330. Memorandum for the Record by the Chief of the Near East and South Asia Division, Directorate of Operations, Central Intelligence Agency (Cogan)1
SUBJECT
- President’s Tasking of State Department for an Update on Options Being Developed in the Hostage Crisis Other than a Rescue Mission
1. You will recall that at a meeting at the Pentagon on 23 July the question of [less than 1 line not declassified] designed to create a means to infiltrate equipment and personnel into Iran, was discussed (see para 4 of the attached Spot Report). During the discussion Major General Vaught and Brigadier General Odom were informed that in CIA’s view a policy-level decision was necessary to permit us to explore this possibility because if a meeting were to be arranged [less than 1 line not declassified] between [less than 1 line not declassified] the US Ambassador [less than 1 line not declassified] should be briefed. General Odom said he would seek such a policy decision.
2. We subsequently learned from General Odom that word had come back from the President that he did not approve exploring this option and that he wanted a review of everything that is being done in the way of planning a second rescue mission. However, in a follow-up conversation on 31 July, General Odom provided an important and quite different clarification of this matter. He explained that what had happened was that the President, rather than approving the [less than 1 line not declassified] proposal, had instead decided to task the State [Page 878] Department for a complete review and update of all options being developed in the hostage crisis in areas other than a rescue mission.
- Source: Central Intelligence Agency, Office of the Director of Central Intelligence, Job 82M00501R: 1980 Subject Files, Box 14, Folder 1: C–372 Iran 01 June–31 July 1980. Secret; [handling restriction not declassified].↩
- Printed from a copy with Cogan’s typed signature and an indication that he signed the original.↩