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Sound recording
Papers of John F. Kennedy. Presidential Papers. President's Office Files.
JFKPOF-MTG-087-004
Sound recording of a meeting held on May 17, 1963, between President John F. Kennedy, Secretary of State Dean Rusk, Under Secretary of State George Ball, Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs W. Averell Harriman, Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern and South Asian Affairs Philips Talbot, Deputy Administrator for the Agency for International Development (AID) Frank Coffin, Special Representative and Advisor on African, Asian, and Latin American Affairs Chester Bowles, Assistant Secretary of Defense William Bundy, Deputy Secretary of Defense Roswell L. Gilpatric, Special Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs McGeorge Bundy, and member of the National Security Council Robert W. Komer. President Kennedy again discusses what steps the United States can take to aid India against Chinese aggression without inflaming Pakistan and the rest of the region. The relations between the United States and the United Kingdom on this subject are also discussed as well as what should be said to Indian Minister of Economic and Defense Coordination T.T. Krishnamachari during his upcoming meeting with President Kennedy. The recording ends abruptly and the rest of the tape is blank. This sound recording has been excerpted from Tape 87, which contains additional sound recording(s) preceding this one. See Related Records to access Tape 87 in its entirety.
Sound recording
Papers of John F. Kennedy. Presidential Papers. President's Office Files.
JFKPOF-MTG-113-005
Sound recording of a National Security Council (NSC) meeting held on September 30, 1963, concerning wheat sales to the Soviet Union. Discussed are Canadian-Soviet wheat negotiations and the possible sale of U.S. wheat to the Soviet Union and political pitfalls of such an action. The first eight minutes of the meeting are recorded and then the recording skips to the end of the meeting when President John F. Kennedy asks a smaller group of several staff members to stay to continue the discussion. The discussion with the smaller group continues on Tape 114/A49. The larger group includes President Kennedy, Vice President Lyndon B. Johnson, Deputy Secretary of Defense Roswell Gilpatric, Under Secretary of the Treasury Henry Fowler, Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy, Secretary of Agriculture Orville Freeman, Under Secretary of Agriculture Charles Murphy, Secretary of Commerce Luther Hodges, Deputy Director of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) General Marshall Carter, Acting Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) General Curtis LeMay, Director of the Office of Emergency Planning Edward McDermott, Secretary of State Dean Rusk, Acting Director of the United States Information Agency (USIA) Donald Wilson, Special Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs McGeorge Bundy, Special Counsel to the President Theodore Sorensen, Press Secretary Pierre Salinger, Special Assistant to the President for Congressional Relations Lawrence F. O’Brien, Presidential Advisor Kenneth O’Donnell, Department of Justice official Norbert Schlei, Assistant Secretary of Commerce Jack Behrman, Secretary of the Navy Paul Nitze, Chief United States Trade Negotiator Christian Herter, Executive Secretary of the National Security Council Bromley Smith. This sound recording has been excerpted from Tape 113, which contains additional sound recording(s) following this one. See Related Records to access Tape 113 in its entirety or the remainder of this recording on Tape 114/A49.
Sound recording
Papers of John F. Kennedy. Presidential Papers. President's Office Files.
JFKPOF-MTG-109-004
Sound recording of a meeting about Vietnam held on September 10, 1963, between President John F. Kennedy; former United States Ambassador to Vietnam Frederick Nolting; Defense Secretary Robert S. McNamara; Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) General Maxwell D. Taylor; Director of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) John McCone; Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs W. Averell Harriman; Deputy Secretary of Defense Roswell Gilpatric; Director of the United States Information Agency (USIA) Edward R. Murrow; Assistant Secretary of State for Far Eastern Affairs Roger Hilsman; Special Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs McGeorge Bundy; National Security Council (NSC) member Michael Forrestal; Specialist on Counterinsurgency for the JCS General Victor Krulak; Executive Secretary of the NSC Bromley Smith; Foreign Service Officer Joseph Mendenhall; Assistant Secretary of State for Far Eastern Affairs Roger Hilsman; Military Aide to the President General Chester Clifton; Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy; USIA Official-Public Affairs Officer at the United States Embassy in Saigon, South Vietnam, John Mecklin; Director of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) David Bell; and Assistant Director for Rural Affairs, Operations Mission in Vietnam Rufus Phillips. This meeting is essentially the platform through which General Krulak and Foreign Service Officer Mendenhall report to President John F. Kennedy on their fact-finding mission to South Vietnam in September 1963. General Krulak and Mendenhall's four-day trip was intended to gain an overview of the military and civilian views of the country. General Krulak’s view, taken from his visits with military leaders, is generally optimistic on the progress of the war. Mendenhall presents the opposite view, one of widespread military and social discontent. After the two men present their views, President Kennedy quips, “You both went to the same country?” In this rather long and involved meeting, they delve into divergent views and possible steps to take. Responding to a question from former Ambassador Frederick Nolting, State Department official Rufus Phillips comments, “This was not a military war, but a political war.” Four segments of the recording totaling 3 minutes and 46 seconds have been removed in accordance with Section 3.4 (b) (1), (3) of Executive Order 13526. This sound recording has been excerpted from Tape 109, which contains additional sound recording(s) preceding this one. See Related Records to access Tape 109 in its entirety.
Sound recording
Papers of John F. Kennedy. Presidential Papers. President's Office Files.
JFKPOF-MTG-108-004
Sound recording of a meeting held on September 3, 1963, between President John F. Kennedy, former United States Ambassador to Vietnam Frederick Nolting, Secretary of State Dean Rusk, Secretary of Defense Robert S. McNamara, Secretary of the Treasury C. Douglas Dillon, Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy, Deputy Director of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) General Marshall Carter, Director of the CIA John McCone, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Maxwell Taylor, Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs W. Averell Harriman, Deputy Secretary of Defense Roswell Gilpatric, Specialist on Counterinsurgency for the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Victor Krulak, Assistant Secretary of State for Far Eastern Affairs Roger Hilsman, Director of the CIA's Far Eastern Division William Colby, Special Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs McGeorge Bundy, Military Aide to the President General Chester Clifton, National Security Council member Michael Forrestal, and Executive Secretary of the National Security Council Bromley Smith. This meeting is the continued discussion between President Kennedy and a wide range of Department of State, Department of Defense, CIA, and White House advisors on the volatile situation in South Vietnam. This sound recording has been excerpted from Tape 108, which contains additional sound recording(s) preceding this one. See Related Records to access Tape 108 in its entirety.
Sound recording
Papers of John F. Kennedy. Presidential Papers. President's Office Files.
JFKPOF-MTG-108-003
Sound recording of a meeting held on August 29, 1963, between President John F. Kennedy, former United States Ambassador to Vietnam Frederick Nolting, Secretary of State Dean Rusk, Secretary of Defense Robert S. McNamara, Secretary of the Treasury C. Douglas Dillon, Deputy Director of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) General Marshall Carter, Director of the United States Information (USIA) Edward R. Murrow, Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs W. Averell Harriman, Deputy Secretary of Defense Roswell Gilpatric, Specialist on Counterinsurgency for the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) General Victor Krulak, Assistant Secretary of State for Far Eastern Affairs Roger Hilsman, Deputy Director of the CIA for Plans Richard Helms, Special Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs McGeorge Bundy, Military Aide to the President General Chester Clifton, National Security Council member Michael Forrestal, Executive Secretary of the National Security Council Bromley Smith. This meeting is a discussion between President Kennedy and a wide range of Department of State, Department of Defense, CIA, and White House advisors on the volatile situation in South Vietnam. Three segments of the recording totaling 1 minute and 44 seconds have been removed in accordance with Section 3.4 (b) (1), (3) of Executive Order 12958. This sound recording has been excerpted from Tape 108, which contains additional sound recording(s) preceding and following this one. See Related Records to access Tape 108 in its entirety.
Sound recording
Papers of John F. Kennedy. Presidential Papers. President's Office Files.
JFKPOF-MTG-108-001
Sound recording of part of a meeting held on August 28, 1963, between President John F. Kennedy, former United States Ambassador to Vietnam Frederick Nolting, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Maxwell Taylor, Under Secretary of State George Ball, Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs W. Averell Harriman, Deputy Secretary of Defense Roswell Gilpatric, Director of the Central Intelligence Agency's (CIA) Far Eastern Division William Colby, Deputy Director of the CIA General Marshall Carter, Director of the United States Information Agency (USIA) Edward R. Murrow, Deputy CIA Director for Plans Richard Helms, Assistant Secretary of State for Far Eastern Affairs Roger Hilsman, Special Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs McGeorge Bundy, National Security Council member Michael Forrestal, Specialist on Counterinsurgency for the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Victor Krulak, Secretary of the Treasury C. Douglas Dillon, Executive Secretary of the National Security Council Bromley Smith, and later in the meeting, Vice President Lyndon B. Johnson. The recording of this meeting begins on Tape 107. President Kennedy and a wide range of State Department, Defense Department, CIA, and White House advisors continue to discuss the volatile situation in South Vietnam. Three segments of the recording totaling 54 seconds have been removed in accordance with Section 3.4 (b) (1), (3) of Executive Order 12958. This sound recording has been excerpted from Tape 108, which contains additional sound recording(s) following this one. See Related Records to access Tape 108 in its entirety or the beginning of this recording on Tape 89.
Sound recording
Papers of John F. Kennedy. Presidential Papers. President's Office Files.
JFKPOF-MTG-107-007
Sound recording of part of a meeting held on August 28, 1963, between President John F. Kennedy, former United States Ambassador to Vietnam Frederick Nolting, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Maxwell Taylor, Under Secretary of State George Ball, Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs W. Averell Harriman, Deputy Secretary of Defense Roswell Gilpatric, Director of the Central Intelligence Agency's (CIA) Far Eastern Division William Colby, Deputy Director of the CIA General Marshall Carter, Director of the United States Information Agency (USIA) Edward R. Murrow, Deputy CIA Director for Plans Richard Helms, Assistant Secretary of State for Far Eastern Affairs Roger Hilsman, Special Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs McGeorge Bundy, National Security Council member Michael Forrestal, Specialist on Counterinsurgency for the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Victor Krulak, Secretary of the Treasury C. Douglas Dillon, Executive Secretary of the National Security Council Bromley Smith, and later in the meeting, Vice President Lyndon B. Johnson. This meeting is the continued discussion between President Kennedy and a wide range of State Department, Defense Department, CIA, and White House advisors concerning the volatile situation in South Vietnam. Two segments of the recording totaling 1 minute and 11 seconds have been removed in accordance with Section 3.4 (b) (1), (3) of Executive Order 12958. The recording of this meeting ends abruptly and continues on Tape 108. This sound recording has been excerpted from Tape 107, which contains additional sound recording(s) preceding this one. See Related Records to access Tape 107 in its entirety.
Sound recording
Papers of John F. Kennedy. Presidential Papers. President's Office Files.
JFKPOF-MTG-107-005
Sound recording of a meeting held on August 27, 1963, between President John F. Kennedy, former United States Ambassador to Vietnam Frederick Nolting, Secretary of State Dean Rusk, Secretary of Defense Robert S. McNamara, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Maxwell Taylor, Under Secretary of State George Ball, Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs W. Averell Harriman, Deputy Secretary of Defense Roswell Gilpatric, Deputy Director of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) General Marshall Carter, Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy, Director of the United States Information Agency (USIA) Edward R. Murrow, Deputy CIA Director for Plans Richard Helms, Director of the CIA's Far Eastern Division William Colby, Assistant Secretary of State for Far Eastern Affairs Roger Hilsman, Special Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs McGeorge Bundy, member of the National Security Council (NSC) Michael Forrestal, Specialist on Counterinsurgency for the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) General Victor Krulak, and Executive Secretary of the NSC Bromley Smith. This meeting on Vietnam is a follow-up to the meeting from the day before. President Kennedy asked Frederick Nolting, the recently replaced Ambassador to Vietnam, to attend this meeting in order to discuss his views on the Vietnam situation. One segment of the recording totaling 8 seconds has been removed in accordance with Section 3.4 (b) (1), (3) of Executive Order 12958. This sound recording has been excerpted from Tape 107, which contains additional sound recording(s) preceding and following this one. See Related Records to access Tape 107 in its entirety.
Sound recording
Papers of John F. Kennedy. Presidential Papers. President's Office Files.
JFKPOF-MTG-107-004
Sound recording of a meeting held on August 26, 1963, between President John F. Kennedy, Secretary of State Dean Rusk, Secretary of Defense Robert S. McNamara, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Maxwell Taylor, Under Secretary of State George Ball, Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs W. Averell Harriman, Deputy Secretary of Defense Roswell Gilpatric, Deputy Director of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) Marshall Carter, Director of the CIA's Office of Special Operations (OSO) Richard Helms, Assistant Secretary of State for Far Eastern Affairs Roger Hilsman, Special Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs McGeorge Bundy, National Security Council (NSC) member Michael Forrestal, and Specialist on Counterinsurgency for the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Victor Krulak. This meeting on Vietnam takes place the Monday following the now infamous Saturday telegram concerning a possible coup in Vietnam. The meeting is contentious at times between the Department of State and the Department of Defense/White House staff on what steps should be taken in Vietnam. Near the end of the meeting, President Kennedy changes the topic to foreign aid cuts requested by Congress and what can be done to sway opinions in the opposite direction. This sound recording has been excerpted from Tape 107, which contains additional sound recording(s) preceding and following this one. See Related Records to access Tape 107 in its entirety.
Sound recording
Papers of John F. Kennedy. Presidential Papers. President's Office Files.
JFKPOF-MTG-104-005
Sound recording of a meeting held on August 15, 1963, between President John F. Kennedy and several military and intelligence advisors regarding British Guiana. This recording is closed to research use. It was submitted to the appropriate agencies for declassification review. This recording totals approximately 18:06. This meeting was not included in the total minutes for the opening of Tape 104. Meeting participants include: President John F. Kennedy, Director of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) John McCone, Deputy Director of the CIA Richard Helms, Deputy Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs U. Alexis Johnson, William Burdett from the Department of State's Office of British Commonwealth and Northern European Affairs, Deputy Secretary of Defense Roswell Gilpatric, Desmond FitzGerald from the CIA's Far Eastern Division, Office of Special Activities Deputy Defense Director James Cunningham, Director of the CIA's Far Eastern Division William Colby, CIA official Bruce Cheever, Special Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs McGeorge Bundy, Special Assistant to the President (Latin America) Ralph Dungan, Dr. Albert Whelan, General Lewis Walsh, and Director of Special Projects for the United States Air Force Colonel Jack Ledford. This sound recording has been excerpted from Tape 104, which contains additional sound recording(s) preceding and following this one. See Related Records to access Tape 104 in its entirety.