253. Memorandum of Conversation1
PARTICIPANTS
- President Gerald Ford
- Dr. Henry A. Kissinger, Secretary of State and Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs
- Lt. General Brent Scowcroft, Deputy Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs
- Jean Sauvagnargues, Minister of Foreign Affairs of France
- Jacques Kosciusko-Morizet, Ambassador of France
[Omitted here is discussion of matters other than the European security conference or MBFR.]
Sauvagnargues: [Omitted here are unrelated comments.] Gromyko has warmed up a bit. He used to be quite blank-faced.
Kissinger: I think he is the most reliable—or I did until last night. They gave us a formulation for CSCE. They said it was the same as they gave the Germans, but in fact they gave us an old one.
[Page 739][Omitted here is discussion of matters other than the European security conference or MBFR.]
Sauvagnargues: MBFR is going nowhere, yes?
President: Not so far.
Kissinger: We could get something if we linked it to CSCE. But that gives you a problem.
Sauvagnargues: We are critical of MBFR, so a link with CSCE would bring us problems. I know it is useful to you domestically.
President: We have a problem with Congress every year on the troops in Europe. Each year it gets closer. Who knows what will happen next year? We are trying to hold out for mutual withdrawal.
Kosciusko-Morizet: The pressure in Congress this year doesn’t seem so high.
President: That is true. But if we get a more liberal Congress in January, our margin would evaporate.
Kissinger: And before the ‘76 elections, they will try to develop some foreign policy issues. Our European troops are a likely candidate.
[Omitted here is discussion of matters other than the European security conference or MBFR.]
- Source: National Archives, RG 59, Records of the Office of the Counselor, Entry 5339, Box 4, France, 1974. Secret; Nodis. The conversation took place during breakfast in the First Floor Family Dining Room at the White House.↩