Documents / Official release

[01/08/1997 - 09/11/1997]: 24194018-20060474F-001-018-2023

· 48 pages · text by GLM-OCR

This Clinton Presidential Library folder of NSC cables, filed under "Flying Saucer or UFO" and covering January to September 1997, holds several cables plus a withdrawal sheet listing three redacted items. A Tel Aviv embassy media report notes an Israeli cartoon about a January 5 UFO alert. An FBIS translation reports that a Colombian helicopter landed in Rubio, Venezuela, prompting UFO speculation. A DoD briefing transcript quotes Kenneth Bacon saying a CIA study found no evidence of UFOs, and an FBIS summary covers Cuban radio claims about the 1947 New Mexico crash.

  • p. 13 …BACON, ASD (PA) AT THE PENTAGON MR. BACON: GOOD AFTERNOON. IT'S APRIL FOOL'S DAY…
  • p. 16 …IF IT'S SUCH A GOOD PLANE, WHY DOESN'T THE PENTAGON WANT TO BUY ANY…
  • p. 19 …CAN YOU SHED ANY LIGHT ON EITHER OF THOSE REPORTS? IS THE PENTAGON AWARE OF IT…
  • p. 20 …TO KIND OF PUT THIS STORY IN PERSPECTIVE, HAS THE UNITED STATES OR THE PENTAGON NOTICED…
  • p. 22 WITHOUT ANY PENTAGON REVIEW OF THE SECURITY THREAT? A: THE SECURITY REVIEW OF THE COSCO ARRANGEMENT…
  • p. 23 …HAVE BEEN--ARE--LOOKING AT WAYS THAT THE PENTAGON CAN BE RUN MORE EFFICIENTLY, AND THAT…
  • p. 25 …BACON, ASD (PA) AT THE PENTAGON MR. BACON: WELL, GOOD AFTERNOON. IT CERTAINLY IS A GREAT…
  • p. 28 …APOSTOLOS TSOHATZOPOULOS AND THE SECRETARY OF DEFENSE WILLIAM COHEN HERE AT THE PENTAGON? A: I HAVEN…
  • p. 30 …DOES THE PENTAGON SEE ROOM FOR COMPROMISE HERE, OR IS THE PRESIDENT GOING TO INSIST, AND…
  • p. 31 …THAT IF THE CONGRESS DOESN'T LIFT THE 60-40 RULE, THAT THE PENTAGON WILL NOT…
  • p. 33 …BACON, ASD (PA) AT THE PENTAGON MR. BACON: GOOD AFTERNOON. SORRY I'M LATE FOR THE…
  • p. 36 …OF THE SECURITY PROCEDURES? AND ARE YOU CONFIDENT GENERALLY THAT SECURITY AT THE PENTAGON IS ADEQUATE…
  • p. 38 …WERE HIS ACTIONS CAPTURED ON THE PENTAGON VIDEO MONITOR? PAGE 03 RUEKJCS7746 UNCLAS A: THEY WERE…
  • p. 39 …HE'S PART OF THE EMERGENCY RESPONSE TEAM THAT THE PENTAGON HAS, SORT OF A SEPARATE…
  • p. 40 PAGE 06 RUEKJCS7746 UNCLAS NAVAL HEADQUARTERS WHICH IS ON THE FOURTH FLOOR OF THE PENTAGON. FIRST…
  • p. 41 …DOES DEFENSE SECURITY GO TO THE VITAL OFFICES AROUND THE PENTAGON AND ALSO TO PROTECT TOP…
  • p. 42 …THE PENTAGON? A: WE ARE DOING IT. WE ARE, ONE, LOOKING AT THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE…
  • p. 43 …OVER THE WEEKEND, OR IT WAS RELEASED OR REPORTED ON OVER THE WEEKEND -- AS PENTAGON SPOKESMAN…

Read from the scan by GLM-OCR; expect the odd misread word.

TODAY.

Q: HAVE YOU SEEN REPORTS ABOUT LEAKED DECLASSIFIED

DOCUMENTS ON THE AIR FORCE AND POWS SHOWING THAT THE AIR FORCE KNEW MORE ABOUT LIVE POWS THAN WAS FIRST ADMITTED? HAVE YOU SEEN THAT REPORT YET?

A: I HAVE NOT SEEN THAT REPORT. THERE HAVE BEEN SIMILAR REPORTS IN THE PAST ABOUT OTHER SERVICES, BUT I HAVEN'T SEEN ANY SPECIFIC ONE ABOUT THE AIR FORCE SO I CAN'T COMMENT ON IT AT ALL.

Q: WHAT'S THE STATUS OF THE INVESTIGATION INTO EZEQUIEL HERNANDEZ'S DEATH? AND DO YOU...

A: I'M SORRY?

Q: WHAT'S THE STATUS OF THE INVESTIGATION INTO THE DEATH OF THE REDFORD TEENAGER? AND DO YOU EXPECT THAT INVESTIGATION TO COME TO AN END ANY TIME SOON?

## PAGE 05 RUEKJCS7748 UNCLAS

A: YES, I EXPECT IT TO COME TO AN END. I CAN'T GIVE YOU THE EXACT TIMING OF WHEN IT WILL COME TO AN END. THE INITIAL CONCLUSION OF THE MARINE CORPS WHEN THEY LOOKED INTO THIS WAS THAT THE MARINES ACTED APPROPRIATELY. THEY FELT THEY WERE UNDER THREAT, THEY'D BEEN FIRED UPON, AND THEY RESPONDED LEGITIMATELY TO DEFEND THEMSELVES AS THEY'RE ALLOWED TO DO UNDER THE RULES OF ENGAGEMENT. BUT WE ARE CONTINUING TO LOOK AT THAT INCIDENT. WHEN WE FINISH, WE WILL REPORT ON THE FINDINGS.

Q: A SENIOR STATE DEPARTMENT OFFICIAL SAID YESTERDAY THAT VERY SOON ARRESTS OF MLADIC AND KARADZIC WOULD COME. DOES THE DEFENSE DEPARTMENT SEE IT THAT WAY, THAT THAT IS IMMINENT?

A: I DIDN'T SEE ANY REPORT THAT THAT SENIOR OFFICIAL SAID THAT. I HAVE TO CONFESS, I HAVEN'T FINISHED THE TRANSCRIPT OF THE BRIEFING, BUT I CAN'T IMAGINE THAT IF HE SAID THAT YESTERDAY, IT WOULDN'T HAVE BEEN REPORTED. I DON'T THINK I SHOULD COMMENT ON THAT UNTIL I READ THE ACTUAL REMARKS MYSELF. DID YOU SEE ANY REPORTS THAT THAT'S WHAT HE ACTUALLY SAID?

Q: I ASKED THE QUESTION. THAT "ARRESTS WOULD COME SOON" OF THESE WAR CRIMINALS, AND I TAKE IT THAT THAT ARREST WOULD COME BY WHAT MEANS? ANYTHING TO DO WITH NATO OR SFOR?

## PAGE 06 RUEKJCS7748 UNCLAS

A: ALL I CAN TELL YOU, BILL, IS WHAT WE HAVE SAID MANY TIMES BEFORE, THAT WE'RE DETERMINED TO HELP THE INTERNATIONAL WAR CRIMES TRIBUNAL BRING INDICTED WAR CRIMINALS TO JUSTICE.

PRESS: THANK YOU.

TRANSCRIPTS OF THE DOD NEWS BRIEFING ARE ALSO AVAILABLE ON DEFENSELINK, THE DOD HOMEPAGE - HTTP://WWW.DTIC.MIL/DEFENSELINK/OASD/PA IS LOOKING AT DISCONTINUING TRANSMITTAL OF THE TWICE WEEKLY PRESS BRIEFING IN MESSAGE FORMAT. WE BELIEVE MOST, IF NOT ALL, AGENCIES ON OUR DISTRIBUTION LIST ARE ABLE TO OBTAIN THIS BRIEFING VIA DEFENSELINK. WE SOLICIT YOUR COMMENTS ON THIS PROPOSAL. PLEASE REPLY VIA MESSAGE TO: OASD/PA/DDI (ATTN: LCDR CAMPBELL) OR VIA ELECTRONIC MAIL TO: SCAMPBEL@PAGATE.PA.OSD.MIL. YOUR OPINION IS IMPORTANT. PLEASE LET US KNOW.

SECT: SECTION: 01 OF 05

SECTION: 02 OF 05

Cases discussed

  • Roswell Incident 1947
    explosion of a UFO in New Mexico in 1947 and the results of an autopsy... kept a secret by the Americans

About this file

Official release, from the nara 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. 48 pages are in the text index: search them above, or from the library's search.