Nixon White House Tapes ›Tape 29 › Conversation 029-034

Nixon, Kissinger & Burns on Boris V. Petrovsky and U.S.-Soviet relations

Monday, August 7, 1972 · 4:34 PM–5:21 PM ET · White House Telephone ·2 min

ParticipantsKissinger, Henry A.;  Burns, Arthur F.;  Nixon, Richard M. (President)Conversation029-034 onTape 29StartMonday, August 7, 1972 at 4:34 PMEndMonday, August 7, 1972 at 5:21 PMRecording deviceWhite House TelephoneSourceNixon Library record for 029-034 ↗

AI Summary

President Nixon, Henry Kissinger, and Arthur Burns coordinated the scheduling of a meeting between the President and Soviet Minister of Health Boris V. Petrovsky. The discussion focused on aligning the arrival of the Soviet official from Los Angeles with the President's upcoming departure for Camp David. Kissinger ultimately confirmed that a 15-minute window would be secured for the meeting on Wednesday before Petrovsky's scheduled return to the Soviet Union.

Audio

Download MP3 · 2.6 MB

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 Do not cite it as authoritative — verify against the audio and the finding aid.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 · Click a timestamp to play from that point; the page address then links to that moment (e.g. #t=125).

I've been in the president's office to arrange this Petrovsky meeting and he was wondering whether by any chance he was here now
No, he will be only tomorrow.
He's now in Los Angeles.
When is he arriving?
I think something around 5 o'clock.
Because the president is going up to Camp David tomorrow late afternoon.
Late afternoon, and he will be... How long is he going to stay?
Huh?
How long is Petrovsky going to stay here?
He has to go back on Wednesday.
But he could stay for a good part of Wednesday, then?
You mean for the whole part?
Well, you see, the president may not come back in the morning.
Yes.
And...
He could be here, let's say, until 5 o'clock.
Oh, well, let me just check with the president.
Okay.
All right, we'll fix it up then.
Okay.
If we have until 5 o'clock, we'll find 15 minutes.
Yes, until 5, he will have a time.
All right, we'll find 15 minutes.
The president was just wondering if by chance Petrovsky were in town.
Then he would have asked you to bring him over.
But if he is tomorrow, it would be all right.
Well, no, I think the president is going to be going up to Camp David tomorrow afternoon.
Afternoon, yes.
Well, I think it's very nice of him to receive it.
Well, no, you can count on it.
Up to 5 o'clock it will go right.
No, the President said it's done.
It's just a question.
We'll give you the time tomorrow.
Tomorrow.
Thank you very much.
It will be Wednesday sometime.
Okay.
Good.
Thank you, Anatoly.
Thank you very much.
Bye-bye.

NARA Description

On August 7, 1972, Henry A. Kissinger, Arthur F. Burns, and President Richard M. Nixon talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 4:34 pm and 5:21 pm. The White House Telephone taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 029-034 of the White House Tapes.

Nixon Library Finding Aid

Conversation No. 29-34

                                        (rev. Mar-02)

Date: August 7, 1972
Time: Unknown between 4:34 pm and 5:21 pm
Location: White House Telephone

Henry A. Kissinger talked with Anatoliy F. Dobrynin.

[See Conversation No. 763-27/764-1B]

     Greetings

     The President's forthcoming meeting with Boris V. Petrovsky
          -Arrangements
                -Petrovsky's location
                      -Los Angeles
                      -Arrival in Washington, DC
                -The President's schedule
                      -Camp David
          -Petrovsky’s schedule
                -Return to the Soviet Union
                      -Timing

Kissinger conferred with the President at an unknown time between 4:34 pm and 5:21 pm.

     The President's forthcoming meeting with Petrovsky
          -Arrangements
          -The President's schedule
               -Camp David
          -Timing

Also recorded on August 7, 1972

  • 763-021 3:46 PM · 3 min — President Richard M. Nixon, Otto E. Passman, and William E. Timmons met in the Oval Office of the White House from 3:46 pm to 3:51 pm.
  • 763-023 3:51 PM · 20 min — President Richard M. Nixon, Peter M. Flanigan, and Stephen B. Bull met in the Oval Office of the White House from 3:51 pm to 4:12 pm.
  • 763-024 4:12 PM · 18 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and unknown person(s) met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 4:12 pm and 4:13 pm.
  • 763-025 4:13 PM · 8 min — President Richard M. Nixon, Alexander P. Butterfield, and unknown person(s) met in the Oval Office of the White House from 4:13 pm to 4:25 pm.
  • 763-026 4:25 PM · 20 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Henry A. Kissinger met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 4:25 pm and 4:33 pm.
  • 763-027 4:33 PM · 11 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and John D. Ehrlichman met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 4:33 pm and 4:34 pm.
  • 764-001 4:33 PM · 56 min — President Richard M. Nixon, John D. Ehrlichman, Henry A. Kissinger, White House operator, and Anatoliy F. Dobrynin met in the Oval Office of the White House from 4:33 pm to 5:21 pm.
  • 029-035 4:34 PM · 7 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 4:34 pm and 5:23 pm.

All 38 conversations from August 7, 1972 →

Cite this conversation

Conversation 029-034, August 7, 1972. White House Tapes, Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives. Audio and AI transcript via Easy Nixon, https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/029-034 (accessed September 18, 2026).