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2025 RELEASE UNDER THE PRESIDENT JOHN F. KENNEDY ASSASSINATION RECORDS ACT OF 1992

VHFNO: 96-4016553

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96

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021354Z

MAY 96

0213542 DIRECTOR 758224

DIRECTOR 758224

•SECRET

STAFF

TO: VIENNA.

FROM:

LIMIT EUR/GA INFO EUR/LGI, OGC/OFLD, DC/EUR, OCC/OSG,

OGC/OSD

SLUGS: WNINTEL RYBAT

SUBJECT: EYES ONLY - APRIL 1996 MEETING BETWEEN JFK BOARD

ATTORNEY AND JOHN WHITTEN

REF: A. VIENNA 34962 96 3666955

B. DIRECTOR 702048

96 3616677

TEXT:

1. ACTION REQUIRED: NONE, FYIO.

2. THE FOLLOWING REPRESENTS THE MEMORANDUM FOR THE RECORD

PREPARED BY IDEN B REF B CONCERNING THE INTERVIEW WITH JOHN

WHITTEN AND IS PROVIDED FOR YOUR EDIFICATION.

ON 22 APRIL 1996, FROM APPROXIMATELY 1000 TO 1600, IDENS REF

B SPOKE WITH JOHN WHITTEN AT THE U.S. EMBASSY IN VIENNA.

CONDUCTED THE INTERVIEW BY SHOWING WHITTEN VARIOUS DOCUMENTS AND

*HIS PRIOR TESTIMONY BEFORE THE<HSCA. > WHITTEN WAS EAGER TO HELP

THE BOARD IN ANY WAY HE COULD AND EVEN OFFERED TO COME TO THE U.S.

IF NEED BE. IDEN A CONCLUDED THAT IT WOULD PROBABLY NOT BE USEFUL

TO TAKE WHITTEN'S DEPOSITION AT A LATER DATE.

ALTHOUGH WHITTEN

HAD IN GENERAL A GOOD MEMORY, IDEN A FELT HE DID NOT ADD ANYTHING

*OF SIGNIFICANCE TO HIS PRIOR

TESTIMONY BEFORE THE<HSCA.> AFTER THE

INTERVIEW, WHITTEN TOOK IDENS TO HIS APARTMENT AND THEN LATER TO A

RESTAURANT WITH HIS WIFE. IDENS LEFT WHITTEN ABOUT 1900.

WHITTEN WAS. EXTREMELY WORRIED AND UPSET ABOUT THE RELEASE OF

HIS NAME AND ON SEVERAL OCCASIONS IN THE INTERVIEW WAS ON THE

VERGE OF TEARS.

ALTHOUGH IDEN B WAS EXPECTING HIM TO BE ANGRY

WITH CIA AND THE BOARD, INSTEAD, HE CLEARLY FELT HURT AND

BETRAYED. HIS OBVIOUS PHYSICAL PROBLEMS ADD TO THIS FEELING OF

BEING VULNERABLE. PHYSICALLY HE IS NOT WELL; HE IS PARALYZED ON

HIS LEFT SIDE AND HAS GREAT DIFFICULTY WALKING.

ON A MAP, HE

POINTED OUT HIS APARTMENT AND INDICATED WHAT HE BELIEVED TO BE

SERIOUS THREATS TO HIS SAFETY SHOULD HIS AFFILIATION WITH CIA

BECOME KNOWN. WITHIN A BLOCK OF HIS APARTMENT HE POINTED OUT THE

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HEADQUARTERS OF THE KURDISH WORKERS' PARTY (PKK), THE ANARCHIST

PARTY, AND A BAR WHERE MANY MIDDLE EASTERNERS WOULD CONGREGATE.

HE THEN POINTED OUT THESE PLACES TO IDENS WHEN WE WENT TO HIS

APARTMENT.

HE MADE IT CLEAR THAT THERE WAS NO WAY HE COULD DEFEND

HIMSELF FROM ANY ATTACK.

WHITTEN ALSO STATED THAT HE HAS BEEN RETIRED FOR ALMOST AS

LONG AS HE WORKED FOR THE CIA, AND THAT HE HAS A COMPLETELY

DIFFERENT LIFE NOW IN VIENNA. HE AND HIS WIFE HAVE LIVED IN

VIENNA APPROXIMATELY 25 YEARS. HE IS A MEMBER OF VARIOUS MUSICAL

AND ART SOCIETIES.

HE SINGS IN A PROMINENT VIENNA MEN'S CHOIR.

HE HAS PUBLISHED VARIOUS ARTICLES ON MUSIC (HIS SPECIALITY IS

JOHANN STRAUSS) .

HE HAS RECEIVED MANY MEDALS FOR HIS WORK IN THE

ARTS IN VIENNA WHICH WE SAW WHEN WE WENT TO HIS APARTMENT.

WHITTEN IS ALSO GREATLY WORRIED ABOUT THE FACT THAT HE

COMMITTED PERJURY WHEN APPLYING FOR AUSTRIAN RESIDENCY BY STATING

HE WORKED FOR THE STATE DEPARTMENT. HE BELIEVES THIS. COULD

SUBJECT HIM TO CRIMINAL PENALTIES IN AUSTRIA.

HE STATED ON

SEVERAL OCCASIONS, SHOULD HIS AFFILIATION. BECOME KNOWN, HE WOULD

HAVE TO LEAVE AUSTRIA. ON OTHER OCCASIONS, HE STATED THAT HE

WOULD TURN HIMSELF IN TO THE VIENNESE AUTHORITIES AND OFFER HIS

SERVICES AS. A CONSULTANT TO THE POLICE OR INTELLIGENCE SERVICE.

HE OBVIOUSLY WAS EXTREMELY DISTRAUGHT AND WAS VOICING WHAT HE

BELIEVED WERE HIS OPTIONS SHOULD HIS NAME BE RELEASED BY THE

BOARD, ALTHOUGH HE HAD NOT DECIDED ON A PARTICULAR COURSE OF

ON THE OTHER HAND, WHITTEN WAS ADAMANT THAT NO MATTER.

WHAT HAPPENS HE WOULD NEVER BETRAY THE CIA BY TELLING ANYONE ABOUT

HIS WORK AS AN INTELLIGENCE OFFICER.

BY THE END OF THE EVENING,

WHITTEN STATED THAT HE FELT MUCH

BETTER ABOUT THE STATE OF EVENTS.

ON SEVERAL OCCASIONS, IDEN B

•HAD ASSURED HIM THAT CIA WAS DOING EVERYTHING TO PROTECT HIM AND

IDEN A STATED HE WOULD ARGUE FOR HIS PROTECTION TO THE BOARD. HE

CLEARLY LOOKED UPON IDENS AS HIS ALLIES IN THIS PROCESS AND EVEN

STATED THAT HE HAD A "WONDERFUL" DAY TALKING TO IDENS.

IDENS

• LEFT HIM, THEY BELIEVE, FEELING HAPPY AND CONFIDENT ALL WOULD TURN

OUT WELL.

AFTER THE MEETING, IDENS SPOKE ABOUT HOW THIS ISSUE WOULD BE

HANDLED BY THE BOARD.

IDEN A BELIEVED THAT IT WAS MORE THAN

LIKELY THAT THE BOARD. WOULD AGREE TO PROTECT HIM AND THAT HE WOULD

MAKE THE STRONGEST ARGUMENT HE COULD TO THEM. THE BOARD WILL MAKE

ITS DECISION IN IT'S NEXT MEETING IN MID-MAY. IDEN B DID NOT

THINK IT WOULD BE NECESSARY FOR ANYONE FROM CIA TO COME DOWN TO

THAT MEETING. WE. AGREED THAT SHOULD THE BOARD MAKE THE

REPREHENSIBLE DECISION OF RELEASING WHITTEN'S NAME,

THAT WE COULD

NOT IMAGINE A STRONGER CASE ON

PRESIDENT.

WHICH TO BRING AN APPEAL TO THE

3.

IDEN B EXTENDS HER THANKS TO THE STATION FOR ARRANGING

THE INTERVIEW AND HER HOTEL ACCOMMODATIONS.

SHE SAID EVERYTHING

WENT EXTREMELY SMOOTHLY.

HQS WILL APPRISE STATION OF BOARD'S

DECISION REGARDING WHITTEN

(PROBABLY MID-MAY).

REGARDS.

4.

FILE:

785-120-034. INDEX:

NONE. CL BY: 0666970, CL

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DECL

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FROM:

HUM 4-82.

CABLETYPE:

GECO STAFF 1.0.2.>

RELNO: E409396

ORIG:

EUR/GAEXT (HUMPHJA, 45591) / AUTH:

EUR/GA (VOLZ) ;

INFO:

EUR/ LGL (CRAWFORD) , OGC/LD (CIPRIANI-SUB) , ; REL:

EUR/GA (VOLZ)

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