1. Telegram From the Embassy in Guatemala to the Department of State1
1584. Subj: Guatemala Terminates US Military Assistance.
1. Summary. Embassy received third person note from Foreign Ministry “declining in advance any aid or sale of military equipment that is conditioned on judgments that any foreign government might make of matters that are exclusively internal concern” of Guatemala.2 Foreign Minister Adolfo Molina has appointment with Secretary Vance at 5 pm Monday, March 14.3 GOG has made no public comment so far; should story break and Embassy be queried by press, we plan to confirm that report was prepared on Guatemala and given GOG, but any comment on GOG reaction must come from GOG.4 End summary.
[Page 2]2. Embassy received 1400 Friday, March 11, following note from Guatemalan Foreign Ministry (informal translation): “. . . and has the honor to refer to its note number 33, of the 4th of this month, which was accompanied by a copy of the report of the Secretary of State in relation to Guatemala.
3. “The Embassy states that it is authorized to inform (the Ministry) that nearly 80 reports, one for each country that receives military assistance from the United States or that obtains military equipment from its government, have been sent to the Congress and could be made public by that organization at any moment.
4. “The Embassy also refers to the Embassy’s note of October 18, 1976, in which it informed the Government of Guatemala that, in accord with the amendments to the Foreign Assistance Act of the United States, the Secretary of State will be required in the future to send to the Congress each year ‛a full and complete report . . . with respect to practices regarding the observance of and respect for internationally recognized human rights in each country proposed as a recipient of security assistance.’5
5. “In reply, the Foreign Ministry informs the honorable Embassy of the United States of America that the Government as well as the people of Guatemala profoundly regret the assassination of a US Ambassador6 and an Ambassador of the FRG,7 accredited to the Government of the Republic in years past and both well and favorably remembered in our country, for their personal qualities and the excellent diplomatic effort they carried out in Guatemala. They were victims of a subversive organization that calls itself ‛the rebel armed forces’ and which constitutes the armed forces of the Communist Party which operates clandestinely and is responsible for the death of many Guatemalans, victims of indescribable terrorist acts.
6. “The Government and people of Guatemala deplore as well the murder of many diplomats and persons of various nationalities in diverse regions of the world, as a consequence of the generalized violence, a phenomenon from which not even US itself has been immune.
[Page 3]7. “Foreign Ministry expresses to honorable US Embassy that GOG also shares the just concern of the US authorities for assuring the maximum protection of human rights and of the fundamental freedoms of man in all parts of the world.
8. “Inspired by this objective, the government has subscribed to various declarations and conventions destined to guarantee those rights and liberties through the collective action of the international community, and has incorporated within the fundamental provisions of the Constitution of the Republic of Guatemala all the norms proclaimed by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights; these (rights) are protected by the courts and all the authorities of the government watch over their strict fulfillment.
9. “GOG nevertheless views with serious preoccupation and disquiet the possibility that there should be put into practice the doctrine that one government, in unilateral fashion, should arrogate to itself the power to judge another government with which it maintains relations of friendship, cooperation and solidarity, and on the basis of this unilateral judgment takes measures which in some way could affect the security or economic interests of the other.
10. “Such measures, even if they were guided by the most noble and worthy humanitarian motives, constitute an improper interference in the internal affairs of another state, which is totally inadmissible between sovereign states.
11. “In the history of the inter-American system, the principle of non-intervention has been consecrated as one of the fundamental duties of all states, and any type of improper interference of one state in the affairs within the internal competence of another state has always been rejected even when it might be based on ideas of tutelage of altruistic inspiration.
12. “GOG considers that the laudable effort of the illustrious Government of the USA to assure an effective protection of human rights could find a more adequate and acceptable channel in international agreements, both world-wide and regional. Such agreements not only avoid arbitrary procedures but also assign the function of judging cases of violations of human rights to special tribunals before which the accused government has the opportunity to defend itself against the accusations made against it in accordance with a pre-established procedure.
13. “Unilateral action, based on subjective judgments or on unproved charges by political groups in opposition to a government, can only prejudice the relations of friendship and solidarity between traditionally friendly governments, which cannot do less than resent the undue interference by one of them in matters that are of the exclusive competence of the other.
[Page 4]14. “For the reasons expressed above, the GOG declines in advance any aid or sale of military equipment that is conditioned on judgments that any foreign government may make on matters exclusively of (Guatemala’s) internal competence.
15. “The Foreign Ministry takes this opportunity to reiterate to US Embassy the assurances of its highest and most distinguished consideration.”
16. Comment: As Department knows, the attractiveness to Guatemala of our military assistance has considerably diminished over the past two years due to (a) the delays and indefinite postponements of certain military sales engendered by our concern over Belize dispute;8 (b) the termination of grant materiel aid; and (c) GOG awareness that Milgp’s days are probably numbered. Nevertheless, Guatemalan decision in today’s note represents a considerable sacrifice to GOG in view of planned acquisition of US helicopters and other aircraft and spare parts for equipment previously supplied. The termination of training in US military schools and visiting mobile training teams will be a particularly serious loss to both countries.
17. In view of the fact that Foreign Minister has an appointment with the Secretary on Monday, Ambassador does not plan to seek an appointment with him prior to that time. However, Ambassador will see him off at the airport Sunday morning, Mar 13, and will express his personal regret at the GOG reaction and inquire what plans, if any, GOG may have for publishing text or substance of note (if story has not already broken by that time).9
18. At this point we assume that GOG will make known its views, if not immediately then probably on publication in US of Department’s report on Guatemala. Guatemalan press commented adversely yesterday and today on fact that no one in Foreign Ministry was available to tell press whether or not Guatemala is among those countries on which human rights reports being prepared by USG.
19. Should story break and Embassy be queried by press, we plan to limit ourselves to following statement: “U.S. law requires DOS to prepare an annual report on the status of human rights in each of the countries which receive security assistance from USG. Department has prepared reports on status of human rights in nearly 80 countries receiving such assistance, including Guatemala, and has submitted them, in accordance with the law, to the Congress of the United States.” [Page 5] If specifically asked whether copy of report has been given GOG, we would confirm that it had. Any question on GOG reaction we will refer to GOG.
- Source: National Archives, RG 59, Central Foreign Policy File, D770085–0230. Limited Official Use; Niact Immediate. Sent for information Immediate to the Commander in Chief, Southern Command. Sent for information to the Secretary of Defense, Managua, San Salvador, San José, Tegucigalpa, and Belize City.↩
- Congress approved $3.2 billion in foreign military aid for fiscal year 1978 on July 22. The legislation (H.R. 6884) reflected the House International Relations Committee’s May 9 report that “sliced administration aid requests” for nations, including Guatemala, found in violation of human rights guidelines. (Congress and the Nation, vol. V, 1977–1980, p. 39) Carter signed the International Security Assistance Act of 1977 on August 5. (Public Papers: Carter, 1977, Book II, pp. 1431–1432) The $6.8 billion foreign aid appropriations bill for fiscal year 1978 (P.L. 95–148), signed by Carter on October 31, also included House provisions to prohibit military credit sales to Guatemala. (Congress and the Nation, vol. V, 1977–1980, pp. 45–46) For more information about human rights policy toward Latin America, see Document 462.↩
- See Document 3.↩
- Telegram 1405 from Guatemala City, March 4, confirmed Boster’s delivery to Guatemalan Foreign Minister Molina of the text of the Department of State’s Annual Human Rights Report regarding Guatemala for 1976. (National Archives, RG 59, Central Foreign Policy File, D770076–1047) The Department of State submitted reports on human rights practices in countries proposed for security assistance in accordance with the International Security Assistance and Arms Export Control Act of 1976 (P.L. 94–329). The Coordinator for Human Rights and Humanitarian Affairs prepared the reports. See Department of State, Human Rights Practices in Countries Receiving U.S. Security Assistance, pp. 119–120.↩
- Telegram 7209 from Guatemala City, October 18, 1976, described the note sent to the Guatemalan Foreign Office with the pertinent provisions of the International Security Assistance and Arms Export Control Act of 1976. (National Archives, RG 59, Central Foreign Policy File, D760392–0202) See also Foreign Relations, 1969–1976, vol. E–11, Part 1, Documents on Mexico; Central America; and the Caribbean, 1973–1976, Document 234.↩
- Ambassador John Gordon Mein was assassinated on a Guatemala City street during an abortive kidnapping attempt in 1968. See Foreign Relations, 1964–1968, vol. XXXI, South and Central America; Mexico, Documents 114–116.↩
- The FRG Ambassador to Guatemala, Count Karl von Spreti, was kidnapped and murdered in Guatemala in 1970.↩
- See footnote 2, Document 2.↩
- In telegram 1585 from Guatemala City, March 13, Boster noted his conversation at the Guatemalan airport with Molina, who insisted that questions about human rights “should be pursued through multilateral and not unilateral channels.” (National Archives, RG 59, Central Foreign Policy File, D770086–0692)↩