FORD, KISSINGER AND THE INDONESIAN INVASION, 1975-76
Ford and Kissinger Gave Green Light to Indonesia's Invasion of East Timor,
1975: New Documents Detail Conversations with Suharto
National Security Archive Electronic Briefing Book No. 62
Edited by William Burr and Michael L. Evans
December 6, 2001
The Indonesian invasion of East Timor in December 1975 set the stage for
the long, bloody, and disastrous occupation of the territory that ended
only after an international peacekeeping force was introduced in 1999.
President Bill Clinton cut off military aid to Indonesia in September
1999—reversing a longstanding policy of military cooperation—but questions
persist about U.S. responsibility for the 1975 invasion; in particular, the
degree to which Washington actually condoned or supported the bloody
military offensive. Most recently, journalist Christopher Hitchens raised
questions about the role of former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger in
giving a green light to the invasion that has left perhaps 200,000 dead in
the years since. Two newly declassified documents from the Gerald R. Ford
Presidential Library, released to the National Security Archive, shed light
on the Ford administration’s relationship with President Suharto of
Indonesia during 1975. Of special importance is the record of Ford’s and
Kissinger’s meeting with Suharto in early December 1975. The document shows
that Suharto began the invasion knowing that he had the full approval of
the White House. Both of these documents had been released in heavily
excised form some years ago, but with Suharto now out of power, and
following the collapse of Indonesian control over East Timor, the situation
has changed enough that both documents have been released in their entirety.
Other documents found among State Department records at the National
Archives elucidate the inner workings of U.S. policy toward the Indonesian
crisis during 1975 and 1976. Besides confirming that Henry Kissinger and
top advisers expected an eventual Indonesian takeover of East Timor,
archival material shows that the Secretary of State fully understood that
the invasion of East Timor involved the "illegal" use of U.S.-supplied
military equipment because it was not used in self-defense as required by law.
...
But it is not simply a matter of omission; on several occasions Kissinger
has explicitly denied that he ever had substantive discussions of East
Timor with Suharto, much less having consented to Indonesian plans. The new
evidence contradicts Kissinger's statements: Indonesian plans for the
invasion of East Timor were indeed discussed with Suharto, and Ford and
Kissinger gave them the green light. As Kissinger advised Suharto on the
eve of the invasion: "it is important that whatever you do succeeds
quickly" but that "it would be better if it were done after we returned" to
the United States.
...
full article and documents are at http://www.gwu.edu/~nsarchiv/NSAEBB/NSAEBB62
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