Nixon White House Tapes — Conversation 698-007
Date: Thursday, March 30, 1972 at 5:07 PM
Participants: Nixon, Richard M. (President); Kissinger, Henry A.
Recording device: Oval Office
Source: https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/698-007

This transcript was generated automatically by AI (WhisperX) and has not been reviewed for accuracy. Do not cite it as authoritative.

[1:58:30] I was thinking more about your conversation with Mr. B.
[1:58:42] Trying to look at it pragmatically, Henry, what in the hell is in it for them to pull an insult to a computer now?
[1:58:54] Well, I'm not sure they're going to do it.
[1:58:56] That's what I mean.
[1:58:57] That's why we don't know whether it's worth exploring.
[1:59:00] But what's in it for them is, as long as Vietnam goes on, we have an additional incentive to fly with the Chinese.
[1:59:08] Secondly, we are setting up a lot of things now in the economic field.
[1:59:16] We're really moving massively with them.
[1:59:19] And I have every intention of letting, well, at any rate, it's so set up that we can control the delivery.
[1:59:28] And I don't think we should deliver unless they do something.
[1:59:32] Then they're really panting after the Middle East now.
[1:59:36] I haven't bothered you with all the details, but I've made some propositions to them of the Middle East, which they won't accept.
[1:59:43] But they have promised me a reaction, which is the first time that they have moved off the position of just blanket endorsement of the Egyptian position in turn.
[1:59:58] What I have to do with the Israelis, it's got to be very tricky.
[2:00:01] I told them there were such shovel crosses that I was disengaging from the negotiation.
[2:00:05] That's better.
[2:00:06] I did.
[2:00:08] I told Robbie.
[2:00:11] And I told the Israelis this only in order to be able to stay in the negotiations, because if they think we're talking, we've got to be a little, I want to be a little bit more of what's going on.