Nixon White House Tapes › Tape 613 › Conversation 613-017

Nixon & Ziegler on Indira Gandhi and Refugee crisis

Thursday, November 4, 1971 · 12:37 PM–12:40 PM ET · Oval Office · 1 min

ParticipantsNixon, Richard M. (President); Ziegler, Ronald L.Conversation613-017 on Tape 613 (tape position 06:34:51–06:35:52)StartThursday, November 4, 1971 at 12:37 PMEndThursday, November 4, 1971 at 12:40 PMRecording deviceOval OfficeSourceNixon Library record for 613-017 ↗

President Nixon and Press Secretary Ronald L. Ziegler coordinated the administration's public messaging following the President's meeting with Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi. The discussion focused on drafting a press statement that would emphasize American accountability regarding the refugee crisis and signal a commitment to avoiding military conflict. They also evaluated how to address geopolitical tensions involving Pakistani President Agha Muhammad Yahya Khan and potential public statements from Gandhi.

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This transcript is incomplete. The transcription skipped stretches of speech — roughly 1 minute of this recording (about 82% 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.

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We were uh...
I'm proud of the desire in the United States to be held accountable for refugee problems.
It's very, very possible to avoid a combat.
I think we've already had a chance to ask you to .
I didn't want to say why, because that's the whole point.

On November 4, 1971, President Richard M. Nixon and Ronald L. Ziegler met in the Oval Office of the White House from 12:37 pm to 12:40 pm. The Oval Office taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 613-017 of the White House Tapes.

Conversation No. 613-017

Date: November 4, 1971
Time: 12:37 pm - 12:40 pm
Location: Oval Office

The President met with Ronald L. Ziegler.
[The recording begins at an unknown time while the meeting is in progress]

     The President's previous meeting with Indira Gandhi
          -Ziegler's forthcoming press statement
                -Agenda of meeting

       Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, NARA Online Public Access Catalog Identifier: 597542

                      -Bilateral relations
                            -Refugees
                 -Agha Muhommad Yahya Khan
                      -Gandhi's possible statement

The conversation was cut off at an unknown time before 12:40 pm.
  • 613-016 12:35 PM · 49 sec — unknown person(s) met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 12:35 pm and 12:37 pm.
  • 614-001 12:43 PM · 16 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Stephen B. Bull met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 12:43 pm and 12:54 pm.
  • 614-002 12:43 PM · 11 sec — Henry A. Kissinger and unknown person(s) met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 12:43 pm and 12:54 pm.
  • 614-003 12:43 PM · 10 min — Henry A. Kissinger and unknown person(s) met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 12:43 pm and 1:05 pm.
  • 013-115 1:05 PM · 12 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 1:05 pm and 1:10 pm.
  • 013-116 1:05 PM · 12 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 1:05 pm and 1:10 pm.
  • 614-004 1:05 PM · 4 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and the White House operator met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 1:05 pm and 1:10 pm.
  • 614-005 1:05 PM · 4 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Manolo Sanchez met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 1:05 pm and 1:10 pm.

Conversation 613-017, November 4, 1971. White House Tapes, Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives. Audio and AI transcript via Easy Nixon, https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/613-017 (accessed September 30, 2026).