382–3

Conversation No. 382-3

Date: December 16, 1972
Time: 12:45 pm - 1:25 pm
Location: Executive Office Building

The President met with Ronald L. Ziegler, Henry A. Kissinger and Alexander M. Haig, Jr.

Vietnam War
-Henry A. Kissinger’s press conference
-Ziegler’s view
 -16-

NIXON PRESIDENTIAL LIBRARY AND MUSEUM

Tape Subject Log
(rev. June-08)

Conversation No. 382-3 (cont’d)

-Tone
-Settlement agreement
-Conditions
-Prisoners of War [POWs]
-No coalition government
-Cease-fire
-US withdrawal
-October 1972
-South Vietnam’s position
-The President’s position
-Signing
-North Vietnam’s position
-Decision
-Press relations
-Negotiations
-Linguistic changes
-Settlement agreement
-Conditions
-Question and answer [Q & A] session
-Wires
-Cease-fire
-Tone
-Kissinger’s “peace is at hand” comment, October 26, 1972
-Negotiations
-Status
-Progress
-Settlement agreement
-North Vietnam’s duplicity
-US military action
-US bombing of North Vietnam
-News reports [media and press relations]
-B-52s
-Reseeding mines
-Public Information Officers [PIOs]
-South Vietnam
-The President’s May 8, 1972 decision
-Prevention of enemy buildup and offensive
-Gen. Frederick C. Weyand
-Reseeding mines
-Press relations
 -17-

NIXON PRESIDENTIAL LIBRARY AND MUSEUM

Tape Subject Log
(rev. June-08)

Conversation No. 382-3 (cont’d)

-Settlement agreement
-The President’s May 8, 1972 decision
-US bombing north of 20th Parallel
-October 23, 1972
-B-52s
-Hanoi
-Haiphong
-The President’s May 8, 1972 decision
-Negotiations
-Defense Department
-State Department
-South Vietnam
-Kissinger’s press conference
-Press relations
-Telephone calls
-National Security Council [NSC]
-Follow-up stories

Ziegler left at 12:55 pm.

Vietnam negotiations
-The President’s letters
-Haig’s trip to Saigon
-Nguyen Van Thieu
-Notification
-The President’s letter
-Draft

An unknown man entered at an unknown time after 12:55 pm.

Refreshment

The unknown man left at an unknown time before 1:25 pm.

Vietnam negotiations
-Thieu
-The President’s letter
-Vice President Spiro T. Agnew’s trip
-Purpose
-Settlement agreement
 -18-

NIXON PRESIDENTIAL LIBRARY AND MUSEUM

Tape Subject Log
(rev. June-08)

Conversation No. 382-3 (cont’d)

-October and week of November 20, 1972
-Saigon radio
-North Vietnam
-Concessions
-Demands
-Kissinger’s press conference
-Press relations
-Comparison to US action in Cambodia and Laos
-Misleading US people
-“Peace is at hand”
-Thieu
-Agnew
-Settlement agreement
-The President’s intentions
-Guarantees
-Cease-fire
-Free elections
-Helen Thomas
-Peter Lisagor
-Timing
-Options
-Kissinger’s press conference
-Scale
-US public opinion
-Number of sorties
-Effect on North Vietnam
-North Vietnam’s delays
-Agnew
-William P. Rogers
-Melvin R. Laird
-Settlement agreement
-Duration
-B-52s
-Number
-Effect on North Vietnam
-Kissinger’s view
-Vietnamese intransigence
-Christmas pause
-Breakdown
-North Vietnam
 -19-

NIXON PRESIDENTIAL LIBRARY AND MUSEUM

Tape Subject Log
(rev. June-08)

Conversation No. 382-3 (cont’d)

-North Vietnam’s strategy
-Settlement agreement
-Timing
-1973 Inauguration
-US bombing north of 20th Parallel
-Duration
-Effect
-Christmas
-Possible North Vietnam message
-Settlement agreement
-Signing
-Targets
-Settlement agreement
-North Vietnam’s delays
-Number of sorties
-North Vietnam’s air defense
-Central Intelligence Agency [CIA]
-Surface to air missiles [SAMs]
-Transport
-Messages
-Ellsworth F. Bunker
-US domestic reaction
-Sophisticates
-Press relations
-Resumption of bombing
-PIOs
-North Vietnam
-Propaganda
-Kissinger’s message to North Vietnam
-US bombing
-Thanksgiving [November] understandings
-“Administrative structure”
-Demilitarized Zone [DMZ]
-US bombing north of 20th Parallel
-Moonshot analogy
-Public relations [PR]
-Cambodia invasion, the President’s May 8, 1972 decision
-Congressional relations
-Michael J. Mansfield, Charles H. Percy, Charles McC. Mathias
-Thieu
 -20-

NIXON PRESIDENTIAL LIBRARY AND MUSEUM

Tape Subject Log
(rev. June-08)

Conversation No. 382-3 (cont’d)

-Meeting with Haig
-Agnew’s trip
-Advisability
-The President’s meeting with Agnew
-Relations with US
-The President’s letters
-Ambassador briefings
-Saigon Radio
-Laird
-Options
-US bombing north of 20th Parallel
-Nuclear weapons
-Soviet Union
-People’s Republic of China [PRC]
-North Vietnam
-US bombing, mining
-North Vietnam’s offensives
-Vietnamization
-US withdrawal
-POWs
-George S. McGovernites
-Mansfield Amendment
-US bombing north of 20th Parallel
-Bilateral deal
-US interests
-US aid to South Vietnam
-Laos, Cambodia
-Settlement agreement
-Thieu’s survival
-South Vietnam
-Ambassador briefings in Paris
-Leaks to North Vietnam
-Congressional relations
-US military involvement
-Nguyen Phu Duc
-Bunker
-US withdrawal
-POWs
-US domestic reaction
-South Vietnam
 -21-

NIXON PRESIDENTIAL LIBRARY AND MUSEUM

Tape Subject Log
(rev. June-08)

Conversation No. 382-3 (cont’d)

-North Vietnamese troops in Cambodia, Laos
-PRC
-October 1972 agreement
-Effect
-Clauses
-DMZ
-Thieu
-Surprise
-Settlement agreement
-North Vietnam
-Delays
-Kissinger’s possible trip
-Effect
-US bombing
-Incentive
-Kissinger’s previous trips
-The President’s May 8, 1972 decision
-Status
-Soviet Union, PRC
-Kissinger’s message to the PRC
-Reply
-Forthcoming briefing
-Timing
-Florida
-Anatoliy F. Dobrynin
-Transcript of December 13, 1972 talks
-Tone
-Conversation with Kissinger
-The President’ possible action
-Timing
-Christmas
-Haig’s conversation with an unknown Chinese
-US bombing north of 20th Parallel
-“Doves”
-McGovern
-1972 election
-Congressional relations
-Thieu
-November 1972
-Kissinger’s press conference
 -22-

NIXON PRESIDENTIAL LIBRARY AND MUSEUM

Tape Subject Log
(rev. June-08)

Conversation No. 382-3 (cont’d)

-Press relations
-Tone

Haig and Kissinger left at 1:25 pm.