Foreign Relations of the United States, 1977–1980, Volume XX, Eastern Europe

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

Washington, undated

SUBJECT

• Chancellor Schmidt’s Complaint About RFE/RL Expansion²

In the attached cable, Ambassador Stoessel reports that Chancellor Schmidt indicated he would raise the issue of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty with you.³ Schmidt expressed irritation at not being consulted about the expansion of transmitter facilities near Munich (which you approved and sent to Congress in March) and more general unhappiness about having the radios broadcast from German soil but with no German control of content.

The issue is an old one:

—The transmitter expansion program was cleared with and necessary licenses requested from the FRG ministry of post and telecommunications, though there is no evidence that Schmidt or Genscher were specifically consulted by U.S. officials.

—Schmidt’s concern over his lack of control of RFE/RL content may be exacerbated by his qualms about aspects of East-West relations, including human rights problems.

Schmidt seems to have put the radios on the agenda for his visit to Washington. I believe we should try to respond to his concerns while stressing the importance we attach to the radios and to their location in the Federal Republic.⁴

You could also admit that RFE/RL sometimes operated in the past as though they were autonomous even of the U.S. Government, and your reconstitution of the Board for International Broadcasting (the RFE/RL parent) is designed to correct that. You should also add the strong U.S. interest in the continued effectiveness of these radios.⁵

Finally, it is noteworthy that Schmidt would be strongly opposed by the CDU if he tried to take action, and the FDP (his coalition partner) might not support him.⁶

1. Source: Carter Library, National Security Affairs, Brzezinski Material, Brzezinski Office File, Subject Chron File, Box 112, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty/Voice of America: 1977. Secret. Printed from an uninitialed copy. A notation at the top of the first page indicates that this memorandum was retyped for Brzezinski on July 1. In a June 21 memorandum, Brzezinski asked Hyland to prepare a memorandum for Carter on Schmidt’s position on RFE/RL modernization as reported in telegram 10177 from Bonn, June 17. (Ibid.)
2. The Department of State prepared a memorandum on the subject, which it forwarded to the White House on June 29. (Memorandum from Tarnoff to Brzezinski, June 29; Carter Library, National Security Affairs, Brzezinski Material, Subject File, Box 9, Board for International Broadcasting (RFE, RL, VOA): 2–12/77)
3. See Document 51.
4. On July 8, Vance forwarded a briefing memorandum to Carter in preparation for the meeting with Schmidt. Vance suggested that, in the event Schmidt raised the issue of RFE/RL, Carter should respond that the administration regards RFE/RL as essential to informing the people of Eastern Europe and the Soviet Union, and that a reduction or withdrawal of the transmitters and radios would be perceived by Moscow and the United States public as a retreat in the face of Soviet pressure. (Carter Library, National Security Council, Institutional Files, Box 63, PRC 023, Schmidt Visit)
5. In telegram 12578 from Bonn, August 2, Ambassador Stroessel reported: “Chancellor raised subject of RFE/RL operations in FRG in general and new transmitters in particular with President in private conversation at the White House evening of July 13” and, according to accounts by the West German Ambassador to the United States and MFA State Secretary Schueler, “the President listened to Schmidt’s presentation with interest and said he would give further consideration to the subject.” (National Archives, RG 59, Central Foreign Policy File, D770276–0284) A memorandum of conversation of the Carter-Schmidt discussion on RFE/RL was not found.
6. This sentence was added by Brzezinski in an earlier draft. (Carter Library, National Security Affairs, Brzezinski Material, Brzezinski Office File, Subject Chron File, Box 112, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty/Voice of America: 1977)