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CIA Post-Mortem on the Cuban Missile Crisis: Khrushchev’s Miscalculated Risk

by David Coleman

A detailed narrative of the CIA’s post-mortem assessment of the Cuban Missile Crisis. It includes very useful summaries of the nature and chronology of the Soviet buildup as well as what and how U.S. intelligence analysts knew about it.

Filed Under: Documents Tagged With: CIA, Cuban Missile Crisis

Preparing for JFK’s Meeting with Mikoyan 11/29/1962

by David Coleman

Soviet First Deputy Chairman of the Council of Ministers Anastas Mikoyan had just returned from a long and difficult mission to Cuba to help repair the damage caused by the outcome of the Cuban Missile Crisis. President Kennedy was schedule to meet him later in the day. McGeorge Bundy prepared a talking points paper.

Filed Under: Documents Tagged With: Anastas Mikoyan, Cuban Missile Crisis, McGeorge Bundy

The US Government’s File on Sir David Ormsby-Gore (1962)

by David Coleman

This file was used in the briefing book for the meeting between JFK and British Prime Minister Harold Macmillan when they met at Nassau in the Bahamas on December 18-21, 1962. That meeting was most famous for the Skybolt controversy.

Filed Under: Documents Tagged With: David Ormsby-Gore, Nassau, Skybolt

Current Intelligence Weekly Summary 2/1/1963

by David Coleman

A consolidated summary of intelligence compiled by the CIA on February 1, 1963. Topics include the Cuban situation, Soviet economy, Sino-Mongolian relations, the Congo, Togo, Iran, Indonesia-Malaysia relations, South Korea, Italy, Denmark’s Faeroe Islands problem, Brazil’s new Cabinet, Argentina’s financial crisis, the Chinese Navy, and Turkey’s first five-year plan.

Filed Under: Documents Tagged With: Cold War, Cuban Missile Crisis, intelligence, Sino-Indian War

LBJ’s “X” File on Nixon, the Bombing Halt, Anna Chennault, and the 1968 Election

by David Coleman

Here are the results of a Mandatory Review request I filed with the LBJ Library in 2010 for declassifying closed sections of LBJ’s so-called “X” file on Richard Nixon, the bombing halt, and the 1968 election.

Filed Under: Documents Tagged With: 1968 election, Anna Chennault, LBJ, Nixon, Vietnam War

John McCone’s Statement on the Soviet Military Presence in Cuba 2/6/1963

by David Coleman

This was a publicly released statement by Director of Central Intelligence John McCone. It was designed to silence the growing criticism from some members of Congress such as Senator Strom Thurmond (D-South Carolina) and Senator Kenneth Keating (R-New York) about the continued Soviet military presence in Cuba. With the criticism peaking in early February 1963, the administration made a concerted effort to be more publicly transparent about what it knew about the Soviet forces still in Cuba and what had been removed.

Filed Under: Documents Tagged With: Cuban Missile Crisis, intelligence

The Risk of Suitcase Atomic Bombs Being Smuggled into the United States

by David Coleman

A 1954 memorandum discussing the risk of an enemy smuggling a suitcase-style atomic bomb into the United States.

Filed Under: Documents Tagged With: nuclear history, nuclear terrorism

Central Intelligence Bulletin for 9/19/1963

by David Coleman

The Central Intelligence Briefing for September 19, 1963, including the Daily Brief. Topics include efforts to seat China at the United Nations, Chad, USSR, Algeria, South Africa, Congo, Iraq, Egypt, Israel, & Turkey.

Filed Under: Central Intelligence Bulletins Tagged With: intelligence

Central Intelligence Bulletin for 7/26/1963

by David Coleman

The Central Intelligence Briefing for July 26, 1963, including the Daily Brief. Topics include South Vietnam, Egypt, Morocco, Common Market, France and NATO, and Venezuela.

Filed Under: Central Intelligence Bulletins Tagged With: intelligence

Central Intelligence Bulletin for 6/22/1963

by David Coleman

The Central Intelligence Briefing for June 22, 1963, including the Daily Brief. Topics include Soviet leadership, and Sino-Soviet rift.

Filed Under: Central Intelligence Bulletins Tagged With: intelligence

Central Intelligence Bulletin for 4/24/1963

by David Coleman

The Central Intelligence Briefing for April 24, 1963, including the Daily Brief. Topics include Haiti, Bolivia, UK trade with USSR, and Venezuela.

Filed Under: Central Intelligence Bulletins Tagged With: intelligence

Indian Prime Minister Nehru’s Letter to JFK on the Sino-Indian War – 11/19/1962 – 2/2

by David Coleman

With Indian troops being pushed back along the border by Chinese assaults, Indian Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru sent a remarkable call for help to President John F. Kennedy. Given the sensitivity of the letter, it remained classified by the Indian government until very recently.

Filed Under: Documents Tagged With: India, Jawaharlal Nehru, Sino-Indian War

Indian Prime Minister Nehru’s Letter to JFK on the Sino-Indian War – 11/19/1962 – 1/2

by David Coleman

This was the first of two letters Indian Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru sent to President Kennedy on November 19, 1962, on the situation in the Sino-Indian War.

Filed Under: Documents Tagged With: India, Jawaharlal Nehru, JFK, Sino-Indian War

Central Intelligence Briefing for 12/17/1962

by David Coleman

The Central Intelligence Briefing for December 17, 1962, including the Daily Brief. Topics include Sino-Soviet rift, Soviet block shipping to Cuba, disarmament, Brazil, Malaya-Singapore, Southern Rhodesia, and Belgium.

Filed Under: Central Intelligence Bulletins Tagged With: intelligence