99. Editorial Note
On April 19, 1973, President Nixon, the President’s Assistant for National Security Affairs Henry Kissinger, Special Counselor to the President Leonard Garment, and White House Congressional Liaison William E. Timmons met with the following Jewish leaders in the Cabinet Room: Max M. Fisher, Jacob Stein, Richard Maass, Charlotte Jacobson, Al E. Arent, Rabbi Israel Miller], Herman Weisman, David M. Blumburg, Rabbi Arthur Hertzberg, Paul Zuckerman, Mel Dubinsky, Phillip Hoffman, William Wexler, Albert Spiegel, Jerry Goodman, and Yehuda Hellman. According to a tape recording of the meeting, Kissin [Page 320] ger read the message he had received from Dobrynin on March 30 (see Document 89) regarding Jewish emigration and the head tax: “Applications of Soviet citizens who wish to leave the USSR for permanent residence in other countries are considered. And decisions concerning such applications are made on an individual basis, taking account of concrete circumstances. As a rule, these requests are granted (which is an interesting statement). For example, with regard to persons who, in 1972, expressed a desire to go to Israel, permission was received by 95.5 percent of those who applied. A similar approach will be maintained in the future.” Kissinger continued: “As regards the refunding of state educational expenses by Soviet citizens leaving for permanent residence abroad [unclear interjection by Nixon] the decree of the Presidium of the USSR’s Supreme Soviet of August 3rd, 1972, and the decision taken in accordance with it by the USSR Council of Ministers, provides that Soviet citizens who receive permission to emigrate can be exempted fully from refunding the expenses mentioned above. Accordingly, Soviet authorities, in considering the applications of Soviet citizens wishing to emigrate, have the right to decide that only state duties normal in such cases be collected from such persons. The authorities are now exercising this right. Consequently, only such normal and insignificant duties, which were also collected before the decree of August 3rd, 1972, are being collected, and will be collected, from those persons who are leaving the Soviet Union for permanent residence in other countries.”
Kissinger then commented on the message, saying: “In other words, they are saying that they will not collect the head tax. When we received this, I transmitted it, of course to the President and he asked me to put a number of supplementary questions to Dobrynin. First, he said, is this an official communication, or just a personal expression? Second, how do we know that this is not just now—when they say it’s not being collected or will be collected—how do we know this doesn’t have a time limit on it? Thirdly, he said, does this mean the law is being repealed? And fourthly, he asked, can we communicate this to other people?” In response to these questions the Soviets sent a subsequent message on April 10 (see Documents 95 and 96). Kissinger read: “That in reply to certain supplementary questions, the Soviet Government provides the following information: A) the above statement—that is to say the one on March 30th—should be regarded as an official Soviet statement. Two, the phrase—or B) the phrase in that statement—‘that only such normal duties which were also collected before the decree of August 3rd, 1972 are being collected, and will be collected’—has no time limit attached to it, and any interpretation implying the existence of a time limit, does not correspond to the position of the Soviet Government.” After a brief interjection by the President, Kissinger continued: “C) the exemption from the requirement to refund state educational expenses is being granted on the basis of the terms of the decree [Page 321] of August 3rd, 1972, itself, and on the subsequent decision taken in accordance with that the decree by the USSR Council of Ministers. In the Soviet view, this situation obviates the need for repealing the decree of August 3rd.”
Kissinger provided commentary on the second message: “In other words, the decree makes it possible for them to suspend the requirement to refund state educational expenses. So it’s a face-saving—Mr. President, it’s a face-saving formula of saying they’re not going to repeal the law, but they said the exemption from the requirement to refund state educational expenses is being granted on the basis of the law.”
After some discussion among the group, Nixon responded: “What they are saying is that their law of August is still in force—in force—but that the law expressly provides for exemption, and their action in providing for exemption here is consistent with the law. The law remains, but, actually, under that law, we get an exemption. And that’s it. That’s really what you’re getting here, and I think that’s the face-saver.”
Kissinger continued reading the message: “D) then is just a technical point: ‘The President is free to transmit the contents of the official Soviet statement, as well as of these additional explanatory points to the Congress.’”
Kissinger commented on the communication: “So, this, therefore, has a high degree of formality attached to it. These are the communications which, in our judgment, effectively restore the situation to what it was on August 1st, 1972, so that then—now our problem is this: do we use the MFN legislation, which has—we’ve already used effectively to get the head tax repealed—to attach additional riders to it, and, therefore, sabotage the whole context of the negotiations into which this was built, including Soviet restraint in the Middle East? Or, do we go back to what was the original approach: namely, steady Presidential pressure, in his channel, on the Soviet Government to help improve the situation, as it was on August 1st, 1972, which we’re not declaring to be satisfactory. This is the issue which we now face, and this is why we have made such a strong case—”
Nixon briefly reflected on what the message meant in regard to MFN and the Jackson Amendment. He then concluded: “If the Jackson Amendment is passed, you know, with a straight-out declaration that makes the Soviet back down before the whole world on this thing that it would seriously jeopardize the possibility of going forward with the meetings we’re going to have.” The tape recording of the conversation is in the National Archives, Nixon Presidential Materials, White House Tapes, Cabinet Room, Conversation No. 123–1. The editor transcribed the portion of the conversation printed here specifically for this volume.
[Page 322]The hour-long meeting, after which the Jewish leaders issued a statement, was reported in The New York Times. (“Nixon Tells Jewish Leaders Soviet Union Has Ended Exit Tax,” April 20, 1973)