Office of the Historian

101. Backchannel Message From the Ambassador to Chile (Korry)1

Santiago, September 17, 1970.

Situation Report.

1. Trust that consumers understand that Embassy 3741 “Communist take over” is designed to provide base for propaganda action that I hope will unfold in Europe and LatAm.2

2. Copei anti-Allende declaration given good play Mercurio today under Caracas dateline and helpful.

3. Anticipated Viaux statement came out last night and in Mercurio, Channel 7 (govt) and several radio stations. It just might provide the spur to the Armed Forces CINCs to issue their own statement which was my intention in forcing Ossa to stop working against Viaux statement. Emb will send septel.3

4. MinFinance Zaldivar had himself interviewed by national TV. He took as pretext alleged breaking of rules by Popular Unity liaison Vuskovich’s declarations to press, Zaldivar stating agreement had been that only Minister could make statements on economy. Zaldivar cleverly emphasized deteriorating economic situation in country while reciting how GOC taking all appropriate measures. Emb will send septel.4

5. You can regard both Viaux and Zaldivar statements as earnests of intentions from at least Ossa since these two items were high on my list of insistences in my Monday talk with Ossa.5

6. Can someone convince USIA (suggest talk to Shakespeare) to have his organization replay Mercurio editorials that we have been sending past few days but which they refuse to use? How can they distribute Allende propaganda material such as Time Magazine interview [Page 269] with Allende (on VOA) and refuse to touch Mercurio’s excellent editorials?

  1. Source: National Archives, Nixon Presidential Materials, NSC Files, Box 777, Country Files, Latin America, Chile 1970. Secret; Sensitive. Broe transmitted a copy of this message to Vaky. It was received at the White House at 12:15 p.m.↩
  2. Document 99.↩
  3. Telegram 3763 from Santiago, September 17, reported that “Although Viaux insisted that he has no political commitments, he also underlined that he is not Marxist nor has he ever been one, and that ‘Fatherland is not negotiable nor liberty compromisable.’ Viaux concluded terse pronouncement with assertion he would never be party to maneuver to divide army and announced readiness to ‘take place alongside comrades-in-arms should higher interests of Fatherland require.’” (National Archives, RG 59, Central Files 1970–73, DEF 9 CHILE)↩
  4. Not found.↩
  5. September 14; reference, however, is presumably to the meeting between Korry and Ossa on September 15, as reported in Document 96.↩