Office of the Historian

192. Letter From Foreign Minister Schroeder to Secretary of State Rusk1

Bonn, August 8, 1966.

Dear Dean,

I am writing to you today about certain press reports alleging that the United States Administration intends to reduce the number of American forces in Germany. Some of these reports are said to stem from background information given to journalists by American officials, reference being made among others to a talk between Mr. McNamara and Herr Gillesen of the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung. I do not know whether such conversations actually took place, and even less whether their contents have been accurately reproduced by the journalists, nor is there any need for me to tell you that my own judgment has not been influenced by these press reports, but I have the feeling that these apparently quite numerous background talks about American troops in Germany do not do American-German relations any good. It is inevitable that such statements, [Page 443] however carefully phrased, are given a sharper and more sensational accent in the press, which of course has a particularly detrimental effect on a matter of such delicacy.

Meanwhile, Herr von Hassel has told me about his Paris talks with Mr. McNamara who, I was pleased to hear, dissociated himself from the press reports and stated in particular that the 15,000 or so troops withdrawn from Germany would be replaced by the end of the year. But I wonder all the more whether it would not be better to refrain altogether from giving to the press such intensive background information on the question of American troops in Germany, since it is obviously not possible to achieve the right and intended effect by means of such talks.

In my opinion this matter can only be dealt with satisfactorily if our two Governments exchange their views very frankly and confidentially in as small a group as possible. I hope that the Chancellor’s visit to Washington at the end of September will offer an opportunity for it. I am, dear Dean, very much looking forward to seeing you again on that occasion.2

With kind regards,

Yours,

Schroder 3
  1. Source: Department of State, Central Files, DEF 4 NATO. Confidential; Nodis. Translation. The German language original is attached to the source text.↩
  2. On August 8, Rusk sent a short 2-paragraph reply in which he expressed appreciation for this letter and said that the subject of American troop levels should be discussed during the Chancellor’s forthcoming visit to Washington. (Ibid., Presidential Correspondence: Lot 67 D 272)↩
  3. Printed from a copy that indicates Schroeder signed the German language original.↩