This night (around 3 o'clock in the morning Washington time) our journalist [half-line deleted--ed.] was at the bar of the press club of Washington where usually many correspondents gather.

Barman1 approached him [one line deleted--ed.] and whispered that he had overheard a conversation of two prominent American journalists (Donovan2 and [Warren] Rogers) that the President had supposedly taken a decision to invade Cuba today or tomorrow night.

Our correspondent also had an opportunity to talk to Rogers, a correspondent of the "New York Herald Tribune," permanently accredited to the Pentagon. He confirmed that report.

[Half-line deleted--ed.] there is information that an order has been issued to bring the armed forces into maximum battle readiness including readiness to repulse nuclear attack.

We are taking steps to check this information.

25/X/62 A. DOBRYNIN

1 The Russian text is unclear as to whether it refers to a "bar-man" (barkeeper) or a last name such as "Berman," "Barman," or "Burman."
2 Possibly a reference to journalist Robert J. Donovan.