13. Memorandum From Secretary of State Vance to President Carter1
[Omitted here are items unrelated to the Horn of Africa.]
6. Ethiopia: We have learned from very reliable intelligence sources that the Ethiopians, in retaliation against our decision to reduce the [Page 41] MAAG and close down Kagnew,2 are planning to tell us within the next few days of their decision to close the MAAG Mission entirely within a week, shut down Kagnew in two weeks, close our Consulate General in Asmara shortly thereafter and reduce the size of our diplomatic mission in Addis Ababa.
We had an earlier hint from the Minister of Defense that the Ethiopian Government might be moving in this direction. We have already stopped delivery of military items in the pipeline but have not so informed the Ethiopians. If the Ethiopians move as we understand they will, we should shut off the remaining non-lethal items in the pipeline and, when we have safely withdrawn our people and decreased the size of our staff, inform the Ethiopian Government that no further deliveries will be forthcoming. I don’t believe it would be prudent to inform the Ethiopians until we are assured of the safety of our staffs.3
[Omitted here are items unrelated to the Horn of Africa.]
- Source: Carter Library, Plains File, Subject File, Box 12, State Department Evening Reports, 4/77. Secret.↩
- See Document 6.↩
- Carter wrote in the left margin, “ok, do this.”↩