Vietnam, January 1969–July 1970
242. Memorandum From Director of Central Intelligence Helms to the President’s Assistant for National Security Affairs (Kissinger)
Source: National Archives, Nixon Presidential Materials, NSC Files, Box 506, Country Files, Far East, Cambodia, Vol. III, 10 April 1970–23 April 1970. Secret; Sensitive. Kissinger summarized this memorandum for Nixon on April 22, but that memorandum was not initialed and there is no indication it was sent to the President. (ibid.)
243. Memorandum From Jonathan Howe of the National Security Council Staff to the President’s Assistant for National Security Affairs (Kissinger)
Source: National Archives, Nixon Presidential Materials, NSC Files, Box 1324, Unfiled Material, 1970, 3 of 11. Top Secret; Sensitive; Eyes Only. Sent for information.
244. Memorandum From the Acting Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (Westmoreland) to Secretary of Defense Laird
Source: National Archives, Nixon Presidential Materials, NSC Files, Box 506, Country Files, Far East, Cambodia, Vol. III, 10 April 1970–23 April 1970. Top Secret. Pursley sent this memorandum to Kissinger under an attached April 22 covering memorandum that indicated Westmoreland gave it to Laird the morning of April 22.
245. Memorandum From President Nixon to his Assistant for National Security Affairs (Kissinger)
Source: National Archives, Nixon Presidential Materials, White House Special Files, President’s Personal File, Box 2, Memorandum for the President, January– December 1970, April 1970. Confidential. The memorandum is unsigned. The classification was changed by hand to Top Secret. Also printed in Kissinger, White House Years, p. 1484.
246. Memorandum From President Nixon to his Assistant for National Security Affairs (Kissinger)
Source: National Archives, Nixon Presidential Materials, NSC Files, Box 341, Subject Files, HAK/President Memos, 1969–1970. Confidential. The memorandum is unsigned. Kissinger summarizes this message in White House Years, pp. 489–490.
247. Memorandum From President Nixon to his Assistant for National Security Affairs (Kissinger)
Source: National Archives, Nixon Presidential Materials, White House Special Files, President’s Personal File, Box 2, Memorandum for the President, January– December 1970, April 1970. Confidential. The memorandum is unsigned. The classification was changed by hand to Top Secret. Confidential. Kissinger summarizes this message in White House Years, p. 490.
249. National Security Council Decision Memorandum 56
Source: National Archives, Nixon Presidential Materials, NSC Files, NSC Institutional Files (H-Files), Box H–073, WSAG Meeting, Cambodia, 4/23/70, a.m. and p.m. Top Secret; Sensitive; Principals Only. A copy was sent to Wheeler.
250. Memorandum From Roger Morris, Winston Lord, and Anthony Lake of the National Security Council Staff to the President’s Assistant for National Security Affairs (Kissinger)
Source: National Archives, Nixon Presidential Materials, NSC Files, Box 506, Country Files, Far East, Cambodia, Vol. III, 10 April 1970–23 April 1970. Secret; Eyes Only. Kissinger discusses this memorandum and his meetings with these NSC staffers on this memorandum in White House Years, pp. 493–494 and 497. Lake and Morris resigned from the NSC staff over Cambodia. (Letter from Morris and Lake to Kissinger, April 29; ibid., Box 1048, Staff Files, Lake Chronological File, 6/69–5/70) William Watts also resigned, an account of which is in William Shawcross Sideshow: Kissinger, Nixon, and the Destruction of Cambodia, p. 145.
251. Backchannel Message From the Ambassador to Vietnam (Bunker) to the President’s Assistant for National Security Affairs (Kissinger)
Source: National Archives, Nixon Presidential Materials, NSC Files, Box 410, Backchannel Messages, Southeast Asia, 1970. Top Secret; Sensitive; Eyes Only. Received at the White House Situation Room at 9:41 a.m. Washington time.
252. Memorandum for the Record
Source: National Archives, Nixon Presidential Materials, NSC Files, NSC Institutional Files (H-Files), Box H–114, WSAG Minutes, Originals, 1969–1970. Secret; Sensitive. The meeting was held in the White House Situation Room.
253. Memorandum From the President’s Assistant for National Security Affairs (Kissinger) to President Nixon
Source: National Archives, Nixon Presidential Materials, NSC Files, Box 506, Country Files, Far East, Cambodia, Vol. III, 10 April 1970–23 April 1970. Top Secret; Sensitive.
255. Memorandum of Conversation
Source: National Archives, Nixon Presidential Materials, NSC Files, NSC Institutional Files (H-Files), Box H–114, WSAG Minutes, Originals, 1969–1970. Secret; Sensitive. The meeting was held in the White House Situation Room.
256. Transcript of Telephone Conversation Between President Nixon, his Assistant for National Security Affairs (Kissinger), and the Chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee (Stennis)
Source: Library of Congress, Manuscript Division, Kissinger Papers, Box 363, Telephone Conversations, Chronological File. No classification marking. According to Kissinger’s memoirs, White House Years, Kissinger and Nixon pre-arranged this call to impress Stennis. (p. 496)
257. Memorandum of Conversation
Source: National Archives, Nixon Presidential Materials, NSC Files, NSC Institutional Files (H-Files), Box H–114, WSAG Minutes, Originals, 1969–1970. Secret; Sensitive. The meeting was held in the White House Situation Room.
258. Transcript of Telephone Conversation Between President Nixon and his Assistant for National Security Affairs (Kissinger)
Source: Library of Congress, Manuscript Division, Kissinger Papers, Box 363, Telephone Records, 1969–1976, Telephone Conversations, Chronological Files, 19–26 April 1970. No classification marking. The President arrived at 4 p.m. at Camp David with his friend Bebe Rebozo; Kissinger was in Washington.
259. Memorandum From the President’s Assistant for National Security Affairs (Kissinger) to President Nixon
Source: National Archives, Nixon Presidential Materials, White House Special Files, President’s Personal File, Box 58, Speech File, NSC, Ground Operations in Cambodia. Top Secret; Sensitive; Eyes Only. Sent for information.
260. National Security Council Decision Memorandum 57
Source: National Archives, Nixon Presidential Materials, NSC Files, NSC Institutional Files (H-Files), Box H–073, WSAG Meeting, Cambodia, 4/27/70. Top Secret; Sensitive; Principals Only. A copy was sent to Wheeler.
261. Notes of a Meeting
Source: National Archives, Nixon Presidential Materials, White House Special Files, Staff Members Office Files, E.R. Haldeman, Haldeman Notes, April–June 1970. No classification marking. Kissinger recounts this meeting in White House Years, pp. 500–501 and Nixon in RN: The Memoirs of Richard Nixon, p. 450. These notes are reprinted in slightly less cryptic form in H.R. Haldeman, The Haldeman Diaries, pp. 155–156, where 11 to 11:53 a.m. is given as the time. The President’s Daily Diary gives the time of the meeting as 10:45 to 11:49 a.m. (National Archives, Nixon Presidential Materials, White House Central Files)
262. Minutes of Washington Special Actions Group Meeting
Source: National Archives, Nixon Presidential Materials, NSC Files, NSC Institutional Files (H-Files), Box H–114, WSAG Minutes, Originals, 1969–1970. Secret; Sensitive. The meeting was held in the White House Situation Room.
263. Memorandum From Secretary of Defense Laird to President Nixon
Source: National Archives, Nixon Presidential Materials, NSC Files, Box 145, Vietnam Country Files, Vietnam, April 1, 1970. Top Secret; Sensitive; Eyes Only. On April 27 at 10:25 a.m., Laird telephoned Kissinger to complain about the WSAG being the implementing agency for NSDM 57. Kissinger suggested “coordinating” was a better word. Laird also told Kissinger that “regardless of what Wheeler tells you casualties will run at least as high as the iron triangle.” Laird did not want the President to blame him when they reached 800. Kissinger stated that the President said this was the price he would have to pay and he felt “we are on a slow bleeding course now.” At 1 p.m. on April 24, Kissinger called Laird to tell him the operations were being delayed for 24 hours. Laird admitted that he was not prepared for the meeting with the President on April 27 (see Document 261) and was surprised that the President was authorizing an attack against COSVN and the Parrot’s Beak as well as base 704. Kissinger replied, “I am getting restive that people are implying the President isn’t getting all the information.” (Transcript of telephone conversation between Kissinger and Laird, April 24; Library of Congress, Manuscript Division, Kissinger Papers, Box 363, Telephone Conversations, Chronological File)
264. Memorandum From the President’s Assistant for National Security Affairs (Kissinger) to President Nixon
Source: National Archives, Nixon Presidential Materials, White House Special Files, President’s Personal File, Box 58, Speech File, NSC, Ground Operations in Cambodia. Top Secret; Sensitive; Nodis. Sent for information.
265. Backchannel Message From the President’s Assistant for National Security Affairs (Kissinger) to the Ambassador to Vietnam (Bunker)
Source: National Archives, Nixon Presidential Materials, NSC Files, Box 84, Kissinger Office Files, Country Files—Far East, Cambodia (covert). Top Secret; Sensitive; Eyes Only.
266. Backchannel Message From the Ambassador to Vietnam (Bunker) to President Nixon
Source: National Archives, Nixon Presidential Materials, NSC Files, Box 410, Backchannel Messages, Southeast Asia, 1970. Top Secret; Sensitive; Eyes Only; Flash. Received at 2308Z in the White House Situation Room.
267. Memorandum of Meeting
Source: National Archives, Nixon Presidential Materials, White House Special Files, President’s Office Files, Box 3, Memorandum for the President, Beginning April 26, 1970. Top Secret; Sensitive. Kissinger describes this meeting in White House Years, p. 502, and prints it on p. 1485. On April 27 at 5:34 p.m., Kissinger told the President that it was Mitchell’s view that Laird and Rogers had to know that the President was considering the attack on COSVN, noting that Laird waylaid Mitchell and warned against it. Nixon asked if Kissinger had talked to anyone besides Mitchell. Kissinger replied he had talked to Helms and Wheeler who would support the move into the Parrot’s Beak. The President then stated that Rogers briefed him on his testimony before Fulbright: “One thing certainly happened: Rogers is selling the Parrot’s Beak to the Senators since we moved into the COSVN thing.” Kissinger agreed with the President that they would “take heat” for the decision. The President responded: “You take the heat if you don’t do anything. You take it for the Parrot’s Beak, COSVN. Rogers and Mansfield will attack us for COSVN. If we lose the whole thing, what will they say?” Kissinger replied that “Vietnamization is a failure.” Nixon replied: “We are not going to lose that way.” (Transcript of telephone conversation between Nixon and Kissinger, April 27; Library of Congress, Manuscript Division, Kissinger Papers, Box 363, Telephone Conversations, Chronological File)
268. Memorandum From John Holdridge of the Operations Staff of the National Security Council to the President’s Assistant for National Security Affairs (Kissinger)
Source: National Archives, Nixon Presidential Materials, NSC Files, Box 507, Country Files, Far East, Cambodia, Vol. IV, 24 April 1970–7 May 1970. Secret. Sent for information. Kissinger initialed this memorandum, and a stamped note reads: “HAK has seen.”
269. Notes of Washington Special Actions Group Meeting
Source: National Archives, Nixon Presidential Materials, NSC Files, NSC Institutional Files (H-Files), Box H–073, WSAG Meeting, Principals, 4/28/70. No classification marking. The notes were apparently handwritten by Kennedy of the NSC staff.
270. National Security Decision Memorandum 58
Source: National Archives, Nixon Presidential Materials, NSC Files, NSC Institutional Files (H-Files), Box H–073, WSAG Meeting, Principals, 4/28/70. Top Secret; Sensitive; Principals Only. A copy was sent to Wheeler.