Nixon White House Tapes › Tape 324 › Conversation 324-039

Nixon & Haig on Bangladesh and Humanitarian aid

Wednesday, March 22, 1972 · 4:03 PM–5:00 PM ET · Old Executive Office Building · 56 sec

ParticipantsNixon, Richard M. (President); Haig, Alexander M., Jr.Conversation324-039 on Tape 324 (tape position 03:57:40–03:58:46)StartWednesday, March 22, 1972 at 4:03 PMEndWednesday, March 22, 1972 at 5:00 PMRecording deviceOld Executive Office BuildingSourceNixon Library record for 324-039 ↗

AI Summary

President Nixon and Alexander Haig review the United States' humanitarian aid strategy regarding the recently formed nation of Bangladesh. The discussion centers on the allocation and structure of $100 million in relief funds, specifically debating whether aid should be administered bilaterally or channeled through the United Nations. Nixon seeks clarification on the international perception of the American contribution following the recent conflict between India and Pakistan.

Audio

Download MP3 · 2.1 MB

Transcript (AI-generated)

This transcript is incomplete. The transcription skipped stretches of speech — roughly 1 minute of this recording (about 62% of it) is represented by only a few words. Listen to the audio rather than relying on the text below; a corrected transcript is queued.

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 Do not cite it as authoritative — verify against the audio and the finding aid.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

Do I understand that $100 million for the humanitarian relief has been bilateral?
In other words, or is that all we can do in the now?
What's the sense of the world?
Well, it says we have informed you on the end of our initial contribution to the humanitarian program.
What have we said in that respect to the world?
Thank you.

NARA Description

On March 22, 1972, President Richard M. Nixon and Alexander M. Haig, Jr. met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 4:03 pm and 5:00 pm. The Old Executive Office Building taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 324-039 of the White House Tapes.

Nixon Library Finding Aid

Conversation No. 324-39

Date: March 22, 1972
Time: Unknown between 4:03 pm and 5:00 pm
Location: Executive Office Building

The President talked with an unknown person [Alexander M. Haig, Jr.?].

     Bangladesh
          -Bilateral relief funds
                -United Nations [UN]
                -India-Pakistan War
                -Soviet Union

Also recorded on March 22, 1972

  • 324-035 3:29 PM · 35 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Rose Mary Woods met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 3:29 pm and 4:01 pm.
  • 324-036 3:29 PM · 14 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 3:29 pm and 4:01 pm.
  • 022-001 4:01 PM · 2 min — President Richard M. Nixon, White House operator, and Julie Nixon Eisenhower talked on the telephone from 4:01 pm to 4:03 pm.
  • 324-037 4:01 PM · 2 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Julie Nixon Eisenhower met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building from 4:01 pm to 4:03 pm.
  • 324-038 4:03 PM · 4 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and unknown person(s) met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 4:03 pm and 5:00 pm.
  • 324-040 4:03 PM · 44 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Alexander M. Haig, Jr. met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 4:03 pm and 5:00 pm.
  • 324-041 4:03 PM · 6 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 4:03 pm and 5:00 pm.
  • 324-042 4:03 PM · 18 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and John D. Ehrlichman met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 4:03 pm and 5:00 pm.

All 41 conversations from March 22, 1972 →

Cite this conversation

Conversation 324-039, March 22, 1972. White House Tapes, Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives. Audio and AI transcript via Easy Nixon, https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/324-039 (accessed October 3, 2026).