Posted on 12/31/2006 5:29:51 AM PST by Cincinatus' Wife
Text of KGB Letter on Senator Ted Kennedy
Special Importance Committee on State Security of the USSR 14.05.1983 No. 1029 Ch/OV Moscow
Regarding Senator Kennedy’s request to the General Secretary of the Communist Party Comrade Y.V. Andropov Comrade Y.V. Andropov
On 9-10 May of this year, Senator Edward Kennedy’s close friend and trusted confidant J. Tunney was in Moscow. The senator charged Tunney to convey the following message, through confidential contacts, to the General Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, Y. Andropov:
Senator Kennedy, like other rational people, is very troubled by the current state of Soviet-American relations. Events are developing such that this relationship coupled with the general state of global affairs will make the situation even more dangerous. The main reason for this is Reagan’s belligerence, and his firm commitment to deploy new American middle range nuclear weapons within Western Europe.
According to Kennedy, the current threat is due to the President’s refusal to engage any modification on his politics. He feels that his domestic standing has been strengthened because of the well publicized improvements of the economy: inflation has been greatly reduced, production levels are increasing as is overall business activity. For these reasons, interest rates will continue to decline. The White House has portrayed this in the media as the “success of Reaganomics.”
Naturally, not everything in the province of economics has gone according to Reagan’s plan. A few well known economists and members of financial circles, particularly from the north-eastern states, foresee certain hidden tendencies that may bring about a new economic crisis in the USA. This could bring about the fall of the presidential campaign of 1984, which would benefit the Democratic party. Nevertheless, there are no secure assurances this will indeed develop.
The only real potential threats to Reagan are problems of war and peace and Soviet-American relations. These issues, according to the senator, will without a doubt become the most important of the election campaign. The movement advocating a freeze on nuclear arsenals of both countries continues to gain strength in the United States. The movement is also willing to accept preparations, particularly from Kennedy, for its continued growth. In political and influential circles of the country, including within Congress, the resistance to growing military expenditures is gaining strength.
However, according to Kennedy, the opposition to Reagan is still very weak. Reagan’s adversaries are divided and the presentations they make are not fully effective. Meanwhile, Reagan has the capabilities to effectively counter any propaganda. In order to neutralize criticism that the talks between the USA and the USSR are non-constructive, Reagan will grandiose, but subjectively propagandistic. At the same time, Soviet officials who speak about disarmament will be quoted out of context, silenced or groundlessly and whimsically discounted. Although arguments and statements by officials of the USSR do appear in the press, it is important to note the majority of Americans do not read serious newspapers or periodicals.
Kennedy believes that, given the current state of affairs, and in the interest of peace, it would be prudent and timely to undertake the following steps to counter the militaristic politics of Reagan and his campaign to psychologically burden the American people. In this regard, he offers the following proposals to the General Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union Y.V. Andropov.
1. Kennedy asks Y.V. Andropov to consider inviting the senator to Moscow for a personal meeting in July of this year. The main purpose of the meeting, according to the senator, would be to arm Soviet officials with explanations regarding problems of nuclear disarmament so they may be better prepared and more convincing during appearances in the USA. He would also like to inform you that he has planned a trip through Western Europe, where he anticipates meeting England’s Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher and French President Mitterand in which he will exchange similar ideas regarding the same issues.
If his proposals would be accepted in principle, Kennedy would send his representative to Moscow to resolve questions regarding organizing such a visit.
Kennedy thinks the benefit of a meeting with Y.V. Andropov will be enhanced if he could also invite one of the well known Republican senators, for example, Mark Hatfield. Such a meeting will have a strong impact on American and political circles in the USA. (In March of 1982, Hatfield and Kennedy proposed a project resolution to freeze the nuclear arsenals of the USA and the USSR and published a book on this theme as well.)
2. Kennedy believes that in order to influence Americans it would be important to organize in August-September of this year, televised interviews with Y.V. Andropov in the USA. A direct appeal by the General Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union to the American people will, without a doubt, attract a great deal of attention and interest in the country. The senator is convinced this would receive the maximum resonance in so far as television is the most effective method of mass media and information.
If the proposal is recognized as worthy, then Kennedy and his friends will bring about suitable steps to have representatives of the largest television companies in the USA contact Y.V. Andropov for an invitation to Moscow for the interviews. Specifically, the president of the board of directors of ABC, Elton Raul and television columnists Walter Cronkite or Barbara Walters could visit Moscow. The senator underlined the importance that this initiative should be seen as coming from the American side.
Furthermore, with the same purpose in mind, a series of televised interviews in the USA with lower level Soviet officials, particularly from the military would be organized. They would also have an opportunity to appeal directly to the American people about the peaceful intentions of the USSR, with their own arguments about maintaining a true balance of power between the USSR and the USA in military terms. This issue is quickly being distorted by Reagan’s administration.
Kennedy asked to convey that this appeal to the General Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union is his effort to contribute a strong proposal that would root out the threat of nuclear war, and to improve Soviet-American relations, so that they define the safety of the world. Kennedy is very impressed with the activities of Y.V. Andropov and other Soviet leaders, who expressed their commitment to heal international affairs, and improve mutual understanding between peoples.
The senator underscored that he eagerly awaits a reply to his appeal, the answer to which may be delivered through Tunney.
Having conveyed Kennedy’s appeal to the General Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, Tunney also explained that Senator Kennedy has in the last few years actively made appearances to reduce the threat of war. Because he formally refused to partake in the election campaign of 1984, his speeches would be taken without prejudice as they are not tied to any campaign promises. Tunney remarked that the senator wants to run for president in 1988. At that time, he will be 56 and his personal problems, which could hinder his standing, will be resolved (Kennedy has just completed a divorce and plans to remarry in the near future). Taken together, Kennedy does not discount that during the 1984 campaign, the Democratic party may officially turn to him to lead the fight against the Republicans and elect their candidate president. This would explain why he is convinced that none of the candidates today have a real chance at defeating Reagan.
We await instructions.
President of the committee V. Chebrikov
And the least intelligent. And the least influential. And the least qualified to lead.
But a most useful idiot, nonetheless. Think of how far the tentacles of the Kennedy family reach, even as far as the governor of California who has aspirations of being President.
Senator Kennedy is a public figure, which makes suing problematical.
I repeat, is there a copy of the letter in Russian?
Imagine the size of the weight belt you'd need to sink two 55 gallon drums of lard.
John Kerry doesn't seem to have a problem suing. Ask the Swift Boat group.
I repeat, is there a copy of the letter in Russian?
From the book source, "The Crusader - Ronald Reagan and the Fall of Communism," which is listed at the beginning of this thread:
The author, Paul Kengor, describes the Kennedy/Tunney/Soviet matter in Chapter 17, where he writes about the 1984 presidential campaign. I don't plan to type that entire chapter (go buy the book) but I did type up the "Notes" on the KGB letter referenced in chapter 17 and will add them below. If you want more information about what language the letter was in, I believe I've given you enough information to pursue that on you own.
Quote: Notes (full text) page 369
25. To the best of my knowledge, this book is the first full examination and presentation of the Chebrikov document. The document came from the Central Committee Archives of the Communist Party of the former USSR. There are a number of different archives from the Soviet period, including, for example, the KGB Archives, the Comintern Archives, among others. The archives were opened in the early 1990s by the Boris Yeltsin government, whereupon scholars and journalists eagerly began digging into the documents. The Yeltsin government, for various reasons, closed many of the archives, including the Central Committee Archives, in the 1994-95 period.
The document that I cite here was apparently initially found by a London Times reporter in early 1992. The London Sunday Times subsequently published an article on the document, titled “Teddy, the KGB and the top secret file,” in the February 2, 1992 edition. The Times article, however, was brief and included only a few quotes from the document; the newspaper published only a photo of a small section from the upper left corner of page one of the five page document. Once the Times piece ran, a number of people scrambled to the archives to obtain their own copy of the document, which then began circulating in and around Moscow. Various individuals obtained copies. Shortly thereafter, the Russian government closed the file.
Among those who obtained a full copy was Herb Romerstein, author of the seminal work on the Venona papers, The Verona Secrets. Romerstein is a former staff member of the U.S. House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence and a seasoned veteran of archival research from the Cold War period. Romerstein continues to do research from intelligence archives of former Communist countries. My copy was obtained through Marko Suprun, who got the copy from Herb Romerstein and Walter Zaryckyj. Romerstein provided details to me on the document’s origin in a number of discussions in June 2005. Unquote.
has sub commander kennedy ever responded to the release of this information?
I don't know if Kennedy has responded.
Here's a quote from a Washington Times editorial:
....If Chebrikov's account of events is accurate, it's clear Mr. Kennedy was actively engaging the Russians to influence the 1984 election. He also seems to have genuinely believed that Mr. Reagan's policies were endangering U.S.-Soviet relations and that the best solution was to get Mr. Reagan out of office. The letter closes with Chebrikov saying that "Tunney remarked that the senator wants to run for president in 1988," possibly suggesting Mr. Kennedy had other, more selfish motives.
As Mr. Kengor concludes, "if the memo is in fact an accurate account of what transpired, it constitutes a remarkable example of the lengths to which some on the political left, including a sitting U.S. senator, were willing to go to stop Ronald Reagan."
We agree. Even in a jaded world, it is breathtaking to discover a U.S. senator -- brother of a former president -- actively and secretly collaborating with Soviet leaders in an attempt to undermine the president of the United States' nuclear defense policy during the height of the cold war. ....
http://www.washtimes.com/op-ed/20061027-084248-4386r.htm
I'm wondering what response I might get from a letter to his office. BTW, thanks for posting the original article and this response.
If you get a response, please post it as a stand alone thread and link this thread to it.
Good luck.
Once in Massachusetts (I forgot where I was) I made a remark about Teddy Kennedy that was not really critical but merely slightly offhanded. You would have thought I had insulted the Prophet Mohammed in one of the Muslim theocracies.
I've noticed that people from MA make jokes about their elected officials and big government messes but don't like "outsiders" to assume the role of critic.
Kennedy was wrong then and is wrong now.
.
Thank you for your CLARITY, plasa.
Your outstanding historical Post No. 124 would be a great addition with us over on:
http://www.Freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1308949/posts
So, Come on Down..?
I will NEVER FORGET my happily striding into the Travis Air Force Base Terminal in April 1966 when returning home from the 1st Major Battles for Freedom of the Vietnam War.
Only to see on a lobby TV the 1st FULLBRIGHT Foreign Relations Committee Vietnam War Hearings ...grilling away at Sec. of State DEAN RUSK and Sec. of Defense ROBERT McNAMARA about the Vietnam War.
A FULLBRIGHT Committee that later on had as one of its Staffers one...
...WILLIAM Jefferson CLINTON.
As Sen. FRANK CHURCH's Intelligence Committee went on to completely devastate our Nation's Intelligence capibilities ...after the post-WATERGATE Democrat Congressional Election Victory of 1974.
Something we are all paying very dearly for now..?
For...
...the Enemy is now Within...
...and always has been.
NEVER FORGET
.
What a piece of scum!
+
If you want on (or off) this Catholic and Pro-Life ping list, let me know!
Why isn't this treasonous lump of lard being charged with treason and whose job is it to charge him, and why are'nt they? This cannot be allowed to stand.
Traitor Ted is a dangerous man.
Was he in cahoots with the KGB before, during, or after the assassination attempt on Reagan?
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.