Posted on 08/12/2004 8:36:48 AM PDT by TigerLikesRooster
Japan's Mainichi Shimbun reported in a Washington dispatch on Thursday that former U.S. Ambassador to Korea Donald Gregg secretly visited North Korea last week.
According to the paper, in response to its request to confirm his visit to the North, Gregg said, “I do not want to talk about my visit to the North,” but foreign officials have raised the possibility that he may have met with key North Korean leaders and been asked to convey the North’s messages concerning six-way talks to the U.S. The paper also said that Gregg arrived in Pyongyang via Beijing on August 2 and returned home on August 7.
Gregg, an American official that North Korea trusts to a certain degree, once visited Pyongyang at its invitation in November 2002, when suspicion over its highly enriched uranium development program surfaced, and conveyed the North’s high-ranking officials’ opinions to the U.S. government.
Ping!
'Twould be so much easier to just take out Pyongyang now, without warning, and replace it with a nice mushroom cloud.
North Korea is ready to sell their nuclear program for a very hefty price. They want a free trade agreement with the U.S., lots of foreign aid, and an embassy in Washington D.C.
They also want South Korea, but they're willing to give up that for access to American weapons... (lol, yeah right)
"Donald P. Gregg, US ambassador to Korea (1989-93) during the George HW Bush administration and chairman of the Korea Society"
Donald P. Gregg is a good man and drives the anti American Lunatic Libs in America into a deeper state of lunacy and depression.
http://www.fas.org/irp/offdocs/walsh/chap_29.htm
Chapter 29
Donald P. Gregg in 1951 began a career of more than 30 years with the Central Intelligence Agency. That service included several overseas postings, including a tour in South Vietnam during the war. In 1979 Gregg was detailed by the CIA to the National Security Council staff, where his responsibilities included Asian affairs and intelligence matters. Following the election of Ronald Reagan in 1980, the new Administration requested that Gregg remain at the NSC. Until 1982, Gregg headed the NSC's Intelligence Directorate. In August 1982, he resigned from the CIA and accepted the position of national security adviser to Vice President George Bush, holding that position until the end of the Reagan Administration. In early 1989, President Bush nominated Gregg to be U.S. ambassador to the Republic of South Korea. Gregg was confirmed by the Senate for this position on September 12, 1989, and served as ambassador until 1993.
During the Vietnam War, Gregg supervised CIA officer Felix Rodriguez and they kept in contact following the war. Gregg introduced Rodriguez to Vice President Bush in January 1985, and Rodriguez met with the Vice President again in Washington, D.C., in May 1986. He also met Vice President Bush briefly in Miami on May 20, 1986. As a teenager, Rodriguez had participated in the ill-fated Bay of Pigs invasion of Cuba and remained, following that debacle, an ardent anti-communist.
In 1985 and 1986, Rodriguez worked out of the Ilopango air base in El Salvador, where he assisted the Salvadoran Air Force in anti-guerrilla counterinsurgency tactics. In late 1985 and during 1986, Rodriguez -- whose alias was ``Max Gomez'' -- became increasingly involved in the contra-resupply effort that was based at Ilopango at that time. Because of Rodriguez's close association with General Juan Bustillo, who headed the Salvadoran Air Force, Rodriguez was vital to Lt. Col. Oliver L. North's contra-resupply operation by coordinating flights based at Ilopango.
Following the shootdown of the contra-resupply aircraft carrying American Eugene Hasenfus on October 5, 1986, Rodriguez became a center of public and congressional attention. Because of Rodriguez's close friendship with Gregg and his three personal meetings with Vice President Bush, questions arose whether the contra-resupply operation was being directed by Gregg through Rodriguez. Questions also arose about when the Vice President's office became aware of Rodriguez's and North's active participation in the contra-resupply operation at Ilopango.
Both Gregg and his deputy, Col. Samuel J. Watson III, were investigated for possible false testimony regarding their denial of knowledge of Rodriguez's involvement in North's contra-resupply operation. OIC obtained Watson's immunized testimony in an effort to further its investigation. Despite unresolved conflicts between documentary evidence and the testimony of the principal witnesses, OIC determined that it could not prove beyond a reasonable doubt a criminal case against Gregg.
Gregg, Rodriguez and North
When Gregg assumed his position as assistant to the Vice President for national security affairs in August 1982, he consciously disassociated himself from former colleagues with whom he had worked during his CIA career. The exception to that rule was Felix Rodriguez. Gregg testified: ``. . . I have made it a conscious decision really not to reach back into that part of my life to bring other people forward. Felix is the only exception I have made to that.'' 1 Gregg lost track of Rodriguez for a period of time after Vietnam and did not see him until the early 1980s, when Rodriguez came to Washington sporadically and talked with Gregg about old times. Gregg was not certain what Rodriguez was doing at that time, and he did not inquire; however, they remained friends.2
1 Gregg, Grand Jury, 10/23/87, p. 18.
2 Gregg, Senate Foreign Relations Committee (SFRC) Testimony, 5/12/89, pp. 72-73.
Rodriguez visited Gregg in Washington in March 1983 and left him a proposal for helicopter anti-guerrilla operations in Central America.3 Gregg forwarded Rodriguez's plan with a favorable recommendation to Deputy National Security Adviser Robert C. McFarlane.4 McFarlane forwarded it on to North for his summary and recommendation.5 North did not recall what action, if any, he took in response to McFarlane's directive.6
3 Ibid., pp. 54-55, 73-74; Tactical Task Force Report, 3/4/82, AKW 027860-66.
4 Memorandum from Gregg to McFarlane, 3/17/83, AKW 027859-66 (attaching Tactical Task Force Report).
5 Ibid.
6 North, Grand Jury, 7/6/90, p. 17.
North first met Rodriguez on December 21, 1984.7 Subsequently, North solicited Rodriguez to assist him and retired Air Force Maj. Gen. Richard V. Secord in the contra-resupply operation based out of Ilopango airfield in El Salvador. What role, if any, Gregg played in the introduction of Rodriguez to North and whether Gregg was aware of North's intentions to recruit Rodriguez for the resupply operation was relevant to Iran/contra investigators and was a matter of concern to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee (SFRC) conducting confirmation hearings on Gregg's ambassadorial nomination in May 1989.
7 North's schedule card in his handwriting reads: ``1545 Felix Rodriguez (will be seeing Gregg at 1600).'' North Schedule Card, 12/21/84, AKW 003167.
One month before Gregg's confirmation hearings for the ambassadorship in May 1989, North testified at his trial that Gregg was the person who introduced him to Rodriguez.8 In discussing his formal solicitation letter to Rodriguez, dated September 20, 1985, North testified that ``I believe that once I had talked to Mr. Gregg about it [the solicitation] I talked to Mr. McFarlane about it, about the fact that he [Rodriguez] would be able to assist in that country.'' 9
8 North, North Trial Testimony, 4/11/89, p. 7435.
9 Ibid.
During the confirmation proceedings, Gregg categorically denied North's trial assertions: ``I am mentioned, by North, for the first time, on page 7,345 of the trial record, and he makes two assertions there, one, that I introduced him to Felix, and two, that he talked to me before he recruited Felix. And I regret to say that both of those are incorrect.'' 10 OIC obtained no evidence contradicting Gregg's denials; North did not back up his trial assertions with further evidence in the Grand Jury.
10 Gregg, SFRC Confirmation Hearings, 5/12/89, p. 122.
After the Rodriguez introduction became an issue at North's trial, William R. Bode, a former Department of State official, wrote an April 25, 1989, letter to Gregg based upon his review of his calendar entries. Bode's recollection was that he had referred Rodriguez to North on the occasion of their initial meeting on December 21, 1984.11 This is corroborated by North's own notebook entry. On December 21, 1984, at 10:30 a.m. North writes ``Call from Bill Bode.'' Underneath that entry is the name ``Felix Rodriguez.'' 12 Rodriguez said it was Bode who made the arrangements for him to meet North.
11 Letter from Bode to Gregg, 4/25/89, ASX 0000003.
12 North Notebook, 12/21/84, AMX 000267; North, Grand Jury, 7/6/90, p. 19.
Rodriguez also met with Gregg on that day and expressed his interest in going to El Salvador to work with the Salvadoran Air Force. Gregg recommended meetings with several other Administration officials.13
13 Statement by OVP Press Secretary, 12/15/86, ALU 012418 (attaching summary of Rodriguez contacts); Gregg, SFRC Testimony, 5/12/89, pp. 56-58, 75.
Gregg promptly reported to Vice President Bush after his meeting with Rodriguez. According to Gregg, he said, ``My friend Felix, who was a remarkable former agency employee who was a counterinsurgency expert[,] wants to go down and help with El Salvador. And I am going to introduce him to Tony Motley, Tom Pickering, and Nestor Sanchez and see if he can sell himself to those men.'' Gregg stated that the Vice President said ``Fine.'' 14
14 Gregg, SFRC Testimony, 5/12/89, pp. 75-76. Motley was the assistant secretary of state for inter-American affairs; Thomas R. Pickering was U.S. ambassador in El Salvador; and Nestor Sanchez, a former CIA official, was deputy assistant secretary of defense for international security affairs.
Although Rodriguez testified that his goal was to assist in the Salvadoran anti-guerrilla program during late 1984 and early 1985, the evidence shows that he was also interested in contra-related matters.
At North's request, Rodriguez in January 1985 met Robert Owen, an associate of North, at the Key Bridge Marriott Hotel in Rosslyn, Virginia.15 Owen wrote North a two-page letter regarding his meeting with Rodriguez, mentioning ``FR's project'' and ``those who will be put under FR's care.'' The letter reports that Rodriguez wanted information on communications, command and control locations, which ideally would include ``primary and secondary targets, both military and civilian.'' 16 Rodriguez acknowledged that the letter recounts their conversation, which was based on problems Rodriguez had observed on visits to contra camps.17 Rodriguez testified that none of the projects he discussed with Owen were implemented because Rodriguez was mainly interested in El Salvador.18
15 Owen, Select Committees Testimony, 5/19/87, p. 201; Rodriguez, Select Committees Testimony, 5/28/87, pp. 119-21.
16 Letter from Owen to North, 1/27/85, AKW 016393-94.
17 Rodriguez, Grand Jury, 12/4/87, pp. 23-24.
18 Ibid., pp. 24-25.
Gregg arranged for Rodriguez to meet Vice President Bush on January 22, 1985. According to Gregg, the purpose of the meeting was to inform Bush that Rodriguez wanted to work in El Salvador against the guerrillas.19 The meeting occurred in the Vice President's Old Executive Office Building office. According to Rodriguez, he met briefly with the Vice President, showing him his photo album, discussing Rodriguez's experiences in the CIA and watching a television report on the Bush family.20
19 Statement by Press Secretary attaching Summary of Contacts with Felix Rodriguez, 12/15/86, ALU 012418; Gregg, Grand Jury, 10/9/87, p. 52.
20 Rodriguez, Grand Jury, 12/4/87, pp. 19-20. North's interest in Rodriguez continued. A 1/28/85 North notebook entry reflects a telephone call from Clair George, Director of Operations for the CIA: ``Felix R w/ V.P. feedback from Don.'' (North Notebook, 1/28/85, AMX 003918.) Gregg's telephone log indicates that he had a secure telephone conversation with George on January 24, 1985. (Gregg Phone Log, 1/24/85, ALU 022016.)
On January 24, 1985, Rodriguez first met General Adolfo Blandon, the Salvadoran military chief of staff, and on January 30, 1985, he met with General Bustillo, commander of the Salvadoran Air Force. Both approved Rodriguez's planned assistance. Bustillo told him he could stay at Ilopango Military Air Base outside of San Salvador and agreed to put him in contact with air force officers.21
21 Rodriguez and Weisman, Shadow Warrior, pp. 222-23 (1989) (hereafter, Shadow Warrior).
As Rodriguez was completing his consultations with U.S. and Salvadoran officials, Thomas R. Pickering, the U.S. ambassador to El Salvador, learned of Rodriguez's planned mission. Pickering immediately raised a number of questions with a senior CIA field officer in Central America, who referred them to CIA headquarters. The field officer's January 31, 1985, cable says that Pickering wanted ``help in finding out who Felix Rodriguez is and what is behind his apparent mission to El Salvador.'' CIA officers also reported that Pickering had been told that NSC staff members Nestor Sanchez and Constantine Menges were sending Rodriguez there ``to `solve the insurgency problems.' '' Pickering wondered whether this had been coordinated with CIA headquarters and, if not, Pickering wanted the CIA ``to learn about who is footing bill'' for Rodriguez.22
22 CIA Cable, 1/31/85, DO 166759.
On February 2, CIA headquarters responded to Pickering's questions about Rodriguez. Headquarters reported that Rodriguez had recently visited Langley, claiming that Salvadoran generals Blandon and Bustillo had welcomed his offer to help fight the guerrillas and stating that he had discussed this matter with Vice President Bush, Motley, North, Sanchez and Gregg. CIA headquarters also stressed, however, that ``Rodriguez' visit is totally unrelated to [CIA]. . . .'' 23
23 DIRECTOR 243316, 2/2/85, DO 166760.
The day the CIA answered his query, Pickering sent a cable to General Paul Gorman, chief of the U.S. Southern Command in Panama. Pickering summarized his knowledge of Rodriguez, his mission with the Salvadoran military and his high-level contacts in the U.S. Government. Pickering also reiterated his concern about Rodriguez's proposed mission in El Salvador and recommended that Gorman meet with Rodriguez to evaluate him and to clarify the U.S. approach in El Salvador.
On February 8, 1985, Gorman spoke with North about Rodriguez, the contras and U.S. assistance to Salvadoran anti-guerrilla forces.24 In a subsequent cable to Pickering, Gorman reported that Rodriguez ``has been put into play by Ollie North, and, while well acquainted, does not have higher backing.'' Gorman also reported that North ``assures me that his intent was to focus Rodriguez on forces operating elsewhere in CentAm'' and that, in response to Gorman's view that the Salvadoran Air Force was getting more than enough advice at the moment, ``Ollie rogered, and said that Rodriguez can be much more useful in other places, where aid and advice is much scarcer.'' 25
24 North Notebook, 2/8/85, AMX 003963.
25 San Salvador 01792, 2/12/85, ALV 000148.
On February 14, 1985, Rodriguez met with Gorman in Panama City. They discussed Rodriguez's planned consulting role with the Salvadoran Air Force. Rodriguez also told Gorman of an immediate obligation to deliver equipment to contra forces, purchased with funds Rodriguez had received from contra leader Adolfo Calero. A few days later, Gorman told North that he had instructed Rodriguez to make the contras his priority.26 Rodriguez later testified that his short-term priority during early 1985 was the delivery of security equipment to facilitate night supply drops to the contras, and that this must have been what Gorman was referring to in his conversation with North.27
26 North Notebook, 2/19/85, AMX 000466.
27 Rodriguez, Grand Jury, 5/3/91, pp. 54-55.
On February 15, 1985, Gorman sent Rodriguez by military jet to El Salvador, where he met Pickering and U.S. Army Col. James J. Steele, commander of the U.S. Military Group in El Salvador. Rodriguez briefed them on his proposed helicopter counter-insurgency operations and his short-term, higher-priority mission for the contras. In his reporting cable to Gorman and back to the Department of State, Pickering effectively approved Rodriguez's plan to work with Bustillo, under the close supervision of Steele and on the conditions that Rodriguez avoid civilian casualties and not fly combat missions.28 Pickering also asked the State Department to ``brief Don Gregg in the VP's office for me.''
28 US SOUTHCOM Cable, 2/14/85, AMY 001054-55.
Rodriguez immediately traveled to Washington to report on his meetings in Central America. On February 19, 1985, Rodriguez met with Gregg in his office and told him of his successful meetings with Gorman, Pickering and Steele.29 Rodriguez also met with North, whose notes show they discussed specific types of U.S. military assistance for El Salvador.30
29 Shadow Warrior, p. 227; OVP Summary of Contacts with Felix Rodriguez, 12/15/86, ALU 012418.
30 North Notebook, 2/19/85, AMX 000467. Although North and Gregg spoke on February 26, 1985, there is no record of the substance of their conversation. (Gregg Phone Log, 2/26/85, ALU 22034.)
In mid-March 1985, after first satisfying his obligation to deliver contra supplies to Honduras,31 Rodriguez relocated to Ilopango air base. The next month, he began flying anti-guerrilla helicopter operations with the Salvadoran Air Force.
31 Rodriguez, Grand Jury, 12/4/87, p. 31.
On April 20, 1985, after a helicopter operation succeeded in capturing a Salvadoran guerrilla leader and obtaining valuable intelligence information,32 Rodriguez wrote a letter thanking Gregg for his and the Vice President's support and asking Gregg to write a note thanking Steele for the support he had given Rodriguez.33 On April 29, Gregg sent a letter thanking Steele ``for giving Felix your confidence and support, without which he feels he could not have gotten things under way.'' 34 On June 5, 1985, Rodriguez introduced Gregg to Steele at the Key Bridge Marriott Hotel in Rosslyn, Virginia.
32 Shadow Warrior, pp. 231-33, 242.
33 Letter from Rodriguez to Gregg, 4/20/85, ALU 012402-05. On May 31, 1985, Rodriguez signed a similar note, which he sent along with a photograph of himself to Gregg in Washington. (Letter from Rodriguez to Gregg, 5/31/85, ALU 011618.)
34 Letter from Gregg to Steele, 4/29/85, AKW 029991.
The September 10, 1986, Meeting
Congress in August 1985 authorized $27 million for humanitarian assistance to be administered through a newly created State Department office, the Nicaraguan Humanitarian Assistance Organization (NHAO).
In September 1985, Rodriguez's name began to surface in Administration circles in the context of the contra-resupply effort.35 Similarly, Gregg appeared to be involved in discussions concerning the contras. A North notebook entry at 4:30 p.m. on September 10, 1985, seems to reflect a meeting between North, Gregg and Steele relating to problems with contra resupply:
Ping
SO he is old buddy of Bush family COOL
I wonder what esteem Ambassor really up too HMMM
Telling Kim Jong 11 stop threated the world with nukes
IMHO, I think in most cases, even if an old codger quite a bit out of the game, few people are 'used to be.'
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