Office of the Historian

221. Memorandum From the President’s Special Assistant for National Security Affairs (Bundy) to President Johnson1

Washington, May 31, 1965, 12:40 p.m.

SUBJECT

  • $37 Million PL 480 Wheat for Egypt

Secretary Rusk has now asked formally for a determination on the completion of shipment under the existing PL 480 agreement. I attach his memorandum at Tab B2 and a good one-page from Bob Komer at Tab A. The Secretary and Bob Komer are both ready to go ahead on this and I am sure they are right from every point of view but that of Congressional reaction. The Department (Rusk and McArthur especially) has done a comprehensive consultation with the top Leadership, but it is a fact that the Senate authorization on aid will be up in the next ten days.

If you want to go ahead with the wheat sale, but keep it out of the Senate debate, we could probably make some money by telling Nasser informally that we expect to be able to go ahead in the next couple of weeks.3 He keeps his mouth shut on this sort of thing because it is in his interest to do so. I will put this on the agenda for our next Tuesday lunch-type meeting with Rusk and McNamara. So this particular paper is for information and not for decision.

McG. B.
  1. Source: Johnson Library, National Security File, Memos to the President, McGeorge Bundy, Vol. 10. No classification marking.↩
  2. The tabs are attached but not printed.↩
  3. The words “telling Nasser informally that we expect to” are circled with the following note in Johnson’s handwriting: “We tell Nasser—we hope to go $17 in 2 or 3 wks & perhaps can get Congress to go along shortly thereafter but ask him to bear with us with other 20. L.” Telegram 7401 to Cairo, June 2, instructed Battle to inform Nasser privately and in confidence that the U.S. Government hoped to be able to proceed with $17 million in purchase authorizations within the next 2 weeks and hoped Congressional acquiescence in issuance of the remaining $20 million could be obtained shortly thereafter. (Johnson Library, National Security File, Country File, UAR, Vol. III) Battle reported in telegram 4281 from Cairo, June 4, that he had given the message to Kaissouni for Nasser. (National Archives and Records Administration, RG 59, Central Files 1964–66, AID (US) 15 UAR)↩