Nixon White House Tapes — Conversation 153-022
Date: Tuesday, November 14, 1972 at 3:11 PM
Participants: Nixon, Richard M. (President); Kissinger, Henry A.
Recording device: Camp David Study Table
Source: https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/153-022

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 Do not cite it as authoritative.

[0:00] Hello?
[0:02] Mr. President?
[0:04] Sorry to disturb you, but Dobrynin is leaving at 3.30.
[0:09] And I raised this suggestion of Patricia and her son-in-law.
[0:15] There won't be an official delegation from us for his anniversary.
[0:21] But he said that if you wanted to, he would be very glad to raise...
[0:28] the possibility of a visit for them on an unofficial basis with Brezhnev when he's going there?
[0:36] If they'd be interested in going and he's certain that they'd be very well received?
[0:41] Well, we don't want to put it on the basis of a sort of a state kind of a thing.
[0:46] Oh, no, it wouldn't be unofficial.
[0:48] But you might just tell him that their Kennedy plans are sometime in December to be in
[0:57] four or five European capitals, and they thought they might like to go to, perhaps, Moscow and Leningrad.
[1:06] And we don't want anything—we don't want them to feel any obligations and the rest, but we just thought I'd put it sort of low-key that they were going to make the trip and that they could pay their respects or something of that sort, put it on that basis.
[1:24] How does that sound to you?
[1:26] Sounds very good.
[1:26] And I have the impression that they are anxious to do that.
[1:28] Sure.
[1:29] Good.
[1:30] Good.
[1:31] But he thought it would be best if he could talk it over personally with Breschner so that it is... Oh, sure, sure.
[1:36] Put it on the basis that we don't want anything official.
[1:39] We just want to inform him as a matter of courtesy that they might come and actually they...
[1:47] I'm not asking that they lay on anything special, but that we'll let them know the dates and so forth.
[1:53] because they couldn't travel over there without their own knowing anyway.
[1:56] Right.
[1:56] Would they be alone or would they be having—because they'd have some secret service?
[2:01] They're just alone, but very minimal secret service.
[2:05] They don't need much.
[2:07] They'd be traveling commercial airlines, too.
[2:10] Right.
[2:10] And they'd just be traveling commercially and staying there.
[2:14] They probably would stay in the embassy.
[2:16] I'm sure they'll do anything there.
[2:18] Yeah.
[2:19] But that'll be fine.
[2:20] That'll be fine.
[2:23] looking at this letter to you at the present time.
[2:29] Right.
[2:29] But if I could have you used by 5.30 or 6.
[2:33] All right.
[2:33] And we have to get it out.
[2:35] Fine, fine.
[2:36] To catch the deadline of it.
[2:37] We'll get that off.
[2:38] Now, the other thing is that I think that I told Bob that I want Ziegler up here to do the announcement of the Friday
[2:52] So I think that'll be much better than for him to do it down there where it's sort of by remote control.
[2:59] And so it's possible that you might like to either come up Friday morning or come up Thursday night and Ziegler goes out.
[3:06] And I'm going to have him up so that he can go out.
[3:09] We have set up a trailer, a big trailer,
[3:13] out here anyway for a briefing room for the press.
[3:16] So Ziegler can go out and they've got telephones and everything.
[3:20] We are building this as sort of an office now so people when I come here I can work and they won't feel I'm on vacation.
[3:29] So that's what we're doing.
[3:31] I think the idea of having Ziegler make the announcement is right.
[3:34] But he does it from here, which also has a certain aura, too, from Camp David.
[3:39] Well, then I'll come either Thursday night or Friday morning.
[3:43] You can work it out, you know, because Ziegler will not brief till 11 o'clock at any minute.
[3:46] Right, right.
[3:47] Okay.
[3:48] And then we can play, and I'll talk to you then.
[3:50] Right, right.
[3:52] Right.
[3:52] Okay, nothing else, no?
[3:54] No, nothing.
[3:54] Bye, bye.
[3:55] Nothing else.