UNCLASSIFIED 1 3 SECRET PAGE 01 STATE 400140 RELEASED IN FULL ORIGIN SS-OO INFO LOG-00 ADS-00 580-00 000 DRAFTED BY APPROVED BY P MHARMACOST NEA RAELATEN P AEASTHAM SPIFER s s s-o --223363 1019392 38 0 1013102 DEC 33 FM SECSTATE WASHDC TO AMEMBASSY ISLAMABAD IMMEDIATE INFO AMEMBASSY KABUL IMMEDIATE AMCONSUL PESHAWAR IMMEDIATE AMEMBASSY MOSCOW IMMEDIATE STATE 400140 Exnxs E O 12356 TAGS PREL PK AF UR SUBJECT MARKER CALL ON ARMACOST DECEMBER 9 REF KABUL 2945 1 - ENTIRE TEXT 2 SUMMARY UNDER SECRETARY ARMACOST TOLD PAKISTAN AMBASSADOR MARKER DECEMBER 9 THAT AFGHANISTAN WAS NOT RAISED IN EITHER THE REAGAN-GORBACHEV OR THE SHULTZ-SHEVARNADZE MEETING ON DECEMBER 7 IN NEW YORK LATEST PROPOSALS ON AFGHANISTAN ARE NOT PRACTICAL OR EVEN SERIOUS THE MODERATE TONE OF THE SOVIETS AT THE MEETINGS IN NEW YORK REINFORCES OUR VIEW THAT THEY INTEND TO BE OUT OF AFGHANISTAN BY FEBRUARY 15 SECRET SECRET PAGE 02 STATE 400140 BUT ARE TRYING TO ENSURE THAT THEY LEAVE UNDER THE MOST FAVORABLE CONDITIONS POSSIBLE END SUMMARY 3 PAKISTAN AMBASSADOR MARKER CALLED BRIEFLY ON UNDER UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF STATE REVIEW AUTHORITY THEODORE SELLIN ID 29 SEP 2011 201105567 SECRETARY ARMACOST 0N DECEMBER 9 T0 REQUEST A READOUT OF THE MEETING WITH GORBACHEV AND THE MEETING WITH SHEVARDNADZE ALSO ATTENDING MEETING WERE NEA DAS SCHAFFER STAFFER EASTHAM AND OFFICER GHITELMAN NOTETAKER 4 ARMACOST NOTED THAT AFGHANISTAN DID NOT COME UP AT EITHER OF THE MEETINGS HE SAID THE EXPECTATION HAD BEEN THAT IT WOULD COME UP AT THE LUNCHEON GORBACHEV HOWEVER DID NOT RAISE THE AFGHAN ISSUE 5 ARMACOST REVIEWED SOME OF THE SPECIFIC POINTS GORBACHEV OUTLINED IN HIS UN SPEECH NONE OF THE PROPOSALS WERE NEW OR REALLY SERIOUS ARMACOST SAID NEITHER THE CALL FOR A CEASE-FIRE NOR A BEEFED UP UN PEACE KEEPING FORCE IS PRACTICAL THE RENEWED SOVIET INTEREST IN IS CURIOUS GIVEN THE REJECTION OF IT LAST MARCH CALL FOR AN INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE AND AN INTERNATIONAL PEACE CORPS ARE MERELY REPLAYS OF EARLIER SOVIET EFFORTS TO INTERNATIONALIZE THEIR DILEMMA IN AFGHANISTAN THE SECRETARY QUITE PROPERLY RESPONDED TO A QUESTION ON THE SUBJECT BY REITERATING SOME BASIC FACTS ABOUT AFGHANISTAN AND REIETERATING THE BOTTOM LINE THE SOVIETS SHOULD GET OUT 6 TURNING T0 MEETING WITH RABBANI IN TAIF ARMACOST COMMENTED THAT THE RESISTANCE DELEGATION HANDLED ITSELF VERY WELL IN THE FACE OF A VORONTSOV SECRET SECRET PAGE 03 STATE 400140 PERFORMANCE ALTERNATELY THREATENING AND BEGUILING ARMACOST OBSERVED THAT OFFER TO ARRANGE FOR RABBANI TO MEET WITH GORBACHEV IN MOSCOW REFLECTED SOVIET DESPERATION ARMACOST CITED REPORTS FROM KABUL REFTEL THAT DESCRIBE THE GROWING SENSE OF ISOLATION BEING FELT BY THE PDPA AND THAT EXCEPT FOR NAJIB THE PDPA POLITBURO WAS APPARENTLY NOT BRIEFED BY THE SOVIETS AS TO THE TACTICS OR EVEN THE TIMING OF THE TAIF MEETINGS 7 ARMACOST CONCLUDED BY NOTING WITH SATISFACTION THE ABSENCE OF SOVIET ACCUSATORY RHETORIC DURING NEW YORK VISIT WE REGARD THE ABSENCE OF INVECTIVE AS A GOOD SIGN AND WE STILL EXPECT THE SOVIETS AFTER ALL IS SAID AND DONE TO ADHERE TO THEIR OBLIGATION TO WITHDRAW FROM AFGHANISTAN BY FEBRUARY 15 UNCLASSIFIED UNCLASSIFIED 8 KABUL MINIMIZE CONSIDERED SECRET UNCLASSIFIED This document is from the holdings of The National Security Archive Suite 701 Gelman Library The George Washington University 2130 H Street NW Washington D C 20037 Phone 202 994-7000 Fax 202 994-7005 nsarchiv@gwu edu