Nixon White House Tapes › Tape 31 › Conversation 031-112

Nixon phone call with Haig on Vietnam War and Henry Kissinger

Tuesday, October 17, 1972 · 8:37 PM–8:40 PM ET · White House Telephone · 3 min

ParticipantsNixon, Richard M. (President); Haig, Alexander M., Jr.Conversation031-112 on Tape 31StartTuesday, October 17, 1972 at 8:37 PMEndTuesday, October 17, 1972 at 8:40 PMRecording deviceWhite House TelephoneSourceNixon Library record for 031-112 ↗

AI Summary

President Nixon and Alexander Haig discuss updates from Henry Kissinger regarding the ongoing Vietnam peace negotiations, specifically focusing on the status of proposed language and the logistics of a potential Hanoi trip. The President explicitly directs that there will be no bombing halt, and they review current military maneuvers involving increased air power around Saigon. Additionally, they discuss political developments in South Vietnam, noting the South Vietnamese assembly's move to unify in support of President Nguyen Van Thieu.

Audio

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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 Do not cite it as authoritative — verify against the audio and the finding aid.

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· Click a timestamp to play from that point; the page address then links to that moment (e.g. #t=125).
President General Haig.
General Haig calling, sir.
Thank you.
Hello, Haig, sir.
I've got my first flash message from Henry.
He sent me the more detailed one.
It should be here in a moment.
In fact, he inferred that one of the two substantive changes we wanted in the paragraph that when Sullivan saw the
to a surrender document, as one can conceive, and recommends no changes in it.
We fell off the board with it fixed.
He's very concerned that we not let Rogers get too anxious about setting up the International Mission machinery.
Oh, God, of course.
And he said he'll explain in the follow-up to Cable why it's highly unlikely to have an agreed text on the present schedule.
More round is almost surely required, which I think is good.
That's encouraging to me.
Would the Hanoi trip then as well?
I think so.
He said, if I do not make last leg of trip, we have a problem due to our discussions with the other side on bombing hall, because I had hit it very hard on that.
Not going to be any bombing hall?
Well, I've gone back to him and said that that's just a titty as far as they're concerned, that
the pressure on them, and it would never be understood here unless it was dried up in a sea ice of an immediate settlement.
No bombing hull.
Right.
So I've gone back to that man and told him to do a no-condition suction very strongly.
So we'll have another more detailed message here shortly, sir.
I don't think anything is going to be taped.
I think this little delay is just fine.
It works in well in terms of Q.
And now on the other thing, are we doing an adequate job of using air power against this stuff in Saigon, are you?
Well, yes.
We've shifted down a little in the north.
Oh, in the north.
Hit this stuff around Saigon.
That's right.
And that's what they're doing.
They've put 52 all around Saigon.
And they aren't
out the South Vietnamese.
They are also, today, their Congress, their assembly, they're in a great state of concern, and they're all starting to kneel together to break up the factions and to join and support Chew.
They think he's going to be sitting down, you see.
Oh, and serving to unify behind Chew.
That's right.
That may be helpful.
That's right.
Okay, well, good.
All right, sir.
I won't bother you with this next one unless this is... No, I don't really need to see the next one.
He's going to go out there and we can discuss in the morning, okay?
Fine, sir.

NARA Description

On October 17, 1972, President Richard M. Nixon and Alexander M. Haig, Jr. talked on the telephone from 8:37 pm to 8:40 pm. The White House Telephone taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 031-112 of the White House Tapes.

Nixon Library Finding Aid

Conversation No. 31-112

Date: October 17, 1972
Time: 8:37 pm - 8:40 pm
Location: White House Telephone

Alexander M. Haig, Jr. talked with the President.

[See Conversation No. 368-16]

        Vietnam peace settlement
            -Henry A. Kissinger’s message
            -Proposed wording
                 -William H. Sullivan’s view
            -International commission
                 -William P. Rogers’s role
            -Kissinger’s prediction
            -Kissinger’s possible trip to Hanoi
            -Possible US bombing halt
                 -The President’s view
            -Forthcoming message from Kissinger
            -Status
                 -Nguyen Van Thieu
            -US military action
                 -North Vietnam
                 -Saigon area
            -South Vietnamese assembly
                 -Support for Thieu

Also recorded on October 18, 1972

  • 031-110 8:08 PM · 35 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman talked on the telephone from 8:08 pm to 8:09 pm.
  • 368-013 8:09 PM · 13 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Manolo Sanchez met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 8:09 pm and 8:37 pm.
  • 031-111 8:19 PM · 34 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Stephen B. Bull talked on the telephone from 8:19 pm to 8:20 pm.
  • 368-014 8:19 PM · 33 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Stephen B. Bull met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building from 8:19 pm to 8:20 pm.
  • 368-015 8:20 PM · 14 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Manolo Sanchez met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 8:20 pm and 8:37 pm.
  • 368-016 8:37 PM · 3 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Alexander M. Haig, Jr. met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building from 8:37 pm to 8:40 pm.
  • 369-001 8:40 PM · 14 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Manolo Sanchez met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 8:40 pm and 9:01 pm.
  • 369-002 8:40 PM · 13 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Manolo Sanchez met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 8:40 pm and 9:01 pm.

All 86 conversations from October 18, 1972 →

Cite this conversation

Conversation 031-112, October 18, 1972. White House Tapes, Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives. Audio and AI transcript via Easy Nixon, https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/031-112 (accessed October 10, 2026).