Office of the Historian

169. Letter From President Carter to Ugandan President Lule1

Washington, June 6, 1979
Dear Mr. President:

Thank you for your thoughtful letter of May 9, 1979, which Secretary Vance received from your special envoy, Semei Nyanzi.2

I am heartened to know that after eight years of cruelty and terror the Ugandan people will now be governed by leaders who, as you wrote in your letter, are totally committed to basic human rights and to the restoration of unity, freedom and democracy.

You face an extraordinarily difficult task in reconstructing and rehabilitating your country. Please be assured that we will do all that we can to assist you within the limits of our resources. We have already removed the trade embargo on Uganda and have initiated legislative action to permit economic assistance.3 We are now considering those areas in which such assistance can be most effectively used.

I am particularly pleased that the United States Embassy in Kampala is being reopened immediately.4 I have asked our newly-named Charge d’Affaires ad interim, Mr. David C. Halsted, to personally carry this letter to you. Please give him any assistance which may be needed in reestablishing the U.S. Mission in Uganda.

The American people join me in wishing every success to you and the people of Uganda. In previous eras there have been close ties between our two countries, and I am sure they will be renewed and strengthened in the future.

Sincerely,

Jimmy Carter
  1. Source: Carter Library, National Security Affairs, Brzezinski Material, President’s Correspondence with Foreign Leaders File, Box 20, Uganda: President Yusuf K. Lule. No classification marking.↩
  2. See footnote 2, Document 168.↩
  3. See footnotes 5 and 6, Document 168.↩
  4. The Embassy in Kampala reopened on June 18.↩