106. Editorial Note
On March 17, 1961, Secretary of State Rusk transmitted to President Kennedy the draft of an air transport agreement with the Soviet Union. (Department of State, NSAMs: Lot 72 D 316, NSAM 32) Following approval by the President on March 21 (NSAM 32, ibid.; Claflin, The President Wants To Know, page 55), the draft was sent to the Soviet Embassy, and the two sides agreed to begin discussion of the agreement at Washington on July 18. James M. Landis, Special Assistant to the President, [Page 270] chaired the U.S. delegation, while Colonel General Yevgeni E. Loginov, Chief of the Main Administration of the Soviet Air Fleet, led the Soviet delegation. A copy of Landisʼ instructions for the negotiations is in Department of State, Central Files, 611.6194/7-1861.
The delegations met 11 times before reaching an agreement on a draft text on August 4. Records of these meetings are ibid., 611.6194/7- 1861 through 8-461 and 911.7261/7-861 through 8-361. Two days later in requesting authority to sign the agreement, the Bureau of Economic Affairs, Department of State, pointed out that the U.S. objectives in the negotiations had been achieved, including agreement to direct reciprocal flights between New York and Moscow, a commitment by the Soviet Union to adhere to applicable International Civil Aviation Organization standards, provisions for the inspection of each sideʼs aircraft, and Soviet agreement not to land at airfields where U.S. or allied military forces were stationed. (Memorandum from E to the Acting Secretary of State; ibid., 611.6194/8-1061)
However, in response to the closing of the sector border between East and West Berlin on August 13, President Kennedy decided “that this was not an appropriate time to sign a bilateral air agreement with the Soviets in view of the international situation.” (Kohler memorandum for the files, August 18; ibid., 611.6194/8-1861) The Department of State informed the Soviet Embassy along these lines on August 19, and 2 days later Deputy Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs U. Alexis Johnson and Loginov initialed the agreement rather than signing it. (Telegram 497 to Moscow, August 21; ibid., 611.6194/8-2161)