280. Memorandum From the President’s Assistant for National Security Affairs (Brzezinski) to Secretary of State Vance, Secretary of Defense Brown, the Director of the Arms Control and Disarmament Agency (Warnke), the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (Jones), and the Director of Central Intelligence (Turner)1
SUBJECT
- U.S. Arms Transfer Policy Implementation
In the interest of relating the goals and guidelines of PD–132 to our relationships with key countries and within key regions, the Secretary of State should coordinate the preparation of interagency arms transfers studies on Africa, Latin America, Iran, Saudi Arabia, and the smaller states of the Persian Gulf. These studies should consider the purposes and the possible consequences of transferring arms and other military equipment of varying categories and levels of sophistication to these particular countries and regions.
The studies should pose options for PRC consideration and subsequent Presidential decision regarding both our general arms transfer posture toward these countries and regions and, to the degree possible, our disposition concerning major outstanding or anticipated requests.
Comparable interagency studies regarding other regions or major countries should also be undertaken as determined by the Secretary of State.
[Page 693]PRC consideration of each of the five studies mentioned above should take place before January 1, 1978.
- Source: Carter Library, National Security Affairs, Staff Material, Global Issues, Mathews Subject File, Box 4, Arms Transfers: Policy (General): 6/77–4/79. Confidential.↩
- See Document 271.↩