JOHN F. KENNEDY: Hello? SPEAKER: Yes, please? JOHN F. KENNEDY: Hello,
is the general on the-- SPEAKER: Yes, I'll
put it on here, sir. Ready. JOHN F. KENNEDY: Hello? DWIGHT D. EISENHOWER: General
Eisenhower, Mr. President. JOHN F. KENNEDY:
General, how are you? DWIGHT D. EISENHOWER:
Pretty good, thank you. JOHN F. KENNEDY: Oh, fine. General, I just wanted to bring
you up to date on this matter, because I know of
your concern about it. We got, Friday night, got a
message from Khrushchev, which said that he would
withdraw these missiles and technicians and
so on, providing we did not plan to invade Cuba. We then got a message, the
public one, the next morning, in which he said he would
do that if we withdrew our missiles from Turkey. We then, as you know,
issued a statement that we couldn't
get into that deal. So we then got this
message this morning. So we now have to wait
to see how it unfolds, and there's a good deal
of complexities to it. If the withdrawal of these
missiles, technicians, and the cessation of
subversive activity by them-- well, we just have to set
up satisfactory procedures to determine whether these
actions will be carried out. So I would think that
if we can do that, we'll find our interests advanced,
even though it may be only one more chapter in a rather
long story, as far as Cuba is concerned. DWIGHT D. EISENHOWER: Of course. But Mr. President, does
he put any conditions on whatsoever the-- JOHN F. KENNEDY: No, except that
we're not going invade Cuba. That's the only
one we've got now. But we don't plan to invade Cuba
under these conditions anyway. DWIGHT D. EISENHOWER: No. JOHN F. KENNEDY: So if we can
get them out, we're better off. But if-- DWIGHT D. EISENHOWER:
That's correct. I quite agree. I just wondered whether
he was trying to-- knowing we would keep
our word, whether he would try to engage us
in any kind of statements or commitments that finally one
day could be very embarrassing. Listen, suppose they got in-- Suppose they start to
bombard Guantanamo. JOHN F. KENNEDY: Right. DWIGHT D. EISENHOWER:
What I'm getting at-- I quite agree this is
a very, you might say, conciliatory move
he's made, provided that he doesn't say that-- JOHN F. KENNEDY:
Oh, well, I agree. Oh, yeah, that's right. I think what we've
got to do is keep-- that's why I don't think the
Cuban story can be over yet. I think we will retain
sufficient freedom to protect our interests. If he-- DWIGHT D. EISENHOWER:
That's all I was-- JOHN F. KENNEDY: If they
engage in subversion, if they attempt to do any
aggressive action, so on, then all bets are off. In addition, my guess is that
by the end of next month, we're going to be toe
to toe in Berlin anyway. I think this is important
for the time being, because it requires quite a step
down, really, for Khrushchev. On the other hand, I think
that, as we all know, they just probe, and
their word's unreliable, so we just have to
stay busy on it. DWIGHT D. EISENHOWER: Yeah. As I've observed
before, Mr. President, [INAUDIBLE] these
people do not equate-- and I think it's been
a mistake to equate-- Berlin with Cuba
or anything else. They take any spot in the world. They don't care where it is. JOHN F. KENNEDY: That's right. DWIGHT D. EISENHOWER:
And then it's just the question is,
are you in such a place you either can't
or won't resist? JOHN F. KENNEDY: That's right. Yeah. DWIGHT D. EISENHOWER:
[INAUDIBLE] into Tibet. There's nothing you
can do with Tibet. Up that mountainous
country over there. We couldn't even reach it. And so what we could do then
is [INAUDIBLE],, that's all. Now, so they get
to-- and they probe when you can't do anything. Then if they get another place
where they think that you just won't for some reason or
other, why, then they go ahead. So I think you're doing
exactly right on this. Go ahead, but just
let them know that you won't be the aggressor. But if the other
[INAUDIBLE] then you've always got the
right to determine whether the other
guy's the aggressor. JOHN F. KENNEDY: Well,
we'll stay right at it, and I'll keep in touch
with you, General. DWIGHT D. EISENHOWER: Thank
you very much, Mr. President. Bye. JOHN F. KENNEDY: OK. Thank you. SPEAKER: I put it right through. Waiting.
