Nixon White House Tapes › Tape 725 › Conversation 725-026

Nixon & Kissinger on Vietnam War and Peace negotiations

Tuesday, May 16, 1972 · 10:55 AM–11:03 AM ET · Oval Office · 7 min

ParticipantsNixon, Richard M. (President); Kissinger, Henry A.Conversation725-026 on Tape 725 (tape position 02:59:58–03:07:16)StartTuesday, May 16, 1972 at 10:55 AMEndTuesday, May 16, 1972 at 11:03 AMRecording deviceOval OfficeSourceNixon Library record for 725-026 ↗

AI Summary

President Nixon and Henry Kissinger met to discuss domestic political support for the Vietnam War effort ahead of the President's upcoming Soviet trip, emphasizing the need for congressional unity rather than a cutoff of funds. The two discussed maintaining a firm negotiating stance with North Vietnam, specifically regarding the necessity of a ceasefire and the return of POWs as non-negotiable conditions. Additionally, they reviewed the upcoming resignation of Secretary of the Treasury John Connally and the subsequent appointment of George Shultz as his successor.

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Position in tape: 02:59:58 – 03:07:16

part B, 58:07

725a.mp3
725b.mp3
725c.mp3

NARA Description

On May 16, 1972, President Richard M. Nixon and Henry A. Kissinger met in the Oval Office of the White House from 10:55 am to 11:03 am. The Oval Office taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 725-026 of the White House Tapes.

Nixon Library Finding Aid

Conversation No. 725-26

Date: May 16, 1972
Time: 10:55 am - 11:03 am
Location: Oval Office

The President met with Henry A. Kissinger.

      Vietnam
          -Doves
               -Kissinger's previous meeting
               -Support for President
               -Congressional action
                     -Funds cutoff
                           -Timing
                           -President's Soviet trip
                           -Effect
               -Kissinger's points
               -Doves' position
                     -Partnership
               -Resolution of support for President
          -North Vietnam
               -President's meeting with Gen. Alexander M. Haig, Jr.
                     -Plenary sessions
          -Peace negotiations
               -Conditions
               -President's offer
               -Conditions
               -Seven points
               -US conditions
                     -Prisoners of War [POW] return
                     -Cease-fire

              -Plenary sessions
                   -Advantages and disadvantages

     John B. Connally
         -Trip to Argentina, Brazil, and Colombia
               -Purposes
               -Time
               -Other countries to visit
                    -Peru
         -Appointment to President's Foreign Intelligence Advisory
              Board [PFIAB]
         -Resignation as Secretary of Treasury
Show the rest of the log (42 more lines)
               -Announcement
                    -Time
               -Reasons
               -Replacements
                    -George P. Shultz
                    -Caspar W. Weinberger

**********************************************************************

BEGIN WITHDRAWN ITEM NO. 2
[Personal Returnable]
[Duration: 34s        ]

END WITHDRAWN ITEM NO. 2

**********************************************************************

         -Resignation
               -Kissinger's knowledge
               -Tenure
                    -January expiration
                          -Monetary and economic policy work
               -Reluctance to take positions
               -Delay
                    -Length
         -Compared with Shultz
         -Kissinger’s view
         -Compared with Shultz
         -Resignation

                 -Idanell B. (“Nellie”) Connally
            -Possible trip to Africa
            -Appointment to PFIAB
            -Previous week's activity

      Kissinger's schedule
          -Cabinet meeting
                -Connally's resignation
                -Announcement
                -Press announcement

The President and Kissinger left at 11:03 am.

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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Well, they're bleeding all over the place.
All they want to do is support you.
I said, I understand.
They want to vote for something.
Yeah, vote for a month before you go to Russia.
I hope you made the point.
I won't undercut this president before he goes to the most important negotiation in the post-war era.
I certainly did not.
They were just baffling about responsibility to the public and the contented people who have conquered.
They finally said, anything, if you go to them and say, with anything at all, they'll vote for it that indicates a joint partnership.
They just don't... Joint partnership, I'm sorry.
Blast.
You can figure out something, I'm fine, but why don't they just have a resolution supporting what we've said?
I told Dick this morning, Harry, and I think you should know this too, and I heard that he said, my God, it's up north, we have the needs of action for a climate recession now.
I'm babbling around.
The point is, your strategy is exactly right.
But we have to realize
We say we will go back to negotiations without a transition.
We must never agree to that, never agree to that, for the reasons that the offer that I have made is not an offer on which we can bargain now.
It's rock bottom.
That's right.
We cannot go further.
You see, that's the problem that we have.
There is one, seven points from which they can bargain now, but we've got one where we can't.
I think we can say the phrase without traditions in itself doesn't mean anything.
which such means we have to be prepared to talk about their seven points, and they have to be prepared to talk about ours.
You want to go ahead?
But I think we should say, on the other hand, let me be very clear, gentlemen, the President will insist, we have to insist on a return of our POWs in a ceasefire.
I think it's a mistake to go back to the Flannery's now without getting some assurances, because when they break up again, then you get again a crisis atmosphere.
I mean, I see nothing for us in going to plenary unless we know they're going to leave somewhere.
Yeah.
Let me ask you this with regard to Conway.
It would be very useful from a political standpoint if he could whitewash into it.
If, like we returned from Russia, I had sent him to Brazil, Argentina, and Colombia, because I'll report on, you know, discuss the presence of it.
Is there any other country there that could be included?
Should Peru be enough?
Why not?
Those are the three big ones.
Brazil...
I just took the... Huh?
I just took the...
There's a Brazil army need to come through.
Those are the four big countries.
I think it's a good idea.
Also, I want to put it back on the... Well, you have never had a cabinet member.
When he's out, he's sleeping.
Conley's sleeping?
You've been building.
No.
That's what we're announcing today.
Now, this was understood in January.
We couldn't tell you, but Connelly only agreed to come through here.
And he's leaving.
And we're announcing today.
Shoals will take its place in Cherokee and White River.
Oh, I didn't do that.
I had no idea.
Well, I think it's one of the best kind of secrets.
I don't have any other things that I'm going to be concerned about.
Now, I had a hard time on January when the year was up.
Yeah, it won't be anything like last time.
Oh, yeah.
I mean, Connolly, you know, with all his irritations, it was a pleasure to have a strong man.
Well, it was a pleasure to have a guy that was a ballsy guy in a fight.
Sorry, we had all that, but we just haven't got anybody else.
Schultz has got to go now.
We also have Schultz in the PC.
We don't have to break somebody up.
Oh, no, no, no, no.
I think all of that is...
I mean, Schultz, if you're not going to have Connolly, Schultz is as good.
In many ways, Schultz is more rigid than Connolly, but more...
Can't leave Richard at all to panic.
I don't know.
I don't know.
I don't know.

Also recorded on May 16, 1972

  • 725-022 10:12 AM · 2 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Alexander P. Butterfield met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 10:12 am and 10:23 am.
  • 725-024 10:23 AM · 32 min — President Richard M. Nixon, Ronald L. Ziegler, and H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman met in the Oval Office of the White House from 10:23 am to 10:52 am.
  • 725-025 10:52 AM · 1 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Henry A. Kissinger met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 10:52 am and 10:55 am.
  • 101-009 11:03 AM · 26 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Cabinet officers and staffers, including John N. Irwin, II, John B. Connally, [David] Kenneth Rush, Richard G. Kleindienst, Rogers C. B. Morton, Earl L. Butz, Peter G. Peterson, James D. Hodgson, Elliot L. Richardson, George W. Romney, John A. Volpe, George P. Shultz, Donald H. Rumsfeld, George H. W. Bush, H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman, John D. Ehrlichman, Henry A. Kissinger, Peter M. Flanigan, Clark MacGregor, Dr. Edward E. David, Jr., John A. Scali, Herbert G. Klein, Raymond K. Price, Jr., Ronald L. Ziegler, Alexander P. Butterfield, Charles W. Colson, Frederic V. Malek, Robert J. Brown, Caspar W. ("Cap") Weinberger, Ezra Solomon, and Kenneth R. Cole, Jr., met in the Cabinet Room of the White House at an unknown time between 11:03 am and 11:59 pm.
  • 725-039 11:03 AM · 14 min — United States Secret Service agents met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 11:03 am and 11:30 am.
  • 725-040 11:03 AM · 12 min — unknown person(s) met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 11:03 am and 11:30 am.
  • 725-027 11:30 AM · 1 min — President Richard M. Nixon and H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman met in the Oval Office of the White House at 11:30 am.
  • 725-028 11:31 AM · 5 min — President Richard M. Nixon and John B. Connally met in the Oval Office of the White House from 11:31 am to 11:35 am.

All 74 conversations from May 16, 1972 →

Cite this conversation

Conversation 725-026, May 16, 1972. White House Tapes, Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives. Audio and AI transcript via Easy Nixon, https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/725-026 (accessed November 2, 2026).