Skip to content

Results:

1 - 9 of 9

Documents

October 2, 1957

Memorandum by Frank Aiken [on an Interview with Scott McCleod and the Taoiseach]

Aiken made an immediate impression on his arrival in the Twelfth Session of the UN General Assembly in September 1957. He adopted an impartial posture of assessing each issue on its merits and campaigning to remodel international politics around self-determination, humanitarianism, and peace. His exhortation was that only the UN had the moral authority and political legitimacy to put forward global solutions. While he did not propose nuclear disarmament measures specifically, his intent was signaled by his recommendation for a mutual drawback of foreign forces (including their nuclear weapons) in central Europe and his endorsement of a proposal to discuss the representation of China in the United Nations. The Eisenhower administration was hostile to Aiken’s course as outlined in the U.S. ambassador’s audience with Taoiseach Eamon de Valera and Aiken in Dublin on 2 October. The record underlines the Irish concerns about accidental nuclear war due to the proximity of opposing U.S. and Soviet forces in central Europe.  

January 13, 1958

Code Message No. 502 from Ambassador Gajewski in Paris to Rapacki

Ambassador Gajewski details a conversation with French Minister Pineau, including Pineau's skepticism of the Rapacki Plan, his support of carrying out talks with the East, and the importance of disarmament.

January 11, 1958

Department of International Political and Economic Organizations, 'File Note regarding Reactions to Minister Rapacki's UN Proposal'

Report on the positive reception to the Rapacki Plan on the part of several countries, namely Czechoslovakia, the GDR, and Belgium. The note discusses the importance of the plan in terms of the disarmament debate.

October 12, 2016

Oral History Interview with Tadeusz Strulak

Polish ambassador and chairman of the Drafting Committee at the 1995 NPT review conference.

January 2, 1958

Address by Polish Foreign Minister Rapacki at the United Nations General Assembly, 'Polish proposal for a European Zone Free From Atomic Weapons'

In response to the arming of West Germany, Rapacki proposes a European Nuclear Weapon Free Zone.

April 2, 1958

Note by Foreign Secretary Subimal Dutt on Conversation with Polish Ambassador

Poland requests that India express support for the Polish plan for nuclear disarmament in Europe.

October 11, 1961

Cable from the Chinese Embassy in Poland, 'Some Noteworthy Situations from the Polish Leadership’s Open Remarks on International Issues'

The Chinese Embassy reports on Gomułka's foreign policies.

October 23, 1989

Memorandum of Telephone Conversation: Telephone Call from Chancellor Helmut Kohl of the Federal Republic of Germany, October 23, 1989, 9:02-9:26 a.m. EDT

Telephone conversation between President George H. W. Bush and German Chancellor Helmut Kohl on the situation in Eastern Europe.

April 14, 1988

Lecture by Sergei Akhromeyev, 'The Current State of Soviet Military Doctrine'

This is a transcript of a lecture delivered by Sergei Akhromeyev, the Chief of the General Staff of the Soviet Armed Forces, to the Polish General Staff about Soviet military doctrine in early 1988. The document defines what the Soviets meant by military doctrine, differentiating between the doctrine of the Soviet Union and the Warsaw Pact by stressing the former’s wider range objectives, especially concerning the use of strategic nuclear weapons. In addition, it identifies contemporary issues facing Soviet doctrine and analyzes topics such as nuclear non-proliferation, reduction of nuclear stockpiles and refutes the idea that nuclear weapons should be used in a counter-offensive operation. It stresses the importance of defense, negating offensive military preparedness in lieu of purely defensive Warsaw Pact capabilities (albeit altogether sufficient to successfully deter a NATO attack from the West). It also discusses the results of the March 2-3 1988 NATO talks and concludes that the West is not willing to stop the arms race and is increasing its offensive capabilities. The Warsaw Pact’s response should include increased military research, better vigilance to capture signals of a possible attack and more tactical and technical training for the military command. It asserts that even though a war is less likely than in the past, quoting Gorbachev, “the nature of capitalism itself can be the cause of war.”