347. Memorandum From the President’s Assistant for National Security Affairs (Kissinger) to Secretary of Defense Laird1 2

SUBJECT:

  • Law of the Sea

Attached is a copy of the memorandum I sent Secretary Rogers with regard to your request for an NSSM on the Law of the Sea Treaty and related issues.

I believe that the advanced operational stage of these issues and the urgency of coordinating our negotiating positions upon them make the Under Secretaries Committee the most effective vehicle for accomplishing the objectives we seek. If the Committee should fail to satisfy the views of DOD, State, and Interior, these matters could then, of course, be referred to higher levels.

Henry A. Kissinger
  1. Source: National Archives, Nixon Presidential Materials, NSC Files, Box 381, Subject Files, Seabeds, Volume I, May 1970, (2 of 2). Confidential. The attachment is published as Document 348.
  2. Kissinger informed Laird that rather than issuing a National Security Study Memorandum, the Under Secretaries Committee would consider how to coordinate Law of the Sea policy.