152. Memorandum From Robert Hormats of the National Security Council Staff to the Presidentʼs Assistant for National Security Affairs (Kissinger)1
SUBJECT
- U.S./Polish Relations
Background
State (Tab B)2 has sent you a telegram (Tab C)3 from Embassy Warsaw reporting that the Gierek regime is now in a position of recognized and unquestioned leadership in Poland. The new regimeʼs gestures toward the Church, workers, and farmers have been cautiously welcomed, and it is moving to meet consumer demands in a way its predecessor had never done. Also State points out (Tab D)4 that Poland has attempted to signal its good intentions to the U.S. by:
- —informing us that it has significantly reduced its assistance to North Vietnam;
- —allowing Pan Am a unilateral permit to fly into Warsaw;
- —avoiding criticism of the U.S.;
- —allowing exhibits and films about the U.S. to circulate throughout Poland.
Polish Economic Requests
Poland has requested three major items from the U.S.:
- —a short-term postponement of dollar payments on PL 480 debts (Tab E), i.e. the U.S. would not ask for immediate repayment of approximately $55 million owed to us over a period from 1971 to 1974;
- —approval of an export license for catalytic cracking technology (Tab F);
- —long-term USG credits to finance the sale of U.S. products to Poland.
State proposes to inform Poland that we see no economic reason to justify the debt rescheduling. Unless you conclude that political arguments are sufficiently strong that we should meet Polandʼs request, I intend to clear Stateʼs telegram (Tab A) which denies the Poles the debt rescheduling.
The catalytic cracking unit decision, as you know, has not yet been made5 although Sonnenfeldt and I continue to believe that a favorable decision should be taken as soon as possible. Long-term export credits through the Ex-Im Bank are available to Poland now that the Fino Amendment has been removed from the Ex-Im Bank bill (although no specific requests have as yet been received).
As this memo and past memoranda on Poland attest, decisions with regard to Poland are now being handled on an ad hoc basis—without benefit of an overall policy framework. Although this has proved only a minor problem, it will increase in magnitude now that the Fino Amendment has been removed from the Export-Import Bank bill (thereby allowing Ex-Im to finance commercial exports to Eastern European countries including Poland). Doubtless there will soon be requests for Ex-Im financing for a number of exports to Poland. We will then have to decide on a policy for handling these requests. You might, therefore, wish to consider issuing a NSSM on Poland which would examine our political relations and identify issues and options in future economic relations.
[Page 367]Recommendations
- 1.
- That you authorize me to clear the telegram (Tab A) to Warsaw indicating that we do not feel that economic grounds justify the requested debt rescheduling.6
- 2.
- That you indicate whether Sonnenfeldt and I should draft a NSSM on future relations with Poland—which would take into account inter alia our future economic relationships.7
- Source: National Archives, Nixon Presidential Materials, NSC Files, Box 698, Country Files—Europe, Poland, Vol. I 1969–1971. Confidential. Sent for action. Concurred in by Sonnenfeldt and sent through Haig. Tabs A–F are attached but not printed.↩
- Eliotʼs letter to Kissinger is dated August 6.↩
- Telegram 2210 from Warsaw, July 15.↩
- Telegram 1546 from Warsaw, May 21.↩
- Kissinger wrote in the margin at this point: “It is made.” See Document 151.↩
- Kissinger initialed his approval. In an attached August 26 memorandum to Eliot, Jeanne Davis of the NSC staff wrote: “Dr. Kissinger has approved the text of the draft cable to Warsaw…. However, paragraph 6 should be deleted since a decision on the catalytic cracker has already been made and communicated to the Poles.”↩
- Kissinger initialed his approval.↩