NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISER. KISSINGER-SCOWCROFT WEST WING OFFICE FILES, 1969-77

The Kissinger-Scowcroft West Wing Office Files is one of many sub-collections that comprise the National Security Adviser Files. These files were maintained in the National Security Adviser's West Wing Office or in offices by the Situation Room in the White House basement. They were kept available for ready access because they contained sensitive, high level material involving ongoing negotiations.

This exceptionally rich collection, with materials dating from the office of President-Elect Nixon to the end of the Ford administration, provides a wealth of information about eight years of American diplomacy. Many of these files were started by Alexander Haig, Military Assistant to Henry Kissinger in 1969 and Deputy National Security Adviser from 1970-73. When President Nixon resigned from office on August 9, 1974, most of National Security Adviser Henry Kissinger's files were sequestered with the other Nixon presidential papers. The files in this subcollection, however, were not sequestered and became part of the Ford presidential papers.

The files highlight foreign policy initiatives, such as the opening to China, détente, arms control, and Middle East peace negotiations, which were initiated by President Nixon and continued by President Ford. Included in these files are records of interactions between the White House and foreign leaders at the highest levels. Prime Ministers Harold Wilson, Edward Heath, and James Callaghan; Chancellors Willy Brandt and Helmut Schmidt; First Secretary Leonid Brezhnev and Foreign Minister Andrei Gromyko; and Premier Chou En-lai and Chairman Mao Tse-tung are among the notable foreign leaders.

The National Security Adviser to the President also served as the principal supervisory officer of the National Security Council (NSC). President Nixon appointed Henry Kissinger National Security Adviser in January 1969 and Secretary of State in September 1973. Kissinger held both positions until November 1975, when President Ford thought it best that the Secretary relinquish supervisory responsibility of the NSC and concentrate on the Department of State and foreign policy. Brent Scowcroft, who had been Deputy National Security Adviser, was appointed to fill the position vacated by Kissinger. Kissinger and Scowcroft maintained a close working relationship throughout the Ford administration, and this spirit of cooperation and consultation is evident in the files.

The major portion of this collection is a subject file with folder titles of names of countries, individuals, departments and agencies (Defense and CIA), and such topics as the Cyprus crisis and Strategic Arms Limitation Talks (SALT). Materials for subject file categories tend to focus on specific issues rather than a broad range of topics. The predominant themes for European countries are the western alliance, Year of Europe, Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe (CSCE), status of Berlin, nuclear energy, and international economic issues. The themes for countries in the Middle East are Arab-Israeli relations and the role of the United States in peace negotiations. China materials are primarily concerned with developing diplomatic relations, Iran with oil, and the Soviet Union with détente, arms control, and CSCE. India/Pakistan materials concern relations between those two nations and U.S. security commitments to Pakistan. The exception to this narrow focus is found in "Central Intelligence Agency Communications," which cover a very broad range of topics.

The folders for a given country often contain a numbered index to exchanges between Henry Kissinger and its leaders, and there may be separate sequences of indexed and unnumbered items. Indexed exchanges exist for China, Israel, Palestinian Contacts, SALT exchanges with Ambassador Dobrynin, USSR "D" File, USSR Dobrynin/Kissinger Exchanges, and West Germany – Egon Bahr Communications.

Kissinger often used a "backchannel" from the White House to discuss the most sensitive issues with foreign officials. In the case of the Soviet Union, the backchannel was used to conduct preliminary negotiations on SALT and other issues. When these informal talks showed promise for specific agreement, the negotiations moved into formal diplomatic channels. If formal negotiations became deadlocked, discussions returned to the backchannel. Kissinger writes in White House Years (Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1979, page 139) that the backchannel "was a way to explore the terrain, to avoid major deadlocks." Soviet Ambassador Anatoly Dobrynin was the backchannel for his country and is identified as "D" in folder titles.

Egon Bahr, an associate of Chancellor Willy Brandt, was a backchannel for exchanges with the West German government. Bahr is identified by name on folder titles. This backchannel was especially used for discussions concerning the Soviet Union, East Germany, and Berlin.

In initiating and conducting the Vietnam War secret peace talks, Kissinger used a personal friend as a private channel to Hanoi. The intermediary was Jean Sainteny, former French Delegate-General in Hanoi. He is identified as Mr. "S" on folder titles.

The "Cyprus Crisis" is a topical file heading for 94 folders. Materials within these folders include telegrams, memoranda, intelligence and military situation reports, meeting minutes, memoranda of conversations, and transcripts of Kissinger telephone conversations. These materials provide a day-by-day account of events from April - October 2, 1974. Researchers are encouraged to consult Foreign Relations of the United States, volume Greece; Cyprus; Turkey, 1973-76 in conjunction with these files.

Some materials in this series remain national security classified. The largest concentrations of security classified materials are in folders "Central Intelligence Agency - Communications," "Intelligence – Report on the Intelligence Investigations by House and Senate Committees," and "USSR – President's Quarterly Report of Strategic Forces."

Administrative files include materials on staffing, budget, and organization of the NSC. President Nixon did not wish to delegate responsibility for national security policymaking because he believed this was solely his responsibility. Newly appointed National Security Adviser Henry Kissinger and his assistants, Alexander Haig and Lawrence Eagleburger, organized the NSC to be responsive to Nixon's philosophy. Staffing materials reflect the ups and downs experienced within the NSC when several staff members resigned over Nixon administration decisions on conduct of the Vietnam War and bombing of Cambodia. NSC staff also had to deal with issues stemming from Kissinger's appointment as Secretary of State, Watergate, and Nixon's resignation. When Gerald Ford became President, Henry Kissinger and Brent Scowcroft remained in their positions until November 1975. Then, Scowcroft succeeded Kissinger as National Security Adviser. The transition to Scowcroft was a smooth one, and documents suggest that he was highly respected by the staff.

Related Materials (June 2012)
Materials closely related to the General Subject File are available in several sub-collections, especially Presidential Country Files and National Security Council Staff Files for geographic regions. Materials related to the Administrative File are in the Secretariat Series of U.S. National Security Council Institutional Files. Researchers can locate additional relevant materials via PRESNET search reports, which are provided upon request. New information is entered into the PRESNET database as collections become available for research. Researchers are encouraged to consult the Ford Library website for announcements of collection openings and to view online finding aids and documents.