. I • •• ·" Qge SEC. HAS SEEN •

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·Attached is a brief chronology FYI of recent developments re: US military presence in Argentina.

The latest step was Mr. Ingersoll's letter to Secretary Schlesinger (Tab C) stating that -- despite certain DoD objections -- the- MlLGRP must be reduced by 7 •

. No action is required by you at this time, unless you choose to become involved (which I presume you don't}.

Page determined to be Unclassified Reviewed Chief, ROD, WHS lAW EO 13526, Section 3.5 Dale: DEC 2 8 2017

Attachment. a/s

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0 6 MAY 1999 1Ntu.NA110NAL IICUIItY AfPAIRS

~·~~ 24 March 1975

DECLASSIFIED IN FULJL Authority: EO 13526

MEMORANDUM FOR LTC DAWKINS Chief, Records & Declass lliv, WHS Data: DEC 2 8 2017

SUBJECT: Current Status of Request for Reduction of Argentina MilGroup

To confia·m our conversation of this morning:

prompted by the terrorist assassination of a U.S. Consular Agent (Egan). The position reiterated all of his previous arguments (initial request was made In Nov 1974).

-- Acting Secretary of State Ingersoll forwarded a letter to SecDef on 13 March supporting this reduction and indicating that he would call the SecDef shortly thereafter to discuss the Issue.

-- The point paper at Tab A was prepared by ISA for SecDef's

.(I use In his conversation with Ingersoll. It· essentially recommended that we fall off o • i • and a ree to a reduction in

e up.

-- The CJCS also proyided an input to the SecDef (memo at Tab B) reiterating his firm position that no reduction in the MiiGroup be made"':'

In view of conflicting Inputs from ISA and the CJCS, Gen Wickham, Mil Asst to SecDef, contacted Mr. Eagleburger In the State Department to discuss the issue. In summary, Gen Wickham was advised that State Intended to overrule any DoD recommendation to keep the MilGroup strenath at its current level and would suopor} the_Ambas§ador•s regyest fgr . reductjgn. Gen Wickham asked Mr. Eagleburger to provide written con- ]~·p I flrmation which he agreed to do;(!o date this has not been forthcoming.~~

At the present time no further actions are being taken pending official (TaC.t)\.\ I notification from State. ~ !

Attachment a/s ~.~~<Q.~,._

LTC USA ASST EXEC OFFICER

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St6REf1 DECLASSIFIED ill fi.ILIL Authority: EO 13526 Chief, Records & Declass Div, WHS Date: DEC 2 8 2017

14 MAR 1975

MEMORANDUM FOR Tim ASSISTANT SECRETARY OF DEFENSE OSA) '

· ~· .. ·. OD 13 Much-19'1!. ~Acting Secretary ol State forwuded a letter· .. to the SIIQ'tltary of DefeaM-p1"op 111ring a redudioft in the US Nilitary G~~p Arga:ata'~< f:lro!aZOto 13- USperiiOIUlel.

· -.. ·This is~ bad~ the subject of earli~S~"~rnspondence (Novedlw ·· .. J. 1974) ~·however,. Dep See Def did not concur '!'nth the reduction of the .· ·.

·· · MUG~up.

• .,·.Acl:iag Secretazoy htseraoll'•latser make$ the following facta: (1} ·· A a heaador Hill baec-decthe pr-t ~t situatioD his ratiouale-

. ,for-~tlag ahd.-:tioaira offl.ctal US prlthnce. (Z) hie point is :rein­. · foned by the r-t sla)'iDs of. the US Consullll" Ag~mt, (3} the possible · poUtleal impUca~ if a US llliUtary oflicer were involved in aD aasasei-

natiOD. (4) the telllpftll%')' nature of the p~ollled reductiou. (5) the · appuiNtt urgomcy. of AJJibauador Hill'. r~erJ>t.

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- Aldlougb..wecould'~;agai.u* tbepropoeal to Cui US lllllituy·;;r .· : .:-- .... -.--.. ,

preADC~~>. the poeaibllityohdditiomal tenorist activities and adverse· -~ · poUtical implicatlou appear to of&et srguDIIems to contin- the C\1Z'J'8Dt­strezagtluf US milltary ~·in Argeati.n&.

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,.._,,.~ •. 1 r~eDd that DOD DOt-object to the proposed r~- . and tb$t you Jut ward the attachecl poiDt paper. indicating. this view~ to the ___ :· · · · .or::~~ Secretary of Defaae for hie ue iD di&C\Uislng. the D~Btter With s-etary .. -. . ·· .~· "':fo' IDgeraoli. .

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JAMES A. QRlMS::EY,, JR. Major General, U.:>A , ,

Director ._ ·i1·

!Q.ar:urity As~tstnnce ·· "' nd RealtiremP.nt~ Plans a -

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Proposed Reduction in MILGP Argentina· •

·BACKGROUND .

S November 1974, Ambassador Hill sent a message to STATE . . .

{TAB. A). recommending re'duction in official US personnei •·

in Argentina, citing the increasing terrorist actions as . . .

the b11-sis for his proposa,l.

_;, 13 November 1974, the Chai:tman, Joint Chiefs·of Staff: .. . .. ' ·.·

' -~ forwarded a memorandum for· .the .DEPSBCDEP wherein he strongly . . . . . . ' . . ~, . . ' ..

recommended that there be no further reduc.tions (T.A,B B).· ·~ v vi

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Mr. Ingersoll, in a letter to Mr. Clements dated 26 .

November 19.74 (TAB C) made reference to .increasing terroris.:t: h

activities anci·requested hiS concu~rence ·to instl'uct ~~,1;. .•.

· AMBMB Buenos·. Aires to: .... ._._ Reduce the MILGP from zo to 13.:

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Mr. Clements responded on 9 December 1974 (TAB· D) and.·· : ,';, , . .

recommended·that: . : · ...

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~ u.. Depen4ents ·be withdra'Wll pr~or to remoying US military.·. · c:c· ~ We·keep:further·reductions of military personnel under c.

advi'se~ent •.

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IIECLASSIFIEO IN FULL Authority: EO 13526 ,. · · Chief, Records & Doclass Div. WIIS Date:_ DEC 2 8 2017. '

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USCINCSOUTH, suspecting that previous efforts to reduce

.. the . MILGP would b~. renewed, recoJlllllended · ~gainst a:O:y

reduction in a inessl!ge dated ·7 March 1975 (TAB B) •. . . . . .

On 13. Ma:r~h 1975; on the basis of the. terrorist slaying o·f

the us Consular .A,gent in Argentina, the DBPSBCSTATB • ·· . . .

reopened the case for r.educing the. ~ilitary,.Group. · He. ,. .

statec;l. tha~:

-- . The wis~;~ course of ac.ti<m is to s~pport the :temporary . .

reduction;

· --- · the threat to USG personnel is ·"incontrovertible.!' .

-· The onlr effective action against terrorism ~s to

diminish t·argets.. . •· .

-~ Any absence of unanimi~y in ~~plying the reduction

undermin.es the Ambassador 1 s leadel'ship. · . · .·

Assassination-a£ tis militaty would·pos~ibly·give·

·1~pl~ca:t:~.on ~£ us·milita.rr·invoivement in A~g~~tina. ' . . ... , .

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Buenos Ai:res instruc~ing Ambassador and MILGP. Collllllander ·. . . .

· .. ·to explain . the "temporaTy"

. He :abo. proposes· a reduction in ••, ,·

. ' DECLASSIFIED ill Fl.iU . Authority: EO 13526 . . ·

. ·Chief, Records & Declass Div, WHS> Date: DEC 2 8 2017

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· ;. - ·Since t:he Ambassador believes that the terrorist situation

in Argentina continues. to require a diminished official

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US presence recommend that:

The implementation of this reduction by ·the Ambassador ' be coordina:ted with USCINCSOUTH.

To assure an. orderly reduction, and

--- · To mini.mize the impact on the mission of· the MlLGP

while at the· same t;i.me recognizing the urgency of

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THE JOINT CHIEfS OF STAFF fj). -~ WASHINGTON, D. C. lOJ01 /fu "

CM-307- JGJ I'~ 17 March 1975 ~

"MEMORANPUM FOR THE SECRETARY OF DEFENSE

Subj: .... .

US Mil~tary Presepce in Argentina (U)

1. .,.... I have reviewed ·once again the question of us military presence in Argentina., including the rece'nt · tragic events in that country .and the 13 March letter

.to you from Acting Secretary Ingersoll. In light of all the facts, my; .conclusion remains that reduction of j!S)I~j,_U-~t.~.~. str~nqth below present levels is unjustified al?d .~C:?~~~-~~IJ9.~E.,.t47 Gi£oup incapa,ble of adequately

. perform~ng ~ ts mJ.SSl.on:~:· · 4-- ··~····- .. ·.r-::::7.~- ----=- ==--==:: ·•

2. ~After reviewing the reasons set forth by th~ Department of State, both in past efforts to reduce· our posture and in Mr. Ingersoll's latest letter, I still

· find no· compelling rationale for a further reduction of · US mili.tary presence in Argentina.

3. - Many of Mr, Ingersoll' s conclusions are based upon facts that may well pertain to other parts of our mission in Buenos Aires, but have limited, if any, ·application to the military. It has nob been our. inter• pretation of the messages coming from Argentina that the military have been singled out as being in a risk category." of the v10uld ~:'<.!.-'-'-"' the

4. ~The fact remains that the.military is frequently called upon to accept high risk assi~nments as a necessary a~pect of. 11111itary service. For the United States military to ret~eat in the face of a te~rorist threat·would, in my opinion, cause a more serious breach in our military-to~ military relations with the Argent;i,nes than the disservice done to the Amb-assador by one department not reducing its complement proportionately. I continue to question whether the proper response, particularly the respbns.e by the US Armed Forces to a terrorist threat, is "to diminish the number of targets •••• " Likewise, I cannot accept the conjecture that should a kidnapping or assassination of a US military officer. or enlisted mart'·· in Argentina occur;

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DECLASSIFIED Ill PART Authority: EO 13526 Chief, Records & Declass l.liv, WHS Date: DEC 2 8 Z017

·· fll!ef}}.t'll!Jlil_l!B ·. 8. !_f BI!Cf!rJ!!!fl:s 81 --!~_1-!.,.._~--~- PESR r; ~ t:,. SEC DEF CON~R No.

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• ."i.t would evolve even _greater diplomatic and political complications than a terrorist act against a US civilian because of the possible· implicr.ttions of a US military involvement in Argentina."

...... 5 •.. ~Finally I while the technique of reduCing the number of ·exposed targets may be useful as a c6untermeasure to. an indiscriminate area threat, such as represented by·a rocket attack, this measure is inappropriate. for the type of threat posed in Argentina - the kidnapping of specifically targeted individuals~ ·

6. . .... In ·summary; I recommend strongly that we not reduce the current militarY Pf~Sence in Argentina.

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DECLASSIFIED IN FULL ·. Authority: EO 13526 ..... : Chief, Records & Declass Div, WHS Date: DEC 2 8 lOt( ...... ·.. .

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Page determined to be Unclassified Reviewed Chief, ROD, WHS lAW EO 13526, Section 3.5 Date: DEC 2 8 2017

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Dear Jim:

DECLASSIFIED IN FULl Authority: EO 13526 Chief, Records & lloclass Div, WHS Date: DEC 2 8 2017

DEPARTMENT Of STATE WASHINGTON

March 13, 1975

In the wake of the murder of our Consular Agent in Cordoba, Argentina, I have again reviewed the exchange of correspondence between our Departments relating to the proposed temporary reduction in DOD official personnel in Argentina. This step is part o£ an over-all effort to limit the targets for possible terrorist actio.n against the U.S. mission I lin Argentina •. I firmly believe that the wise course ·

-~ of action is to support the temporary reduc.tions which D-1r . are recommended by Ambassador Hill.

The threat to the U.S. Government personnel in. Argentina at this time is incontrovertible. The intelligence reports referred to in my lette~ of November 26 to Bill Clements provide graphic evidence of -this. Ambassador Hill, with the endorsement of the E!llbassy's Security Watch committee, has adv:ised me that terrorism in Argentina remains a great danger to our mission. In the circumstances, prudence dictates that we reduce manning levels throughout the mission to the absolute minimum required to conduct essential u.s. business·in Argentina until. the security situation improves •. We JllUSt act now to att:empt to avert further tragedy and not react later to a fait' accompli,

Inuhis letter Bill Clements proposed tb;t dependents of missign personnel ;ge w&_tb4rewn·--rrom-Argentila rather than rinciSals. Hor:;· : -~at!fve tfi~t tb_s mea·sure- woul_ nqt _ef~~ to .....Q_...;, -a.,_r _____ ly the ·mi--s·sigp' s yul ner;bility to ter;tQtl st _aftaak. Dependents have not been a major target for terrorist groups in-Argentina. Women and children have been.' occasicmally ··affected. by the violence 1 . but· only as a

Honprable · J<m~es R. ·. Sohlesir;ger,

Secretary of Defense.

2Uf gn SEC DE»' CONl'R No •

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. DECLASSIFIED IN FULl Authority: EO 13526 Chief, Records & Doclass Div, WHS Date: DEC 2 8 2017

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result o! physical proximity to a principal terrorist target, The only effective action is to diminish the number of targets among the official personnel-in Argentina, .especially those considered by the security

•. Watch Committee to be high risks. All military per­sonnel are considered to be in this category.

The specific reductions proposed for each mission component were carefully programmed by the Ambassador in conjunction with members of his country team. I understand that the commander of the MILGRP and the

IDATT participated in the.se deliberations. It was ·I agreed that the vital duties of the mission elements could be carried out by the smaller staff which would remain. Other important work would necessarily be deferred unti.l the security situation pe:i:initted the restoration of full personnel complements.

It is essential that every agency. support the Ambassador's effort to conduct the mission in Argentina at the level he deems most advisable in this difficult period. Any absence of unanimity in applying the reduction leads to interagency recrimination and under­mines the Ambassador 1 s leadership.. A determination by one agency not to reduce its personnel in Argentina will have an adverse impact on the morale of other mission sections hardpressed to meet work requirements with reduced personnel.

In his letter, Bill Clements noted mili t:ar acce s assl. nments J.n . r· ·necessary aspect of ·milJ.tary service. While I respect 'this fact, it is also true that the kidnapping or assassination o£ a u.s. military ot;ficer or enlisted man in Argentina would involve even greater diplomatic and political comelications than a terrorist act-against a u.s. civilian beca1.1se of the p()ssib1e·imp1ications of a u.s. military involvement in Argentina.

I share Bill Clements 1 conoern that this matter be handled in keeping with the mission agreements in effect between the u.s. and Argentina. Aithough the

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DECLASSIFIED IN FULL Authority: EO 13526 · Chief, Records & Declass Div, WH5> Date: DEC 2 8 2017 -3-

record is not clear that the Government of Argentina was con~ulted prior to each reduction in MILGRP personnel from peak levels in FY-68, I agree that it would be desirable to consult in this instance. Accordingly, I would appreciate your concurring in a message to Buenos Aires instructing· the Ambassador and the MILGRP Commander to call on the Minister of Defense or his designee to explain these reductions., and to emphasize their temporary nature. We would then be in a position to effect the Proposed re4ugtiop pf the MILGRP from 20 to 13, . With respect to the DAO, I propose that we move ahead immediately to approve and implement the proposed temporary reduction frgm Jl to 7 by moving the Attache aircraft to a neighboring country for a time.

Let me emphasize that the Department of State regards it as important to the u.s. interest to main­tain good relations with the Argentine military. At such time as the terrorist threat in Argentina dimin-. ishes significantly, it is fully intended that the MILGRP and DAO personnel complements be returned to normal levels. Meanwhile, Ambassador Hill has urged that we not postpone action on this matter any longer. I hope you will agree with me to support his position.

!·wanted you to have this.explanation of our view in writing before discussing it with you. I will be telephoning you within the next twenty-four hours to. solicit your sup~ort. ·

With warm regards,

Robert s. Ingersoll Acting Secretary

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