Nixon White House Tapes › Tape 11 › Conversation 011-066
Kissinger & Richardson on Nguyen Van Thieu and South Vietnam
Tuesday, October 12, 1971 · 1:59 PM–9:07 PM ET · White House Telephone · 2 min
AI Summary
Henry Kissinger contacts Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare Elliot Richardson to request that he attend the upcoming inauguration of South Vietnamese President Nguyen Van Thieu as the President's personal representative. Kissinger argues that Richardson’s presence would signal a focus on peaceful development and humanitarian aid, intentionally opting for a less hawkish diplomatic profile than Secretary of Defense Melvin Laird. Richardson expresses willingness to accept the assignment, pending a brief review of his schedule and congressional commitments.
Audio
Transcript (AI-generated)
This transcript was generated automatically by AI (WhisperX) and has not been reviewed for accuracy. Names and numbers are often wrong; speakers are not identified. Do not cite it as authoritative — verify against the audio and the finding aid.
Download transcript (.txt) · JSON data
Each line starts with a timestamp button; press it to play the audio from that point.
NARA Description
On October 12, 1971, Henry A. Kissinger and Elliot L. Richardson talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 1:59 pm and 9:07 pm. The White House Telephone taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 011-066 of the White House Tapes.
Nixon Library Finding Aid
Conversation No. 011-066
Date: October 12, 1971
Time: Unknown between 1:59 pm and 9:07 pm
Location: White House Telephone
Henry A. Kissinger talked with Elliot L. Richardson.
[See Conversation No. 589-2B]
Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, NARA Online Public Access Catalog Identifier: 597542
Nguyen Van Thieu's inauguration
-Richardson's schedule
-Melvin R. Laird
-TimingAlso recorded on October 12, 1971
- 588-013 1:43 PM · 23 sec — Rose Mary Woods and unknown person(s) met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 1:43 pm and 1:55 pm.
- 588-014 1:43 PM · 30 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and unknown person(s) met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 1:43 pm and 1:55 pm.
- 011-064 1:55 PM · 4 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Charles W. Colson talked on the telephone from 1:55 pm to 1:59 pm.
- 588-018 1:55 PM · 25 min — President Richard M. Nixon, Charles W. Colson, Henry A. Kissinger, and Ronald L. Ziegler met in the Oval Office of the White House from 1:55 pm to 1:59 pm.
- 011-065 1:59 PM · 8 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 1:59 pm and 9:07 pm.
- 011-067 1:59 PM · 11 sec — Henry A. Kissinger and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 1:59 pm and 9:07 pm.
- 011-068 1:59 PM · 21 sec — the White House operator and Henry A. Kissinger talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 1:59 pm and 9:07 pm.
- 011-069 1:59 PM · 6 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 1:59 pm and 9:07 pm.
Cite this conversation
Conversation 011-066, October 12, 1971. White House Tapes, Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives. Audio and AI transcript via Easy Nixon, https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/011-066 (accessed September 24, 2026).