Nixon White House Tapes › Tape 588 › Conversation 588-008

Nixon, Kissinger & Rogers on European Security Conference

Tuesday, October 12, 1971 · 11:59 AM–12:01 PM ET · Oval Office · 3 min

ParticipantsNixon, Richard M. (President); Kissinger, Henry A.; Rogers, William P.Conversation588-008 on Tape 588 (tape position 02:50:35–02:54:21)StartTuesday, October 12, 1971 at 11:59 AMEndTuesday, October 12, 1971 at 12:01 PMRecording deviceOval OfficeSourceNixon Library record for 588-008 ↗

AI Summary

President Nixon, Henry Kissinger, and William P. Rogers met to coordinate U.S. strategy regarding upcoming European diplomatic engagements and a potential summit. They agreed to maintain a cautious stance on the proposed European Security Conference to avoid granting concessions to the Soviets prematurely. Additionally, the group explored the feasibility of hosting a 'Big Four' summit including Japan, tasking John B. Connally with further development of the concept.

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 Do not cite it as authoritative — verify against the audio and the finding aid.

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okay now bill you keep the damn thing because you know we don't want that until after i know that's one thing we could agree on oh that's a great answer
Well, they want this very much.
Now, the Italian hit it with me, and I agree with you.
But I think we got it in good context.
First, we got it wrapped up early, and then we looked for it with our allies, and then you were in trouble with that.
But I think it's very important not to let our people go run off on a European security conference, because that's one of the little tidbits they want.
Do you agree?
Absolutely.
Absolutely.
But you see, we didn't cover that here.
Sure.
That's good.
Mr. President, one of the things here I might mention is the fact that when you and I talked about the possibility of a European summit, when I talked to the one Minister of Luxembourg, he's the chairman of the
That means all later guns.
All 10.
He said there's a possibility that there was some at Luxembourg sometime in January, early February.
And I said, well, we have no idea whether it would be interesting or not.
But it's a possibility.
You could go there one day and beat them all.
Well, there's that.
There's that.
The other thing we could consider, which I think we've got to keep sort of in the back of our minds, is that the British
The Italians, the Germans, and the French really want to be handled in a separate way.
Can I start a tangent?
uh and that's why i kept that you notice i volunteered that point that we were going to consult so that they would not feel but uh which i think could have very great significance
It's the possibility of having the big four with Japan.
Here in Las Vegas.
And they know what they're up to.
That'd be great.
Now, if you could work that out, you could work that shit.
Now, that ought to be done.
But, you see, the way I was doing it is to use the money for it.
If we could get Connelly to go, to get going, I haven't talked to him about this, they all know.
If we could get Connelly to talk to you about that.
I don't know what you're talking about.
I'm not saying anything.
No, no, no.
That's an excuse.
That's an excuse.
What do you think?
I think it's a good possibility.
But then, use it.
And then, again, you're talking about the maintenance.
Oh, yeah.
Oh, the monitor.
I believe that, sir.
It's ready to wrap up.

NARA Description

On October 12, 1971, President Richard M. Nixon, Henry A. Kissinger, and William P. Rogers met in the Oval Office of the White House from 11:59 am to 12:01 pm. The Oval Office taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 588-008 of the White House Tapes.

Nixon Library Finding Aid

Conversation No. 588-8

Date: October 12, 1971
Time: 11:59 am - 12:01 pm
Location: Oval Office

The President met with Henry A. Kissinger and William P. Rogers

     The President's schedule
          -Kissinger

     US foreign relations
          -Soviet-American relations
                -Berlin
                -European Security Conference
          -European Summit
                -Rogers's schedule
                      -Foreign Minister of Luxembourg
                      -Luxembourg as possible location
                      -Timing
               -Great Britain, Italy, Germany and France
          -Big Four Summit
               -Japan
               -The President's schedule
               -John B. Connally
          -Kissinger
The President, et al. left at 12:01 pm.

Also recorded on October 12, 1971

  • 011-060 11:19 AM · 19 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman talked on the telephone from 11:19 am to 11:20 am.
  • 288-021 11:19 AM · 1 min — President Richard M. Nixon and H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building from 11:19 am to 11:20 am.
  • 011-061 11:20 AM · 8 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 11:20 am and 1:32 pm.
  • 288-022 11:20 AM · 35 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Alexander P. Butterfield met in the President's office in the Old Executive Office Building at an unknown time between 11:20 am and 11:22 am.
  • 588-007 11:55 AM · 3 min — President Richard M. Nixon, Ronald L. Ziegler, Henry A. Kissinger, and Stephen B. Bull met in the Oval Office of the White House from 11:55 am to 11:58 am.
  • 078-006 12:01 PM · 50 min — President Richard M. Nixon, William P. Rogers, and bipartisan Congressional leaders, including Carl B. Albert, Leslie C. Arends, Gerald R. Ford, [Thomas] Hale Boggs, George H. Mahon, Dr. Thomas E. ("Doc") Morgan, Hugh Scott, Michael J. ("Mike") Mansfield, John C. Stennis, Allen J. Ellender, Milton R. Young, William E. Timmons, John A. Scali, Eugene S. Cowen, Clark MacGregor, Henry A. Kissinger, and Ronald L. Ziegler, met in the Cabinet Room of the White House from 12:01 pm to 12:54 pm.
  • 588-009 12:54 PM · 2 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Ronald L. Ziegler met in the Oval Office of the White House from 12:54 pm to 12:56 pm.
  • 588-010 12:56 PM · 27 sec — President Richard M. Nixon, Stephen B. Bull, and Ronald L. Ziegler met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 12:56 pm and 12:58 pm.

All 71 conversations from October 12, 1971 →

Cite this conversation

Conversation 588-008, October 12, 1971. White House Tapes, Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives. Audio and AI transcript via Easy Nixon, https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/588-008 (accessed September 28, 2026).