Office of the Historian

303. Telegram From the White House to the President’s Party in the United Kingdom0

Washington, June 28, 1963.

To Mr. Bundy from Mr. Kaysen. Deliver at opening of business on Saturday.

Ref: Secto 15 (Eyes Only for Harriman and Foster); Secto 19 (Eyes Only for President).

Harriman and I feel most strongly that if these messages reflect the state of affairs as U.S. sees them, we might as well stay home and send Bill Foster to Moscow to repeat his performance of this past winter in New York and Washington. In recent discussion with Harriman, McNamara has shown he too believes that there is something to be gained by serious and wide-ranging exploration of Soviet interest in test ban and broader security and disarmament measures which might follow from it. If what we bring “in our luggage” is what Secto 15 describes, we will hardly be in a position to raise these wider questions.

At the minimum, we should be in a position to indicate early in the discussion that we are flexible on numbers. Tactically speaking, this seems to me necessary to make progress. If, as Secto 15 suggests, we again begin with modalities, we are in danger of reminding the Soviets painfully of previous round. Lack of suggestion of what we have in mind on Chinese problem also an example of overcaution, unless directed at British rather than Soviets. Finally, to suggest in advance that our explorations may be limited by anticipated attitudes French, Germans is also not conducive to a forthcoming response.

I know this message tells you nothing now but even Jove nods, and Harriman and I think it important to remind you of the stage management problem all this poses for you and the President.1

  1. Source: Library of Congress, Manuscript Division, Harriman Papers, Box 5TS, Test Ban 2, Background. Top Secret; Eyes Only. The communications channel and delivery point are not indicated. By Saturday morning, the President was at Prime Minister Macmillan’s private residence, Birch Grove.↩
  2. In Tosit 2 to the White House, June 29 (routed through CIA channels), Bundy stated that “none of three concerns in your telegram poses problem of persuading UK, so I do not think that Birch Grove is the place to settle them. Moreover, conversation here suggests Secto 15 and 20 [19] represent minimum, not maximum, US position. Therefore suggest you and Averell continue to prepare your own packages for Moscow to be discussed on President’s return. Jove often nods, but in this case the moment of truth has not yet come.” (Kennedy Library, National Security Files, Departments and Agencies Series, ACDA, Test Ban Cables 6/13-7/15/63)↩