Office of the Historian

364. National Security Action Memorandum No. 3551

Washington, August 1, 1966.

TO

  • The Secretary of State

SUBJECT

  • The Indian Nuclear Weapons Problem, further to NSAM 3512

The President has approved the recommendations contained in the Secretary of State’s memorandum to the President of July 25, 1966,3 concerning the Indian Nuclear Weapons Problem, as requested in NSAM 351. These recommendations are attached.

He asks that the Secretary of State assume responsibility for implementing these recommendations. Where appropriate, the Secretary may, in consultation with other agencies, delegate to these agencies responsibility for implementing specific recommendations.

Within one month, I would appreciate it if the Department of State could report to this office the assignment of operational responsibility [Page 710] for the specific tasks called for by these recommendations. By November 1 we would hope for the first progress report on implementation.4

WW Rostow
  1. Source: Johnson Library, National Security File, NSAMs, NSAM 355, Indian Nuclear Weapons Program, further to NSAM 351. Secret. Copies were sent to McNamara and the Directors of ACDA, CIA, and USIA.↩
  2. Document 347.↩
  3. Document 359.↩
  4. A progress report was sent to Rostow on October 31 by Benjamin Read. The report dealt largely with the establishment of an interdepartmental working group, the gathering of data, and ongoing studies of the problem. (Johnson Library, National Security File, NSAMs, NSAM 355, further to NSAM 351) There was nothing in the report judged important enough by Wriggins to pass on to the President. (Memorandum from Wriggins to Rostow, November 4; ibid.)↩