145. Memorandum From the Deputy Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs (Johnson) to the Administrator of the Agency for International Development (Bell)0
SUBJECT
- Base Requirements in Morocco
In your consideration of the FY 1964 and future year aid levels for Morocco in connection with the King’s visit at the end of the month, it might be useful for you to have my views on the importance of the military facilities in Morocco as an element of our foreign policy posture in that part of the world.
The importance of the Sixth Fleet in our diplomatic efforts and our military stance in this area is well recognized. Command and control of the Sixth Fleet is exercised through the facilities at Kenitra which handle a major portion of the Navy’s requirements in the Western Mediterranean and the Atlantic approaches. Kenitra serves as a vital link in the communications chain from the U.S. through Asmara, Ethiopia [2 lines of source text not declassified]. There are no practical alternative sites for the Navy communications and security facilities. To relocate this complex would require a two year construction program which we understand would cost $25 million. Loss of these facilities would lower significantly the Navy’s operational capability in this area.
While the Air Force requirements at Sidi Slimane and Ben Guerir are somewhat less critical from a military point of view, and we don’t anticipate any real difficulty in negotiating the retention of these bases on a standby basis, it is important that these airfields not become available to unfriendly forces. The presence of any hostile force on the southern flank would create serious military problems. There are, of course, added advantages for USAF to retain these two bases for such purposes as training, transport and emergency uses. The phase-out of the B-47 SAC Reflex operation in 1963 does not completely reduce the value to us of these installations.
I appreciate fully that you must weigh many factors in developing a sound aid program for Morocco.