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May 3, 1973

Introduction

This almanac page for Thursday, May 3, 1973, pulls together various records created by the federal government and links to additional resources which can provide context about the events of the day.

Previous Date: Wednesday, May 2, 1973

Next Date: Friday, May 4, 1973

Schedule and Public Documents

Archival Holdings

  • Selective document listing

    President's Office Files

    The President's Office Files consists of materials drawn together by the Special Files Unit from several administrative subdivisions within the White House Office. It is the handwriting and sensitive papers sent to the Staff Secretary that now comprise much of the President's Office Files. Visit the finding aid to learn more.

    President's Personal File

    The President's Personal File is essentially a President's secretary's file, kept by Rose Mary Woods, personal secretary to the President, for two purposes: (1) preserving for posterity a collection of documents particularly close to the President, whether because he dictated or annotated them, or because of the importance of the correspondent or the event concerned and (2) giving appropriate attention–letters of gratitude, invitations to White House social events, and the like–to members and important friends and supporters of the Nixon administration. This generalization does not describe all the varied materials of a file group which is essentially a miscellany, but it does identify the reason for the existence of the file group's core. Visit the finding aid to learn more.

  • The National Archives Catalog is the online portal to the records held at the National Archives, and information about those records. It is the main way of describing our holdings and also provides access to electronic records and digitized versions of our holdings. 

    The Catalog searches across multiple National Archives resources at once, including archival descriptions, digitized and electronic records, authority records, and web pages from Archives.gov and the Presidential Libraries. The Catalog also allows users to contribute to digitized historical records through tagging and transcription.

    Nixon Library Holdings

    All National Archives Units

National Security Documents

  • The President's Daily Brief is the primary vehicle for summarizing the day-to-day sensitive intelligence and analysis, as well as late-breaking reports, for the White House on current and future national security issues. Read "The President's Daily Brief: Delivering Intelligence to Nixon and Ford" to learn more.

  • The Foreign Relations of the United States series presents the official documentary historical record of major U.S. foreign policy decisions and significant diplomatic activity. Visit the State Department website for more information.

    Vol. XV, Soviet Union, June 1972-August 1974

    Kissinger's Pre-Summit Trip to Moscow, May 1973

    • 102. Letter From Soviet General Secretary Brezhnev to President Nixon, Moscow, May 3, 1973

      Source: National Archives, Nixon Presidential Materials, NSC Files, Kissinger Office Files, Box 68, Country Files—Europe—USSR, Dobrynin/Kissinger, Vol. 17. No classification marking. A handwritten notation at the top of the page reads: “Handed to HAK by Vorontsov, 7:15 pm, May 3, 1973.”

    • 103. National Security Decision Memorandum 215, Washington, May 3, 1973

      Source: National Archives, Nixon Presidential Materials, NSC Files, NSC Institutional Files (H-Files), Box H–208, NSDM 151–NSDM 200, Originals. Secret. Copies were sent to the Director of Central Intelligence and the Chairman of the JCS. Sonnenfeldt forwarded the draft NSDM to Kissinger on April 30 for his signature. (Ibid., Box H–239, Policy Papers, NSDM 215 [2 of 2])

    Vol. XVIII, China, 1973-1976

    Kissinger's Visits to Beijing and the Establishment of the Liaison Offices, January 1973-May 1973

    Vol. XXV, Arab-Israeli Crisis and War, 1973

    Arab-Israeli Crisis and War, 1973

    • 51. Memorandum of Conversation, Washington, May 3, 1973, 6:30-7:15 p.m.

      Source: National Archives, Nixon Presidential Materials, NSC Files, Kissinger Office Files, Box 135, Country Files, Middle East, Rabin/Dinitz Sensitive Memcons, 1973. Top Secret; Sensitive; Exclusively Eyes Only. The meeting took place in the Map Room at the White House.

    Vol. XXXIII, SALT II, 1972-1980

    SALT II, 1972-1980

    • 23. National Security Decision Memorandum 213, Washington, May 3, 1973

      Source: National Archives, Nixon Presidential Materials, NSC Institutional Files (H–Files), Box H–208, National Security Decision Memoranda, NSDM 201–NSDM 250, Originals. Top Secret; Sensitive. Copies were sent to the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and the Director of Central Intelligence.

    Vol. XXXVI, Energy Crisis, 1969-1974

    March 8-October 5, 1973

    Vol. XXXVIII, Part 1, Foundations of Foreign Policy, 1973-1976

    Foundations of Foreign Policy, 1973-1976

    • 9. President Nixon’s Fourth Annual Report to the Congress on U.S. Foreign Policy, Washington, May 3, 1973

      Source: Public Papers: Nixon, 1973, pp. 348–518. The report was issued by the White House in a 234-page booklet entitled “U.S. Foreign Policy for the 1970’s: Shaping a Durable Peace; A Report to Congress by Richard Nixon, President of the United States, May 3, 1973.” Under a November 16, 1972, covering memorandum, Rogers forwarded to Kissinger a paper entitled “Themes and Textual Suggestions for the President’s Annual Review of American Foreign Policy.” (National Archives, Nixon Presidential Materials, NSC Files, Subject Files, Box 328, The President’s Annual Review of Foreign Policy 1972 (Agency Submissions) Vol I)

    • 10. Conversation Between President Nixon and Ambassador David K.E. Bruce, Washington, May 3, 1973

      Source: National Archives, Nixon Presidential Materials, White House Tapes, Conversation 911–9. No classification marking. The editor transcribed the portion of the conversation printed here specifically for this volume. According to the President’s Daily Diary, Bruce and Nixon met in the White House Oval Office from 9:48 until 10:12 a.m. (Ibid., White House Central Files) Appointed on March 15 as Chief of the new U.S. Liaison Office, Bruce presented his credentials in Beijing on May 14.

    Vol. E-8, Documents on South Asia, 1973-1976

    India-Pakistan 1

    • 126. Telegram 3585 From the Embassy in Pakistan to the Department of State, Islamabad, May 3, 1973, 0605Z

      The Embassy assessed Pakistan’s domestic political situation as more stable following its government’s passage of a new constitution on April 10.

      Source: National Archives, RG 59, Central Files 1970–73, POL 15–1 PAK. Confidential. It was repeated to Kabul, Karachi, Lahore, New Delhi, and Tehran. The Embassy had reported on the ratification process in telegrams 2903, April 10 (Ibid.), 2993, April 12, (Ibid., Central Foreign Policy Files), and 3017, April 13, (Ibid., Central Files 1970–73, POL 15–5 PAK) all from Islamabad.

    Vol. E-9, Part 2, Documents on the Middle East Region, 1973-1976

    Saudi Arabia

    • 87. Memorandum From Harold H. Saunders and William B. Quandt of the National Security Council Staff to the President’s Assistant for National Security Affairs (Kissinger), Washington, May 3, 1973

      Summary: The NSC asked for Kissinger’s decision on whether to provide, in principle, the F–4 Phantom jet fighter/bomber to Saudi Arabia and Kuwait.

      Source: National Archives, Nixon Presidential Materials, NSC Files, Box 647, Country Files, Middle East, Middle East (General) Volume 9, 1972–74. Secret; Sent for action. On May 17, Kissinger approved, in principle only, the sale of the F–4 to Saudi Arabia with no decision on Kuwait. At the top of the memorandum Kissinger wrote “Brent: Send forward Thursday [May 17].” He also then wrote “OK.” Prince Sultan requested approval for the sale on April 24 in meetings with CINCEUR General Andrew Goodpaster, as reported in telegram 304 from Dhahran, April 25. (Ibid., Box 630, Country Files, Middle East, Saudi Arabia, Volume III, September 1, 1971—April 1973) Ambassador Thacher informed Acting Minister of Defense Prince Turki of the decision on May 18. (Ibid.)

    Vol. E-12, Documents on East and Southeast Asia, 1973-1976

    Pacific Islands

    • 305. Memorandum From the President’s Assistant for National Security Affairs (Kissinger) to President Nixon, Washington, May 3, 1973., Washington, May 3, 1973

      Kissinger reported on the Under Secretaries Committee’s proposed instructions to Williams and asked Nixon to decide on the U.S. negotiating position toward Tinian.

      Source: Ford Library, National Security Adviser, NSC East Asian and Pacific Affairs Staff: Files, (1969) 1973–1977, Box 36, Marianas (Working Files) [7]. Secret. Sent for action. The President initialed his approval of the first recommendation, which concerned the acquisition of Tinian, and the second recommendation, which approved the positions advocated by the USC. Tab A, draft instructions to Williams, is not attached. Tab B, the April 13 memorandum from Rush, the Chairman of the USC, to the President, is at National Archives, Nixon Presidential Materials, NSC Institutional Files (H-Files), Box H-276, Under Secretaries Decision Memorandums, U/DM 98 [1 of 5]. Tab C, a report from the DOS Political Advisor in the TTPI, is not attached.

    Thailand and Burma

    Vol. E-15, Part 2, Documents on Western Europe, 1973-1976, Second, Revised Edition

    Western Europe Regional, 1973-1976

    • 13. National Security Decision Memorandum 214, Washington, May 3, 1973

      Summary: The President specified the guidelines that would govern the U.S. negotiating approach to the balance of payments offset and burden-sharing negotiations.

      Source: National Archives, Nixon Presidential Materials, NSC Files, NSC Institutional Files (H-Files), Box H–239, Policy Papers, NSDM–214. Confidential. Copies were sent to the DCI, the Chairman of the JCS, and the President’s Assistant for International Economic Affairs. After reviewing a draft of this NSDM sent to him by Odeen on April 30, Kissinger directed: “Get something that authorizes deferral of actual negs [negotiations] till fall. Discussed with Brandt.” (Memorandum from Odeen to Kissinger, April 30; ibid.) For a memorandum of conversation recording Brandt’s May 1 discussion with Nixon and Kissinger in Washington, see Document 265. For a summary analysis of the study prepared in response to NSSM 170, see Document 11. For further documentation on the U.S.–FRG bilateral offset issue, see the West German compilation in this volume.

  • The Kissinger telephone conversation transcripts consist of approximately 20,000 pages of transcripts of Kissinger’s telephone conversations during his tenure as Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs (1969-1974) and Secretary of State (1973-1974) during the administration of President Richard Nixon. Visit the finding aid for more information.

    Digitized versions can be found in the National Archives Catalog.

Audiovisual Holdings

Context (External Sources)