168. Telegram From the Embassy in Greece to the Department of State and the Department of Defense1
6652. Subject: U.S.-Greek Defense Cooperation Negotiations Successfully Concluded.
[Page 511]1. The full U.S. and Greek delegations, headed by Ambassadors Kubisch and Chrysospathis, met briefly on Monday, July 18, to acknowledge formally the resolution of all issues in these negotiations and the completion of agreed texts for all documents (26 in all) associated with the U.S.-Greek Defense Cooperation Agreement. (Addressees should consider this confidential until initialing and public acknowledgement later this month.)2
2. In describing this significant milestone as one of the high points of his three-year tenure in Athens, Ambassador Kubisch expressed his satisfaction and appreciation for Greek efforts and cooperation in making its achievement possible before his departure. He voiced his thanks and congratulations to members of both the U.S. and Greek teams for their diligence, perseverance, and professionalism in producing a body of agreed documents which are designed to serve and strengthen U.S. and Greek mutual security interests and which can be supported by both peoples in a democratic environment. Referring to his recent agreement with Foreign Minister Bitsios, Ambassador also expressed the desire that arrangements be made quickly for the announced formal concluding round ending with initialing of all the agreed texts and a public communique to this effect during the last few days in July.
3. Ambassador Chrysospathis, in a similarly congratulatory and appreciative manner, welcomed this opportunity to note the “satisfactory settlement” of all DCA issues on the eve of the Ambassador’s departure. He said this meeting “seals” the agreement over which representatives of both sides had labored long and hard during the past two and one half years. Pointing toward a formal, final session and initialing this month, Chrysospathis provided a draft communique for study by the U.S. delegation. (Septel)3
4. Both sides agreed that DCM Mills and Chrysospathis and their respective team members would meet in the next day or two to refine the scenario and work out final arrangements leading to the public round and initialing which would mark the formal public end to this phase of the negotiations.
5. Comment: The primary purpose of this meeting was to lock the Greeks into the agreements which have been reached on all the texts associated with the DCA and thus make it harder for them to seek further [Page 512] changes between now and the time the documents are formally and publicly initialed. Nevertheless, we should anticipate that they will want some minor changes, particularly as they translate into the Greek language the agreed texts covering the recent issues addressed. Hopefully, we will be able to hold any such changes to linguistic alterations and avoid anything which might impact on the policy or legal aspects of the issues involved.
- Source: Carter Library, National Security Affairs, Brzezinski Material, Country File, Box 26, Greece: 1/77–4/78. Secret. Sent Immediate to the Department of State. Sent for information Immediate to JCS; Priority to Ankara and USNATO; and to USNMR SHAPE, USDELMC, USCINCEUR, CINCUSNAVEUR, CINCUSAFE, USDOCOSouth, and DIRNSA. Printed from a copy that indicates the original was received in the White House Situation Room.↩
- The public initialing of the DCA took place on July 28 in Athens. The full text of the agreement was not found. The Embassy sent a draft of the complete text to the Department of State in telegram 4778 from Athens, May 21. (National Archives, RG 59, Central Foreign Policy File, D770182–0797)↩
- The Embassy sent the draft communiqué in telegram 6651 from Athens, July 18. (National Archives, RG 59, Central Foreign Policy File, D770270–1077)↩