Foreign Relations of the United States, 1964–1968, Volume XV, Germany and Berlin

256. Telegram From the Embassy in Germany to the Department of State¹

Bonn, March 27, 1968, 1840Z.

10118. BUSEC. Subj: Inaccurate report of US views received by Kies-inger.

1. I called on Chancellor Kiesinger today to advise him of the replies received from Washington (State’s 136255 and 136706)² with regard to the disturbing rumors which had been reported to him (Bonn’s 9894).³ Since I considered it the most convincing way of reassuring him, I showed him the reftels which he read with interest. Although the Chancellor admitted that he had been somewhat disturbed by Erhard’s interview of today in Echo der Zeit (Bonn’s 10062)⁴ which repeated some of the same American criticisms of FRG policy, he said that he fully accepted the forthright statement made by the Sec and Under Secretary, which confirmed what Walther Casper had advised him from Washington following his talks with Walt Rostow.

2. The Chancellor said that he agreed with the Sec as to the importance of finding out precisely who was responsible for making such false and malicious reports. In this case, he did not know the individual involved personally. It was not Duckwitz nor Barzel nor Berg nor any of the recent prominent visitors. All he could tell me is that it was a man who had been recommended to him by others as having been quite an accurate reporter in the past. Predictions he had made in the past had pre-sumably been confirmed by subsequent events. He promised that, after he had looked into the matter further, he would tell me who the individual is so that we may be forewarned. The Chancellor then repeated much of the same ground as I reported in Bonn’s 9894, defending himself against the accusations allegedly made against him.

3. I assured the Chancellor of our desire to trace down and eliminate all possible sources of false rumors. I was pleased that he accepted at face value the response which the Sec had made. I was sure that he had noted that Erhard did not say he was reporting criticisms made by US Govt officials, but as views which he attributed to the American people. Subsequently, in response to the Chancellor’s request, I provided him with a written paraphrase of the messages from the Sec and the Under Sec.

McGhee

1. Source: Department of State, Central Files,POL GER W–US. Secret; Exdis. Repeated to Brussels.
2. Telegram 136255 is Document 255. In telegram 136706, March 26, Under Secretary Katzenbach instructed McGhee: “I want to add my own personal note to the message the Secretary has sent you on Kiesinger’s state of mind. I was appalled to learn of the report that I had been critical of Kiesinger. The charge is totally untrue and I hope you will so state to the Chancellor. I have great respect for him. At no time have I spoken about him in any other vein.” (Department of State, Central File, POL GER W–US)
3. Document 253.
4. Dated March 26. (Department of State, Central Files, POL 1 EUR E–GER W)