Close
Not finding the information you're looking for? Please contact the Archives research staff.
Oral history
John F. Kennedy Oral History Collection
JFKOH-WAH-03
In this interview, Harriman discusses American opinion on negotiations in Laos; U.S. negotiations and objectives in Indonesia; American relations with Achmed Sukarno; friction between the State Department and the Pentagon over who should control the situation in Vietnam, civilians or the military; Ngo Dinh Diem and the military coup that overthrew him; problems with and for newspapermen in Vietnam; and his opinion on where the United States went wrong in Vietnam, among other issues.
Oral history
John F. Kennedy Oral History Collection
JFKOH-ROWK-03
In this interview Komer discusses negotiating disengagement with Gamal Abdel Nasser and Faisal, King of Saudi Arabia; John F. Kennedy’s [JFK] involvement in the Yemen crisis and the negotiations with Nasser and Faisal; U.S. New Guinea policy and the Dutch-Indonesian conflict; JFK and counterinsurgency; Komer and police programs as part of U.S. counterinsurgency efforts; JFK’s policy towards and involvement with India and Pakistan; U.S. military assistance to India, 1962; and U.S. missions to Pakistan and India, among other issues.
Oral history
John F. Kennedy Oral History Collection
JFKOH-RFK-02
In this interview Robert F. Kennedy [RFK] discusses the 1961 Berlin crisis; American forces, military and diplomatic, in Germany; John F. Kennedy’s [JFK] recommendation for Americans to have fallout shelters; nuclear testing; problems with the Department of State; the start of the conflict in Vietnam, 1961; the Department of Justice under RFK and organized crime; RFK’s difficult relationship with J. Edgar Hoover; the wiretapping bill; new federal judgeships in 1961 and other presidential appointments; the Alliance for Progress; Red China; crises during JFK’s presidency and how he was an optimist; RFK’s move for an income tax increase during the Berlin crisis; RFK’s disagreements with President JFK; indecisiveness over picking JFK’s running mate, 1960; the missile gap; fighting and UN operations in the Congo; Nikita S. Khrushchev’s speeches; RFK’s 1962 trip to Japan, Indonesia, Germany, and other countries; the release of Allen L. Pope; Dutch disputes in Southeast Asia; the 1961 crisis in the Dominican Republic and the assassination of Rafael Leonidas Trujillo Molina; the 1962 disarmament conference in Geneva; Edward M. Kennedy’s 1962 campaign for U.S. Senate; the Kennedy family national and political reputation; the Justice Department under RFK and civil rights; and the 1962 steel crisis, among other issues.
Oral history
John F. Kennedy Oral History Collection
JFKOH-MVF-02
Forrestal discusses the Cuban Missile Crisis, the Maphilindo problem and Malaysian/Indonesian tension, and the significance of Nam Tha, among other issues.
Textual folder
Papers of John F. Kennedy. Presidential Papers. National Security Files
JFKNSF-317-010
This folder contains summaries of meetings with President John F. Kennedy. Topics include a potential violation of an agreement granting neutrality to Laos, and relations between the United States and Soviet Union regarding Berlin. Also included in this folder is a memorandum of a meeting between President Kennedy, Prince Bernhard of the Netherlands, and Ambassador of the Netherlands Dr. Jan Herman van Roijen discussing Dutch relations with the United States and Indonesia.
Sound recording
Papers of John F. Kennedy. Presidential Papers. President's Office Files.
JFKPOF-MTG-096-002
Sound recording of a meeting held on July 4, 1963, between President John F. Kennedy, Under Secretary of State George Ball, Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs W. Averell Harriman, Special Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs McGeorge Bundy, Assistant Secretary of State for Far Eastern Affairs Roger Hilsman, and member of the National Security Council Michael Forrestal. The main focus of this White House off-the-record meeting is the situation in Vietnam. The meeting takes place not long after a Buddhist monk burned himself to death to protest the relationship between the government of Vietnam and the Buddhists and amidst recent Buddhist demonstrations. The possibility of a coup in Vietnam and differing staff assessments of that possibility are also presented. Other topics are discussed near the end of the meeting, including Laos, Indonesia, Brazil, and Averell Harriman’s upcoming mission to Moscow concerning the treaty banning atmospheric nuclear weapons tests, later known as the Partial Test Ban Treaty (PTBT) or the Limited Test Ban Treaty (LTBT), and specific aspects of its negotiations. One segment of the recording totaling 35 seconds has been removed in accordance with the donor's deed of gift. Four segments of the recording totaling 41 seconds have been removed in accordance with Section 3.4 (b) (1), (3) of Executive Order 12958. This sound recording has been excerpted from Tape 96, which contains additional sound recording(s) preceding and following this one. See Related Records to access Tape 96 in its entirety.