263. Memorandum From Secretary of Defense Laird to Secretary of State Rogers1 2
Dear Bill:
As you know, on the 9th and 11th of September the Soviets made round trip reconnaissance flights out of Cuba. The two Soviet naval aircraft involved in each flight (TU–95/Bear Delta) ranged far enough north to place them over international waters off New Jersey. I believe it essential that an immediate protest be made to the Soviet Union with respect to these flights.
These operations seem to be establishing a new and disturbing pattern. This is the first time that the Soviets have flown operational reconnaissance missions from Cuba and return. Heretofore, the few Bears—typically about two—deployed to Cuba have been there in apparent conjunction with Soviet ship deployments in that area, and have stayed on the ground until they were returned to the Soviet Union.
Whatever the Soviet motivation for the current flights, one result of our implicit acquiescence to them would be a step toward encouraging further Soviet use of Cuba for purposes inimical to our interests. To the extent that the Soviets read our responses, or lack thereof, as decreasing the risks for them of continuing to probe in the Cuban/Caribbean area, they will be likely to increase the rate at which they do so. We have conveyed to the Soviets the seriousness with which we view their naval operations out of Cuba; we should be equally firm with regard to their use of the island as a base for air activities.
Sincerely,
- Source: Washington National Records Center, OSD Files: FRC 330–77A–0099, Cuba 1972. Confidential.↩
- Secretary of Defense Laird indicated that he believed the U.S. Government should protest the use of Soviet TU–95 Bear Delta aircraft, flying out of Cuba, to conduct reconnaissance along the east coast of the United States.↩