Nixon White House Tapes › Tape 900 › Conversation 900-009
Nixon, Volpe & Bull on Italian politics and Giulio Andreotti
Wednesday, April 18, 1973 · 12:12 PM–12:20 PM ET · Oval Office · 6 min
AI Summary
President Nixon met with Ambassador John A. Volpe to discuss Volpe's diplomatic activities in Italy, specifically regarding the political strength of Prime Minister Giulio Andreotti. The conversation also covered the selection process for a new ambassador to Poland, with Volpe providing recommendations and status updates on potential candidates who had been vetted by the FBI and Catholic leadership. The two also addressed the logistical complexities of appointing a military officer to a civilian diplomatic post.
- John A. Volpe
- Italian politics
- Giulio Andreotti
- Ambassadorship to Poland
- Diplomatic appointments
- Polish-American relations
Audio
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 Do not cite it as authoritative — verify against the audio and the finding aid.
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NARA Description
On April 18, 1973, President Richard M. Nixon, John A. Volpe, and Stephen B. Bull met in the Oval Office of the White House from 12:12 pm to 12:20 pm. The Oval Office taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 900-009 of the White House Tapes.
Nixon Library Finding Aid
Conversation No. 900-9
Date: April 18, 1973
Time: 12:12 pm - 12:20 pm
Location: Oval Office
The President met with John A. Volpe.
-19-
NIXON PRESIDENTIAL LIBRARY AND MUSEUM
Conversation No. 900-9 (cont’d)
[Rainer Barzel’s meeting with President]
-West Germany
-Willy Brandt
Poland [?]
-News story [?]
Volpe’s activities
-Giulio Andreotti
-Luncheon
-Strength
-Meetings with Italian political leaders, ambassadors [?]
-Aldo Moro, Amitore Fanfani, and Emilio Colombo
-Informality
Ambassadorship to Poland
-Polish ancestry
-Recommendations
-Sent to Henry A. Kissinger
-Federal Bureau of Investigations [FBI]
-Gen. Leo John Dulacki
-Biography for President
-Duties
-Part-time arrangement
-Military service
-Retirement
-Dombrowski
-John Cardinal Krol
-Recommendations
-President of Polish-American alliance
-Alyosius Mujeski
-Political career
-Polish-American Congress
-Volpe’s meetings
-Luncheons
-Adm. [First name unknown] Wright [?]
-20-
NIXON PRESIDENTIAL LIBRARY AND MUSEUM
Conversation No. 900-9 (cont’d)
-Bishop [First name unknown] Mancincris
-Catholicism
Stephen B. Bull entered at an unknown time after 12:12 pm.
President’s schedule
-Telephone call from Spiro T. Agnew
Bull left at an unknown time before 12:20 pm.
Italy-Vatican relations
-Press relations
-Italy
-Andreotti
Andreotti
-Strength as Prime Minister
-Compared to Alcide De Gasperi, Fanfani, Columbo
Italian government
-Andreotti
-Strength
*****************************************************************
BEGIN WITHDRAWN ITEM NO. 2
[National security]
[Duration: 2 m 23 s ]
ITALIAN DOMESTIC POLITICS
-21-
NIXON PRESIDENTIAL LIBRARY AND MUSEUM
Conversation No. 900-9 (cont’d)
END WITHDRAWN ITEM NO. 2
*****************************************************************
Volpe left at 12:20 pm.Also recorded on April 18, 1973
- 900-029 12:11 PM · 1 min — President Richard M. Nixon and unknown person(s) met in the Oval Office of the White House from 12:11 pm to 12:12 pm.
- 038-096 12:20 PM · 16 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and White House operator talked on the telephone at 12:20 pm.
- 038-097 12:20 PM · 2 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Vice President Spiro T. Agnew talked on the telephone from 12:20 pm to 12:21 pm.
- 900-010 12:20 PM · 2 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Vice President Spiro T. Agnew met in the Oval Office of the White House from 12:20 pm to 12:21 pm.
- 900-011 12:22 PM · 3 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Henry A. Kissinger met in the Oval Office of the White House from 12:22 pm to 12:25 pm.
- 900-012 12:25 PM · 9 min — President Richard M. Nixon, H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman, and Ronald L. Ziegler met in the Oval Office of the White House from 12:25 pm to 12:33 pm.
- 038-098 12:33 PM · 15 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and White House operator talked on the telephone at an unknown time between 12:33 pm and 12:48 pm.
- 900-013 12:33 PM · 14 min — President Richard M. Nixon, Henry A. Kissinger, Rainer Barzel, Erich Feldweg, White House photographer, and members of the press met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 12:33 pm and 12:48 pm.
Cite this conversation
Conversation 900-009, April 18, 1973. White House Tapes, Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives. Audio and AI transcript via Easy Nixon, https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/900-009 (accessed October 5, 2026).