Office of the Historian

271. Memorandum From the President’s Assistant for National Security Affairs (Brzezinski) to President Carter1

Washington, July 13, 1979

SUBJECT

  • SCC Meeting on Nicaragua (U)

I chaired an SCC meeting today and Christopher, Duncan, Dave Jones, Bowie from CIA and others attended. We agreed to give more detailed instructions to Ambassador Pezzullo for his meeting with Somoza this afternoon—specifically, to ask the names of Somoza’s successor and the new National Guard Commander so that we could begin to plan ways to relate to them (e.g., delivering humanitarian assistance). We agreed to draft letters for Cy to send to the Andean Pact Foreign Ministers before their meeting next week, urging them to encourage the junta toward moderation and a democratic outcome; and letters from Cy to Foreign Ministers of other nations that signed the OAS resolution, asking them to weigh in with the Andean countries with the same message. CIA is examining the possibility of our contact [Page 673] ing the more moderate military elements in the Sandinistas2 (like Pastora, who quit my staff two weeks ago to fight Somoza) in order to strengthen their hand in the likely struggle that will follow the transfer of power. We will decide on new instructions for Bowdler to use with Torrijos, Perez, and Carazo after we hear from Somoza this evening. I must add that I feel a considerable degree of unease that we may be witnessing at this moment the passing of the baton of influence over the future of Central America from the US to Cuba, but the above is the best we can do. (S)

  1. Source: Carter Library, National Security Affairs, Staff Material, North/South, Pastor Files, Country Files, Box 36, Nicaragua: 7/12–14/79. Secret. Sent for information. Brzezinski did not initial the memorandum. An unknown hand wrote at the bottom of the page: “revised and sent.” The final version of the memorandum has not been found. For more information on the July 13 SCC meeting, see Document 270.↩
  2. Following the word “Sandinistas,” an unknown hand crossed out the phrase: “(like Pastora, who quit my staff two weeks ago to fight Somoza).”↩