The Rising Price of Oil, October 1975–January 1977


86. Telegram From the Embassy in the Soviet Union to the Department of State

Source: National Archives, RG 59, Central Foreign Policy Files, P840083–1118. Secret; Immediate; Nodis; Cherokee.


87. Telegram From the Department of State to Secretary of State Kissinger in Tokyo

Source: National Archives, RG 59, Central Foreign Policy Files, D750367–0849. Secret; Immediate; Stadis. Drafted by Enders, Boeker, and Preeg and approved by Enders. Repeated Immediate to Paris.


88. Minutes of the Rambouillet Economic Summit Meeting

Source: Ford Library, National Security Adviser, Memoranda of Conversations, Box 16. Secret; Nodis. This is the record of the third session of the Economic Summit held November 15–17 in the Chateau de Rambouillet, about 30 miles outside of Paris. The memoranda of conversation of the first, second, and fourth sessions, which took place on November 15, November 16 at 10:45 a.m., and November 17 at 10 a.m., respectively, are ibid. All the memoranda of conversation are printed in Foreign Relations, 1969–1976, volume XXXI, Foreign Economic Policy, 1973–1976, Documents 122125. A list of participants at the Summit is in the memorandum of conversation of the first session.


89. Memorandum From the President’s Assistant for National Security Affairs (Scowcroft) to President Ford

Source: Ford Library, National Security Adviser, Presidential Subject File, Box 4, Energy (10). Secret. A stamped notation on the first page reads: “The President has seen.”


91. Telegram From the Department of State to Selected Diplomatic Posts

Source: National Archives, RG 59, Central Foreign Policy Files, D750451–0625. Confidential; Priority. Drafted by Raicht; cleared by Katz, Preeg, and Phillip Trimble (L/EB); and approved by Enders. Sent to Ankara, Bern, Bonn, Brussels, Copenhagen, Dublin, London, Luxembourg, Madrid, Oslo, Ottawa, Rome Stockholm, The Hague, Tokyo, Vienna, Wellington, and USOECD Paris. Repeated Priority to USEC Brussels.


92. Memorandum From the Administrator of the Federal Energy Administration (Zarb) to President Ford

Source: Ford Library, National Security Adviser, NSC Middle East and South Asian Affairs Staff: Convenience Files, Box 7, Iran—Oil. Secret.


93. National Security Study Memorandum 237/Council on International Economic Policy Study Memorandum 38

Source: Ford Library, National Security Council, Institutional Files, Box 41, NSSM 237—International Energy Policy (1). Secret; Sensitive.


94. Memorandum From the President’s Assistant for National Security Affairs (Scowcroft) to President Ford

Source: Ford Library, National Security Adviser, Presidential Subject File, Box 4, Energy (10). Secret; Sensitive. A stamped notation on the first page reads: “The President has seen.” Ford initialed the memorandum.


95. Memorandum of Conversation

Source: National Archives, RG 59, Central Foreign Policy Files, P770092–0067. Secret; Sensitive.


96. Memorandum of Conversation

Source: National Archives, RG 59, Records of Henry Kissinger, Lot 91D414, Box 16, Classified External Memoranda of Conversations, March, 1976. Confidential; Nodis. Drafted by Poats. This lunchtime meeting continued a discussion that had begun at noon without Zarb and Scowcroft. The group met again for dinner at 8:30 p.m. with the addition of Atherton and Ellsworth. Between his lunch and dinner meetings, from 4:34 to 5:18 p.m., Ansary met with President Ford in the Oval Office, during which Kissinger briefed the President on their progress regarding a bilateral oil deal. Ford assured Ansary that his “interest” was “for something being done.” The memoranda of conversation of all three of these March 29 meetings are printed in Foreign Relations, 1969–1976, volume XXVII, Iran; Iraq, 1973–1976, Documents 168170.


97. Summary Paper Prepared by Robert Hormats and Robert Oakley of the National Security Council Staff

Source: Ford Library, National Security Adviser, Presidential Subject File, Box 4, Energy (12). Secret; Nodis. Attached to an April 16 memorandum from Hormats to Scowcroft, which explains that the paper summarizes an updated version (“earlier this week”) of “a broader contingency study done a year ago.” Hormats wrote: “Greenspan, Zarb, and I have been meeting periodically on the issue of contingency planning for a Middle East embargo. At this point, Greenspan feels extremely uneasy about the degree of preparedness in the US, particularly on measures to be taken to reduce the impact of an embargo.” The updated contingency study is Tab B of Hormats’s memorandum. Tab A is a memorandum from Hormats and Oakley summarizing the broader contingency study that had been done a year earlier. Regarding the earlier study, see Document 34.


98. Telegram From the Department of State to Secretary of State Kissinger in Oslo

Source: National Archives, RG 59, Central Foreign Policy Files, D760199–1131. Confidential; Immediate. Drafted by Sorenson; cleared by Robinson, Katz, and Sober and in AF, EA, S, and ARA; and approved by Rogers. Kissinger was in Oslo for a meeting of NATO Foreign Ministers.


99. Memorandum From Robert Hormats of the National Security Council Staff to the President’s Assistant for National Security Affairs (Scowcroft)

Source: Ford Library, National Security Council, Institutional Files, Box 41, NSSM 237—U.S. International Energy Policy (1). Secret. Sent for information.


100. Briefing Memorandum From the Acting Assistant Secretary of State for Economic and Business Affairs (Katz) to Secretary of State Kissinger

Source: National Archives, RG 59, Central Foreign Policy Files, P760114–1151. Confidential. Drafted by D.S. Wilson (EB/ORF/FSE) and cleared by Raicht.


101. Memorandum by Robert Hormats of the National Security Council Staff

Source: Ford Library, National Security Council, Institutional Files, Box 41, NSSM 237—U.S. International Energy Policy (1). Secret.


102. Memorandum From Robert Hormats of the National Security Council Staff to the President’s Assistant for National Security Affairs (Scowcroft)

Source: Ford Library, National Security Council, Institutional Files, Box 41, NSSM 237—U.S. International Energy Policy (1). Secret; Eyes Only. Sent for information.


103. Memorandum From Robert Hormats of the National Security Council Staff to the President’s Assistant for National Security Affairs (Scowcroft)

Source: Ford Library, National Security Adviser, Presidential Subject File, Box 5, Energy (15). Secret. Sent for action.


104. Memorandum From the Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for International Resources and Food Policy (Bosworth) to Robert Hormats of the National Security Council Staff

Source: Ford Library, National Security Council, Institutional Files, Box 41, NSSM 237—U.S. International Energy Policy (2). Secret. Drafted by Creekmore on September 29. Also sent to the other members of the interagency working group drafting the NSSM 237 study. NSSM 237 is Document 93.


105. Telegram From the Department of State to Selected Diplomatic Posts

Source: National Archives, RG 59, Central Foreign Policy Files, D760401–0400. Confidential; Immediate. Drafted by Raicht; cleared by Bosworth and in EUR/RPE, the Treasury Department, and FEA; and approved by Katz. Sent to Ankara, Athens, Bern, Bonn, Brussels for the Embassy and USEC, Copenhagen, Dublin, London, Luxembourg, Madrid, Oslo, Ottawa, USOECD Paris, Rome, Stockholm, The Hague, Tokyo, Vienna, and Wellington. Repeated to the Embassy in Paris.


106. Memorandum From the President’s Assistant for National Security Affairs (Scowcroft) to President Ford

Source: Ford Library, National Security Adviser, Presidential Subject File, Box 5, Energy (17). Secret. Sent for action. A stamped notation on the first page reads: “The President has seen.”


107. Telegram From the Mission to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development to the Department of State

Source: National Archives, RG 59, Central Foreign Policy Files, D760404–0665. Unclassified; Priority. Repeated to all OECD capitals, Algiers, Jidda, Buenos Aires, Brasilia, Yaounde, New Delhi, Jakarta, Baghdad, Tehran, Kingston, Mexico City, Lagos, Islamabad, Lima, Cairo, Caracas, Belgrade, Lusaka, Kinshasa, and USUN.


108. Memorandum of Conversation

Source: Library of Congress, Manuscript Division, Kissinger Papers, Box CL 180, Geopolitical File, Middle East. Secret; Sensitive; Nodis.


109. Memorandum of Conversation

Source: National Archives, RG 59, Central Foreign Policy Files, P820118–1904. Secret; Nodis. Drafted by Bosworth on November 19. The meeting was held in the Secretary’s office.


110. Letter From President Ford to Venezuelan President Pérez

Source: Ford Library, National Security Adviser, Presidential Correspondence with Foreign Leaders, Box 5, Venezuela—President Carlos A. Pérez. Secret. Similar letters were sent to King Khalid and the Shah on October 29. (Both ibid., NSC International Economic Affairs Staff: Convenience Files, Box 5, OPEC (1)) Telegram 275886 to Caracas, November 9, instructed the Ambassador to inform either the President or the Foreign Minister that similar “démarches” were being made to Saudi Arabia and Iran. (National Archives, RG 59, Central Foreign Policy Files, P840105–0533)


111. Memorandum of Conversation

Source: Ford Library, National Security Adviser, Memoranda of Conversations, Box 21. Secret; Nodis. The meeting was held in the Oval Office. Brackets are in the original. Ford met again with Alireza on December 14 to discuss OPEC’s consideration of an oil price rise at its Doha meeting scheduled for December 15. (Ibid.)


112. Memorandum of Conversation

Source: Ford Library, National Security Adviser, Memoranda of Conversations, Box 21. Secret; Nodis. The meeting was held in the Oval Office. Brackets are in the original.


113. Telegram From the Department of State to All Diplomatic Posts

Source: National Archives, RG 59, Central Foreign Policy Files, D760469–1220. Confidential; Priority. Drafted by David H. Vance (INR/REC), cleared by Creekmore and in INR/RNA, and approved by the Director of INR/REC. Also sent Priority to Toronto, Hamburg, Munich, Frankfurt, Milan, Marseille, Bombay, Melbourne, and Sydney.


114. Letter From President Ford to Saudi King Khalid

Source: Ford Library, National Security Adviser, Presidential Correspondence with Foreign Leaders, Box 4, Saudi Arabia—King Khalid. No classification marking. Ford sent a similar letter to UAE President Zayed on the same day. (Ibid., United Arab Emirates—President Zayid bin Sultan al-Nuhayan) Scowcroft informed Ford in a December 29 memorandum that the Department of State recommended sending the letters. Scowcroft concurred with the recommendation, noting: “This would be both a useful political gesture, wrapping up the efforts we made to help the moderates hold the line at the Doha meeting, and a further vehicle for reassuring both leaders of our respect and admiration for the decision they took against the majority vote of OPEC.” (Ibid., NSC Middle East and South Asian Affairs Staff: Convenience Files, Box 36, Middle East—Oil (7))


115. Briefing Memorandum From the Assistant Secretary of State for Economic and Business Affairs (Katz) to Secretary of State Kissinger

Source: National Archives, RG 59, Central Foreign Policy Files, P770013–0590. Confidential. Drafted by Creekmore on December 30.