156. Minutes of a Verification Panel Meeting1

SUBJECT

  • SALT

PARTICIPANTS

  • Chairman—Henry A. Kissinger
  • State
    • U. Alexis Johnson
    • Ronald I. Spiers
    • Seymour Weiss
    • Raymond Garthoff
  • DOD
    • Dr. Gardiner Tucker
    • Paul Nitze
  • CIA
    • Richard Helms
    • Carl Duckett
  • JCS
    • Lt. Gen. Royal B. Allison
  • ACDA
    • Gerard C. Smith
    • Philip J. Farley
    • Spurgeon Keeny
  • OST
    • Dr. Edward David
  • OMB
    • James Schlesinger
    • Attorney General
    • John N. Mitchell
  • NSC Staff
    • William Hyland
    • Col. Jack Merritt
    • Barry Carter
    • Dr. K. Wayne Smith
    • Col. Richard T. Kennedy
    • Mrs. Jeanne W. Davis

SUMMARY OF CONCLUSIONS

It was agreed that:

(1)
Amb. Parsons would be instructed to try to persuade the Soviets not to make a formal proposal for an accession clause to an accidental launch agreement and, in any event, to take no formal position on it.
(2)
The State Department will prepare a paper on all aspects of an accession formula.
(3)
The Working Group will consider the State and Defense drafts for a new high-ground position; will work on various equitable Safeguard options; and will start work on various defensive-offensive packages.
(4)
Mr. Smith will meet with the President on Tuesday, May 18, followed by another Verification Panel meeting later in the week.

[Omitted here are the minutes of the meeting.]

  1. Source: National Archives, Nixon Presidential Materials, NSC Files, NSC Institutional Files (H–Files), Box H–107, Verification Panel Minutes Originals 1969–3/8/72. Top Secret; Sensitive. The meeting took place in the White House Situation Room.