Consul, who was KGB. We believe this can. be remedied by sanitization; if not, it could become. an -issue if HSCA. insists on. publication. 7 5. Oswald's visit to Mexico City and other: developments. there have produced detailed discussion of certain events in HSCA drafts. One of those intended by the Committee for. unclassified publication has to do with a man who made allegations that Oswald received: money — in the Cuban Consulate for the purpose of killing the President. This considers the investigation of the allegation, with criticisms of the performance of the Agency. It involves detailed reference to the Station in Mexico. The other section intended for unclassified publication has to do with a man who flew to Cuba from Mexico City a few days after the assassination of President Kennedy. Again, there ‘is extensive reference to the role of the Station. The Committee's charter includes evaluation of the intelligence agencies, and it would argue it must publish. 6. The present issue is whether there can be some euphemism ‘for describing CIA personnel in Mexico City for the investigation, without specifying that they were assigned there on a permanent basis, or whether we simply oppose any references. The Committee can be _expected to contest our objections to any references to the Station or CIA's presence there for the investigation because the story cannot be told otherwise. To omit such references would mean | that these liniited sections would probably have to be deleted, or so emasculated as to be rendered sterile and incomprehensible. . 7. The Warren Commission report has. only limited references to CIA, crediting it with reporting Oswald's visit to Mexico City prior to the. assassination, and obtaining by undisclosed means a photograph of an unidentified man. Other information from CIA is not specified in - the report, while the press has accurately described those matters the Agency. has never officially confirmed it. om, 8. The Church Committee report, in Book V, “makes 28 separate | references to the Mexico Station (not Mexico city Station), or its Chief, or its communications with Washington. While this is not - publication by CIA, it has the quality of official confirmation by. virtue of being contained in. a ‘Senate report. The Agency did not . contest this at the time. Further, the Agency subsequently approved _ references to the Mexico City Station and its Chief, in the book. published by David Phillips, possibly because already public in the: oe | Senate report.
9. Staff Discussion: Since the Church Committee investigation - "and the approval of the references ‘in the Phillips book, there has been an increase in the sensitivity of the Mexico City Station. The Station has been the subject of a running campaign in the local press. Domestic. political controversy has focused attention on the Embassy and the Station, with allegations of bribery and other misdeeds. The interest of the United States av'-Mexico gas and petroleum has heightened . sensitivity concerning anything that may affect the political atmosphere. President Carter will be visiting in Mexico soon. The President himself has instructed the Attorney General that there can be no references . to the Mexico City Station in its prosecution of the ITT matter. While the President can instruct a member of the Executive Branch on this matter, | a formal position from him on this subject, directed to the Congress, does not have the same weight. 10. The agreement between you and. Chairman Stokes provides that when we receive an official notice of the intent to publish, you have five days in which to respond to him if you object. At present, we have this information on an informal basis and the five-day period does not apply. Therefore, this is posed to you in anticipation cf a disagreement a if discussions do not produce a way around the. issue. ‘11. Our options are: . oe a. To seek some compromise by discussions; . b. “Accept some euphemism that suggests. the presence in Mexico of CIA people in 1964 for purposes of the investigation without speci fy.ing that they were assigned there permanently; c. Catagorically oppose publication of these two sections. 12. Action Requested: We intend to pursue Option a, but prior ‘to doing so, your decision on Options.b and c will be necessary to shape how we proceed. . “3S. D.-Breckinridge. | poe ! o ee