Office of the Historian

106. Summary Memorandum1

Washington, September 29, 1974, 9:45 a.m.

SUBJECT

  • Summary of Conversation Between President Ford and Brazilian Foreign Minister Silveira on Sunday, September 29, 1974, at 9:45 a.m. in the Oval Office

PARTICIPANTS

  • The President
  • Minister of Brazilian Foreign Affairs Antonio Francisco Azeredo da Silveira
  • Secretary Kissinger
  • Brazilian Ambassador Joao Augusto de Araujo Castro
  • Lieutenant General Brent Scowcroft

The first part of the meeting was an exchange of information about Brazil, in which the high professional quality of Brazil’s military forces and foreign service was noted. Foreign Minister Silveira said he hoped that President Ford would come to Brazil some day, and the President said he would like to see more of Latin America, including Brazil. The President spoke highly of Brazil’s development program and control of inflation.

There was an exchange of comments about the situation in the Middle East, in which both sides noted their efforts to impress upon the Arabs the importance of a responsible position.

The discussion turned to Cuba. Castro’s recent strongly anti-United States speech was noted. Both sides noted that Castro’s behavior could affect their vote at the Quito Rio Pact meeting. The Foreign Minister and the President said that a suspension of OAS sanctions would not automatically entail a lifting of each country’s own embargo on Cuban contacts. Both expressed the concern about appearing to yield to Cuba.

President Ford agreed to mention in the public statement following the meeting how impressed he was with Brazil’s economic progress.

  1. Summary: President Ford and Foreign Minister Silveira discussed OAS sanctions on Cuba and Brazil’s economic progress.

    Source: Ford Library, National Security Adviser, Memoranda of Conversations, Box 6, September 29, 1974, Ford, Kissinger, Brazilian Foreign Minister Silveira. Secret; Nodis. The meeting was held in the Oval Office. The full memorandum of conversation is ibid. According to the President’s Daily Diary, the meeting lasted until 10:40 a.m. (Ibid., White House Central Files, President’s Daily Diary) Silveira was in Washington for bilateral discussions after attending the UN General Assembly in New York. On November 12, Kissinger told Ford that the Brazilians would probably abstain in the OAS vote to lift sanctions on Cuba: “They [the Brazilians] are slightly more hard line than us, but they don’t want to be left behind. State had been for voting for, but I straightened that out.” (Ibid., National Security Adviser, Memoranda of Conversations, Box 7, November 12, 1974, Ford, Kissinger)

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