

Source: Carter Library, National Security Affairs, Staff Material, Office File, Box 17, SCC Meeting #216 held 12/1/79. Top Secret. The meeting took place in the White House Situation Room. Carter initialed “C” in the upper right corner of the page.


75. Memorandum From Secretary of Defense Brown to President Carter

Source: Carter Library, National Security Affairs, Staff Material, Middle East File, Box 35, Subject File, Iran [Cables & Memos] 11–12/1979. Top Secret; Eyes Only. An unknown hand wrote at the top of the first page of the memorandum: “Bootleg non-paper.”


76. Memorandum From Secretary of State Vance to President Carter

Source: Carter Library, Plains File, Box 14. Secret. Carter initialed “C” in the upper right corner of the memorandum.


77. Summary of Conclusions of a Special Coordination Committee Meeting

Source: Carter Library, National Security Affairs, Staff Material, Middle East File, Box 98, Meetings File, 12/1/79 SCC re Iran. Secret. The meeting took place in the White House Situation Room. Carter wrote “Zbig, J,” in the upper right corner.


78. Memorandum From Gary Sick of the National Security Council Staff to the President’s Assistant for National Security Affairs (Brzezinski)

Source: Carter Library, National Security Affairs, Staff Material, Middle East File, Box 35, Subject File, Iran [Cables & Memos] 11–12/79. Secret; Eyes Only.


79. Paper Prepared by the Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern and South Asian Affairs (Saunders)

Source: Carter Library, National Security Affairs, Brzezinski Material, Country File, Box 32, Iran Update 12/15/79–12/31/79. Secret. Attached to a December 3 memorandum from Saunders to Vance.


80. Memorandum From the President’s Assistant for National Security Affairs (Brzezinski) to President Carter

Source: Carter Library, National Security Council, NSC Institutional Files (H–Files), Box 57, NSC 023 Iran 12/4/79. Top Secret; Sensitive. Carter initialed “C” in the upper right corner of the memorandum. Saunders prepared a discussion strategy for Vance to use at the NSC meeting based on Brzezinski’s suggestions. (December 3; Department of State, Records of David D. Newsom, Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs, Subject Files, 1978–1981, Lot 81D154, Briefing Book: The Shah December 1979, Vol. IV)


81. Paper Prepared in the Central Intelligence Agency

Source: Carter Library, National Security Affairs, Brzezinski Material, Country File, Box 30, Iran 12/5/79–12/9/79. Top Secret; [handling restriction not declassified]. Sent to Carter, Mondale, Vance, Brzezinski, Brown, Miller, and Duncan under a December 5 covering memorandum from Turner.


82. Minutes of a National Security Council Meeting

Source: Carter Library, National Security Affairs, Staff Material, Office File, Box 2, NSC Meeting #023 held 12/4/79. Top Secret; Sensitive. The meeting took place in the Cabinet Room at the White House.


83. Minutes of a National Security Council Meeting

Source: Carter Library, National Security Council, NSC Institutional Files (H–Files), Box 57, NSC 023 Iran 12/4/79. Top Secret; Sensitive. The meeting took place in the Cabinet Room.


84. Memorandum From the President’s Assistant for National Security Affairs (Brzezinski)

Source: Carter Library, Plains File, Box 23, Iran, 6/75–12/79. Top Secret. At the top of the memorandum, Carter wrote: “ok, but prepare with Cy more detailed instructions for my approval. Let’s send the msg from me to leaders immediately. Let me see text. J.”


85. Memorandum From the Special Assistant for Counter Intelligence, Central Intelligence Agency (Kalaris) to Director of Central Intelligence Turner

Source: Central Intelligence Agency, Office of the Director of Central Intelligence, Job 81B00112R: Subject Files, Box 12, Folder 60: George Kalaris/EA/DCI/Memo Chrono. Secret.


86. Memorandum From the National Intelligence Officer for the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe (Horelick) to Director of Central Intelligence Turner and the Deputy Director of Central Intelligence (Carlucci)

Source: Central Intelligence Agency, Office of the Director of Central Intelligence, Job 81M00919R: Executive Registry Subject Files (1976–1979), Box 14, Folder 12: C–372. Secret; Sensitive. Sent through Clarke. A copy was sent to the NIO for warning.


87. Briefing Memorandum From the Assistant Secretary of State for International Organization Affairs (Maynes) to Secretary of State Vance

Source: Department of State, Records of David D. Newsom, Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs, Subject Files, 1978–1981, Lot 81D154, UN and Security Council. Secret; Nodis. Drafted by Maynes and Helman. Concurred in by Saunders. A handwritten notation at the top of the memorandum reads: “DDN—Urgent.”


88. Memorandum From the Inspector General, Central Intelligence Agency (Waller) to Director of Central Intelligence Turner

Source: Central Intelligence Agency, Office of the Director of Central Intelligence, Job 81M00919R: Executive Registry Subject Files (1976–1979), Box 14, Folder 12: C–372. Secret. Sent through Carlucci.


89. Memorandum From Director of Central Intelligence Turner to the Deputy Director of Central Intelligence (Carlucci) and the Deputy Director for Operations (McMahon)

Source: Central Intelligence Agency, Office of the Director of Central Intelligence, Job 95M01183R: Policy Files (1977–1981), Box 1, Folder 5: DCI Turner—Eyes Only Files—Various Subjects. Secret; [handling restriction not declassified].


90. Memorandum From Secretary of State Vance to President Carter

Source: Carter Library, Plains File, Box 14. Secret. Carter wrote “Cy, J” in the upper right corner of the memorandum.


91. Summary of Conclusions of a Special Coordination Committee Meeting

Source: Carter Library, National Security Affairs, Staff Material, Office File, Box 17, SCC Meeting #224 held 12/10/79. Secret. The meeting took place in the White House Situation Room. Carter wrote “Zbig, J” in the upper right corner.


92. Telegram From the Executive Assistant to the Deputy Secretary of State (Oxman) to the Executive Secretary of the Department of State (Tarnoff)

Source: Department of State, Records of David D. Newsom, Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs, Subject Files, 1978–1981, Lot 81D154, Briefing Book: The Shah December 1979, Vol. IV. Secret.


93. Memorandum From Director of Central Intelligence Turner to Secretary of State Vance and the President’s Assistant for National Security Affairs (Brzezinski)

Source: Central Intelligence Agency, Office of the Director of Central Intelligence, Job 95M01183R: Policy Files (1977–1981), Box 1, Folder 5: DCI Turner—Eyes Only Files—Various Subjects. Secret; Sensitive. Brzezinski and Turner agreed to show this memorandum and Kalaris’s December 5 memorandum (see Document 85) to Carter, but not to Vance. (Central Intelligence Agency, Office of the Director of Central Intelligence, Job 81B00112R: Subject Files, Box 15, Folder 42: DCI/DDCI/Memrecs/Memos/Agendas of Brzezinski/Aaron Meetings)


94. Memorandum From Gary Sick of the National Security Council Staff to the President’s Assistant for National Security Affairs (Brzezinski)

Source: Carter Library, National Security Affairs, Staff Material, Office File, Box 64, Outside the System File, Iran: Non Meetings Hostage Crisis 11/79–12/79. Secret; Eyes Only. Carter initialed “C” in the upper right corner.


95. Telegram From Secretary of State Vance to the Department of State and the White House

Source: Department of State, Records of the Secretary of State, 1977–1980, Lot 84D241, Vance NODIS Memcons 1979. Secret; Immediate; Nodis; Cherokee.


96. Report Prepared in the Bureau of Intelligence and Research

Source: National Archives, RG 59, Central Foreign Policy File, P800009–0568. Secret; Noforn. Prepared by Grummon. Approved by Harris.


97. Summary of Conclusions of a Special Coordination Committee Meeting

Source: Carter Library, National Security Affairs, Staff Material, Office File, Box 18, SCC Meeting #229 held 12/14/79. Secret; Sensitive. The meeting took place in the White House Situation Room. Carter initialed “C” in the upper right corner.


98. Summary of Conclusions of a Special Coordination Committee Meeting

Source: Carter Library, National Security Affairs, Staff Material, Office File, Box 18, SCC Meeting #230 held 12/15/79. Top Secret. The meeting took place in the White House Situation Room. Carter wrote “Zbig, J” in the upper right corner.


99. Memorandum From the Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern and South Asian Affairs (Saunders) and the Director of the Bureau of Intelligence and Research (Bowdler) to Secretary of State Vance

Source: Department of State, Records of David D. Newsom, Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs, Subject Files, 1978–1981, Lot 81D154, Data on Hostages. Secret; Nodis. Sent through Newsom.


100. Paper Prepared in the Central Intelligence Agency

Source: Carter Library, National Security Affairs, Staff Material, Middle East File, Box 31, Subject File, Iran 12/8/79–12/18/79. Secret. Sent under a December 16 covering memorandum from Turner to Vance, Brown, Jones, and Brzezinski, on which Turner wrote: “I commend it as one basis for planning for the return of the hostages.”


101. Memorandum From the Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern and South Asian Affairs (Saunders) to Secretary of State Vance

Source: Department of State, Records of David D. Newsom, Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs, Subject Files, 1978–1981, Lot 81D154, Miscellaneous Documents. Secret; Eyes Only. Sent through Newsom.


102. Summary of Conclusions of a Special Coordination Committee Meeting

Source: Carter Library, National Security Council, NSC Institutional Files (H–Files), Box 107. Secret. The meeting took place in the White House Situation Room. Carter wrote “Zbig, J” in the upper right corner.


103. Memorandum of Conversation

Source: Carter Library, National Security Affairs, Staff Material, Middle East File, Box 31, Subject File, Iran 12/8/79–12/18/79. Secret. The meeting took place in the Cabinet Room at the White House.