Office of the Historian

78. Memorandum of Conversation1 2

Washington, August 13, 1974, 3 p.m.
[Page 1]

PARTICIPANTS:

  • President Ford
  • Dr. Henry A. Kissinger, Secretary of State and Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs
  • Dr. James R. Schlesinger, Secretary of Defense
  • The Joint Chiefs of Staff:
  • Gen. George S. Brown, USAF, Chairman
  • Gen. Creighton W. Abrams, USA
  • Adm. James L. Holloway, III, CNO
  • Gen. David C. Jones, USAF
  • Gen. Robert E. Cushman, Jr., USMC
  • Lt. Gen. Brent Scowcroft, Deputy Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs

[Omitted here is material unrelated to Diego Garcia.]

[Page 2]

Adm. Holoway (GNO): [Omitted here is material unrelated to Diego Garcia]

[Page 3]

There is a Persian Gulf Task Force. We now know we can stay in Bahrain.

Chart number 14 shows our augmentation capability. Since October we have put a major force into the Indian Ocean for three or four quarters. It is difficult to support.

Kissinger: The Chinese are a great supporter of this deployment.

Adm. Holloway: It is difficult to do; that is why we want to see Diego Garcia upgraded.

President: Did the authorization knock out the limitation?

Scowcroft: Stennis put in $14.8 million which put it in the door.

President: But the authorization didn’t prevent it?

Scowcroft: No.

Kissinger: This Indian Ocean deployment is crucial for our foreign policy.

President: Is the harbor adequate?

Adm. Holloway: No. Even with dredging it could take only the oiler. We have only carrier ports like Mombasa. But we have a force going in in November for bilateral operations with the Iranian Navy. We go around South Africa once a year.

[Omitted here is material unrelated to Diego Garcia.]

  1. The President and cabinet discussed Diego Garcia’s expansion.↩
  2. Source: Ford Library, National Security Adviser, Memoranda of Conversations, Ford Administration, Box 4, August 13 1974. Top Secret. The meeting was held in the Cabinet Room of the White House.↩