UNCLASSIFIED U S Department of State Case No F-2015-10833 Doc No C06298282 Date 05 30 2017 RELEASE IN FULL SECRET PAGE 01 USVIEN 01627 01 OF 02 091257Z ACTION NODS-00 INFO LOG-00 ADS-00 000 W 041170 091309Z 40 O 091254Z JUN 90 ZFF4 FM USMISSION USVIENNA TO SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 3334 SECRET SECTION 01 OF 02 USVIENNA 01627 NODIS DECAPTIONED FOR THE SECRETARY PASS ALSO TO SECDEF CHENEY NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISOR SCOWCROFT CJCS GEN POWELL ACDA DIRECTOR LEHMAN AND JUDGE WEBSTER FROM USDEL CFE E O 12356 DECL OADR TAGS PARM NATO PREL KCFE SUBJECT CFE VISITING FRG OFFICIAL ON THE GERMANS - THE SOVIETS AND CFE 1 SECRET - ENTIRE TEXT 2 SUMMARY VISITING FRG HLTF REP AMB ANTON ROSSBACH PROTECT FULLY TOLD U S DEPREP KAPLAN JUNE 8 THAT KOHL AND GENSCHER WERE DETERMINED TO ACHIEVE GERMAN UNIFICATION A CFE TREATY AND A CSCE SUMMIT THIS YEAR AND WERE PREPARED TO PAY QUITE A HIGH PRICE TO SECURE THESE GOALS ROSSBACH SAID MOSCOW WAS THREATENING TO HOLD UP THESE GERMAN AIMS IN THE HOPE THAT GERMAN POLITICIANS WOULD LOSE THEIR NERVE IN THE RUN UP TO THE DECEMBER ELECTIONS AND MAKE FURTHER CONCESSIONS BUT THAT THE SOVIETS HAD PRACTICALLY NO SECRET REVIEW AUTHORITY Robert Homme Senior Reviewer SECRET PAGE 02 USVIEN 01627 01 OF 02 091257Z LEVERAGE IN OBJECTIVE TERMS OVER THE GERMANS AND AMERICANS ROSSBACH DIDN'T KNOW HOW HIGH A PRICE GERMAN LEADERS ULTIMATELY WOULD PAY FOR THE CFE TREATY AND THE CSCE SUMMIT OR WHETHER BONN OR MOSCOW WOULD SHOW THE COOLER NERVES HE REFERRED TO GENSCHER'S WISH TO PRESERVE FRIENDLY RELATIONS WITH THE USSR WHILE PURSUING GERMAN SECURITY OBJECTIVES AND GENSCHER'S FURr IN LEARNING OF TELTSCHIK'S REPORTED THREAT TO USE ECONOMIC LEVERAGE IN MOSCOW SEPTELS COVER GERMAN PERSONNEL LIMITS AS WELL AS UNCLASSIFIED U S Department of State Case No F-2015-10833 Doc No C06298282 Date 05 30 2017 UNCLASSIFIED U S Department of State Case No F-2015-10833 Doc No C06298282 Date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epartment of State Case No F-2015-10833 Doc No C06298282 Date 05 30 2017 UNCLASSIFIED U S Department of State Case No F-2015-10833 Doc No C06298282 Date 05 30 2017 GERMANY ROSSBACH GRINNED AND SAID YES I BELIEVE SO SECRET NNNN SECRET PAGE 01 USVIEN 01627 02 OF 02 091257Z ACTION NODS-00 INFO LOG-00 ADS-00 000 W 041204 091309Z 48 O 091254Z JUN 90 ZFF4 FM USMISSION USVIENNA TO SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 3335 SECRET SECTION 02 OF 02 USVIENNA 01627 NODIS FOR THE SECRETARY PASS ALSO TO SECDEF CHENEY NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISOR SCOWCROFT CJCS GEN POWELL ACDA DIRECTOR LEHMAN AND JUDGE WEBSTER FROM USDEL CFE E O 12356 DECL OADR TAGS PARM NATO PREL KCFE SUBJECT CFE VISITING FRG OFFICIAL ON THE GERMANS 8 TURNING TO CFE KAPLAN ASKED WHAT PRICE THE GERMANS THOUGHT WE NEEDED TO PAY IN ORDER TO SECURE A CFE TREATY AND THEREFORE A CSCE SUMMIT THIS YEAR ROSSBACH REPLIED THAT FOR THE REASONS MENTIONED ABOVE I THINK GERMANY WOULD BE PREPARED TO GO QUITE FAR UNCLASSIFIED U S Department of State Case No F-2015-10833 Doc No C06298282 Date 05 30 2017 UNCLASSIFIED U S Department of State Case No F-2015-10833 Doc No C06298282 Date 05 30 2017 9 KAPLAN THEN ASKED HOW ROSSBACH SAW THE SITUATION IN TERMS OF GERMAN AND SOVIET LEVERAGE IN THE VARIOUS SECURITY FORA DEALING WITH GERMAN RELATED ISSUES ROSSBACH SAID THERE WAS A DICHOTOMY ON THE ONE HAND IN OBJECTIVE TERMS THE SOVIETS HAD NO LEVERAGE AT ALL UNIFICATION WOULD OCCUR THIS YEAR AND BERLIN SECRET SECRET PAGE 02 USVIEN 01627 02 OF 02 091257Z THEN WOULD BE ANNOUNCED AS THE POLITICAL CAPITAL OF GERMANY WITH BONN REMAINING THE ADMINISTRATIVE CAPITAL FOR SOME PERIOD OF TIME THE RUSSIANS COULD THREATEN TO HOLD UP UNIFICATION IN TWO-PLUS-FOUR BUT THE THREAT WAS NOT CREDIBLE GIVEN THE COMBINATION OF SOVIET ECONOMIC DEPENDENCY THE SOVIET NEED FOR INTERNATIONAL LEGITIMACY IN ORDER TO AVOID BECOMING THE NEW SICK MAN OF EUROPE AND THE RISK OF SOME INCIDENT IN EAST GERMANY THAT COULD MAKE THE SOVIET MILITARY POSITION UNTENABLE 10 THAT SAID CONTINUED ROSSBACH LEVERAGE WAS IN THE EYE OF THE BEHOLDER THE SOVIETS HE CLAIMED WERE DOING WHAT THEY HAD DONE SO OFTEN IN THE POST-WAR ERA IT REMINDED HIM OF THE CHILD WHO THREATENED TO HOLD HIS BREATH UNTIL HE DIED THE CHILD AS EVERY PARENT KNEW WOULD DESIST WELL BEFORE HIS LIFE WAS AT RISK AS EVERY PSYCHOLOGIST ALSO KNEW HOWEVER MANY MOTHERS WOULD GIVE IN LONG BEFORE THEIR CHILDREN RELEASED THEIR BREATH 11 THIS ANALOGY AS ROSSBACH SAW IT ILLUMINATED THE CURRENT SOVIET-GERMAN GAME WHEN ASKED HOW THE GERMANS WOULD RESPOND ROSSBACH SAID HE DIDN'T KNOW THE BOTTOM LINE AS THAT GAME WAS BEING PLAYED IN GERMANY BETWEEN GENSCHER AND KOHL WITH THE LARGE ELECTORAL STAKES PROBABLY TRANSCENDING STRATEGIC CONSIDERATIONS 12 ROSSBACH CLOSED BY RETURNING TO HIS EARLIER REFERENCE TO GENSCHER'S DESIRE TO PRESERVE FRIENDLY TIES WITH THE SOVIETS WHILE SETTLING KEY GERMAN QUESTIONS HE UNDERSTOOD THIS POSITION BUT CONFESSED SECRET SECRET PAGE 03 USVIEN 01627 02 OF 02 091257Z TO BEING WORRIED ABOUT IT IN HIS JUDGMENT GENSCHER'S WISH TO AVOID MESSINESS WITH THE SOVIETS AFFORDED MOSCOW ITS ONLY REAL POINT OF LEVERAGE IN THE CURRENT TACTICAL GAME HE WAS NOT SURE HOW THIS WOULD UNCLASSIFIED U S Department of State Case No F-2015-10833 Doc No C06298282 Date 05 30 2017 UNCLASSIFIED U S Department of State Case No F-2015-10833 Doc No C06298282 Date 05 30 2017 PLAY OUT BUT HE WAS CONCERNED WOOLSEY SECRET NNNN UNCLASSIFIED U S Department of State Case No F-2015-10833 Doc No C06298282 Date 05 30 2017 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