Nixon White House Tapes — Conversation 004-003
Date: Tuesday, June 1, 1971 at 6:28 PM
Participants: Nixon, Richard M. (President); Kissinger, Henry A.
Recording device: White House Telephone
Source: https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/004-003

This transcript was generated automatically by AI (WhisperX) and has not been reviewed for accuracy. Do not cite it as authoritative.

[0:00] Yeah.
[0:01] Dr. Kissinger, Mr. President.
[0:02] Yeah.
[0:07] Hello.
[0:07] Mr. President.
[0:08] Yeah, Henry, what is the on-the-salt thing?
[0:12] I was wondering about what precisely should be said.
[0:15] I think I should indicate that I probably should use the date January 8th.
[0:20] 9th is actually the correct date.
[0:22] But what do we what do we put out if we put that date out?
[0:25] Yeah in all the corrected versions.
[0:27] Yeah all right on January 9th I sent a message to the Soviet leaders.
[0:31] Fine right and what do I say the message such that
[0:36] I wouldn't go into any greater detail, which led to the...
[0:40] Which led to the announcement on May 20th.
[0:41] Well, that will... say which led to an exchange which produced the announcement.
[0:48] I would make sure that you'd get in there somewhere that the Soviets also made a major contribution in this discussion.
[1:04] And we describe it as, let me just, because I think it's well to get the description again, what can we say in the simplest terms?
[1:14] Well, a communication with my ideas of how to break the deadlock.
[1:18] No, no, no, no, no, no, no.
[1:19] No, as to what we agreed.
[1:21] What we agreed was that there would be... That we would concentrate this year.
[1:28] Well, I wouldn't emphasize we would concentrate, that we would...
[1:32] That's what it says.
[1:35] I know, but that we'd work on ABM and that there would be simultaneously some agreement on offensive limitations.
[1:48] On some agreement on offensive limitations.
[1:51] Then they will ask you if the agreement on offensive limitations is going to be less formal.
[1:57] Oh, that's a matter for negotiation.
[1:58] I say it's a matter for negotiation, but if you wanted to expand, you could say...
[2:03] The difference is that ABM covers the whole field, while offensive ones leave some matters out, and therefore...
[2:10] I'm afraid to get into that.
[2:11] Okay.
[2:12] I don't think we better go beyond that.
[2:14] Okay.
[2:14] That can be done in background.
[2:16] I've done that in background.
[2:17] It's just a question of how much detail.
[2:19] Okay, thanks.
[2:20] Right.