Nixon White House Tapes ›Tape 190 › Conversation 190-020

Nixon, Dobrynin & Kissinger on U.S.-Soviet relations and 1972 Moscow Summit

Wednesday, May 17, 1972 · 8:44 AM–9:50 AM ET · Camp David Hard Wire

ParticipantsNixon, Richard M. (President);  Dobrynin, Anatoliy F.;  Kissinger, Henry A.Conversation190-020 onTape 190 (tape position 01:24:42–01:54:23)StartWednesday, May 17, 1972 at 8:44 AMEndWednesday, May 17, 1972 at 9:50 AMRecording deviceCamp David Hard WireSourceNixon Library record for 190-020 ↗

AI Summary

President Nixon, Soviet Ambassador Anatoliy Dobrynin, and National Security Advisor Henry Kissinger met at Camp David to conduct high-level diplomatic discussions shortly before the 1972 Moscow Summit. The meeting served as a final preparation phase to address outstanding bilateral issues and stabilize U.S.-Soviet relations ahead of the President's upcoming state visit. Although the specific dialogue remains largely inaccessible due to recording gaps, the session functioned as a critical venue for managing the strategic agenda between the two superpowers.

Audio

Download MP3 · 106.1 MB

This conversation has not yet been cut into its own clip, so the player above contains the full tape segment shared with neighbouring conversations. It begins about 01:24:42 into the tape and ends around 01:54:23.

Transcript (AI-generated)

No transcript is available yet for this conversation. The recording may contain no audible speech, or it may not have been processed.

NARA Description

On May 17, 1972, President Richard M. Nixon, Anatoliy F. Dobrynin, and Henry A. Kissinger met in the Aspen Lodge study at Camp David from 8:44 am to 9:50 am. The Camp David Hard Wire taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 190-020 of the White House Tapes.

Nixon Library Finding Aid

Conversation No. 190-20

Date: May 18, 1972
Time: 8:44-9:50 am
Location: Camp David Hard Wire

The President met with Anatoliy F. Dobrynin and Henry A. Kissinger.

[Discontinuities appear in the original recording]

       [Unintelligible]

The President, Dobrynin, and Kissinger left at 9:50 am.

Also recorded on May 17, 1972

  • 131-022 7:50 AM · 30 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Camp David operator talked on the telephone at Camp David at 7:50 am.
  • 190-014 7:50 AM · 2 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Camp David operator met in the Aspen Lodge study at Camp David at 7:50 am.
  • 190-017 7:59 AM · 4 min — President Richard M. Nixon and H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman met in the Aspen Lodge study at Camp David at an unknown time between 7:59 am and 8:05 am.
  • 190-018 8:05 AM · 5 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Henry A. Kissinger met in the Aspen Lodge study at Camp David at an unknown time between 8:05 am and 8:44 am.
  • 190-019 8:05 AM · 16 min — President Richard M. Nixon and H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman met in the Aspen Lodge study at Camp David at an unknown time between 8:05 am and 8:44 am.
  • 189-001 9:14 AM · 8 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Charles W. Colson met in the Aspen Lodge study at Camp David from 9:14 am to 9:33 am.
  • 189-002 9:33 AM · 4 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Camp David operator met in the Aspen Lodge study at Camp David at an unknown time between 9:33 am and 9:34 am.
  • 189-003 9:34 AM · 6 min — President Richard M. Nixon and John B. Connally met in the Aspen Lodge study at Camp David from 9:34 am to 9:41 am.

All 63 conversations from May 17, 1972 →

Cite this conversation

Conversation 190-020, May 17, 1972. White House Tapes, Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives. Audio and AI transcript via Easy Nixon, https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/190-020 (accessed September 18, 2026).