Documents / FOIA release
This Top Secret study by the Interdepartmental Coordinating Group on Germany and Berlin, dated July 12, 1961, and released by the Central Intelligence Agency, answers NSC Directive No. 58 of June 30, 1961. It sets out courses of action for the Berlin crisis but does not judge their merits. It covers imminent presidential decisions, a three-phase timetable running to January 1, military preparations and mobilization, covert action, economic sanctions, public information, negotiating positions and checkpoint procedures for East German personnel.
“Cooper”8 pages
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## 3. Expanded Public Speaking Program Immediate plans should be made to expand the public speaking program of the Department of State. To carry out such an expanded program consideration should be given to assigning to the Speaking Arrangements Section of the Department for periods of one or two months Foreign Service Officers on home leave or between assignments. As an important part of this program, influential platforms should be obtained for high-ranking officers of the Department, including the Secretary, the Under Secretary, the Counselor and other top officials. Efforts should also be made to enlist the services of specialists outside of the Department, such as Dr. Henry Kissinger and Dr. Hans Morgenthau. (Action responsibility: State.) ## 4. Briefing Conferences By way of augmenting an expanded public speaking program special periodic conferences should be arranged for the purpose of providing thorough, authoritative background briefings on the Berlin situation for representatives of United States information media (press, radio, TV) from all parts of the United States, as well as for representatives of key non-governmental organizations. In this same connection arrangements should also be made for regular background briefings in Washington for selected American and Allied correspondents accredited to the Department of State. Such briefing will not only serve to keep the American public accurately informed concerning developments relating to Berlin but will provide a ready means of explaining the United States policy position on the Berlin issue. (Action responsibility: State, USIA.) ## 5. Presidential Reports to the Nation The President should plan to make periodic reports to the nation on the Berlin situation. These reports could take the form of fireside chats as well as the customary statements at the beginning of Presidential news conferences. It is recommended that the first of these reports be made shortly after the publication of the United States reply to the Soviet aide-memoire, perhaps in the form of an address to a joint session of Congress. (Action responsibility: White House.)
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FOIA release, from the cia-readingroom collection. The PDF is mirrored here; the original link is above. The text was read from the page images by GLM-OCR; expect the odd misread word. 163 pages are in the text index: search them above, or from the library's search.