Office of the Historian

38. Letter From President Johnson to Chancellor Erhard1

Washington, October 7, 1964.

Dear Mr. Chancellor:

I was glad to receive your letter of September 30,2 delivered by Ambassador Grewe, which outlines your thinking on proceeding with the Multilateral Force.

We believe the Multilateral Force will have great political and military value to NATO, to both our countries, and to our common objectives. In providing a framework for a greater sharing of the responsibilities for the nuclear defense of the Alliance, we expect it will add a new and promising dimension to partnership between the United States and Europe.

The best way to insure maximum participation in the Multilateral Force at the outset is for our countries to demonstrate the importance we attach to this project. For this reason I agree we should hold to the timing goal set forth in our communique of last June,3 and also to the purpose of making sure that we do not allow this great undertaking to be represented as merely a German-American venture.

After the British elections, we should be able to make a more precise judgment about which other governments will be ready to participate and how we ought to proceed. In the meantime, our representatives in Paris should get on with their jobs as expeditiously as possible. Issues which will need resolution at a high level to insure early completion of the Charter should be identified clearly and as soon as possible.

In your letter you also mention the prospect of using the Multilateral Force to improve nuclear consultation within the Alliance. This is a most important subject. We have given it much thought and would be glad to discuss it with your government promptly, and to learn of your thinking on the matter. In this connection, I have given considerable thought to a [Page 83] possible meeting with Western leaders after our elections. I am sure you understand that I cannot make any firm commitments or proposals until after the elections. But if I am chosen to go on, I intend to be in touch with you very soon thereafter to discuss our next steps.

Sincerely,

LBJ 4
  1. Source: Department of State, Presidential Correspondence: Lot 66 D 204. Secret. The source text bears no drafting information.↩
  2. Document 36.↩
  3. See footnote 3, Document 26.↩
  4. President Johnson’s initials appear in an unidentified hand indicating he signed the original.↩