October 27, 1962: Transcripts of the Meetings of the ExComm

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MCNAMARA: I haven't the detail. TAYLOR: They started the shooting. International Security 12:3 1 70 JFK: Well now, we're going to get out an announcement and .... we're going to say that - uh - (pause). MCNAMARA: We're going to say it was shot down and we're going to continue our surveillance protected by U.S. fighter aircraft- - DILLON: Suitable protection. MCNAMARA: I'd just say fighter aircraft so there isn't any doubt about it.... RFK: Tomorrow morning add POL? MCNAMARA: I wouldn't do it tonight, Bobby, I'd just announce this one. Tomorrow morning we ought to go in and take out that SAM-site and send our surveillance in with proper protection, immediately following it or on top of it, or whatever way.... TAYLOR: .... The plane is on the ground and not in the water. VOICE: In Cuba. VOICE: We must put it out. Otherwise they will put it out. VOICE: We don't know. JFK: It's overdue anyway isn't it, so we assume- - TAYLOR: Hours overdue. JFK: Do we want to say it's shot down? We don't know-do they say it's been shot down? The Cubans? Well why doesn't Ros-and you, Gen- eral-get a statement which would cover in any case. It may be-we don't know it was shot down. VOICE: We don't know it. MCNAMARA: I think-uh-I think I'd say it was shot down. The probabilities are that it was shot down, and we want an excuse to go in tomorrow and shoot up that SAM-site and send in our- - DILLON: If the plane's on the ground there, it was shot down. I think it didn't just come down.
October 27, 1962 ExComm Transcripts i 71 JFK: The only point is, the only thing that troubles us is the other plane was shot at. MCNAMARA: That's right, exactly. JFK: They say-uh-that's why I'd like to find out whether Havana says they did shoot it down. VOICE: We don't have anything from Havana yet, do we? VOICE: We assume these SAM-sites are manned by Soviets. VOICE: That's the significant part if it is the SAM-site. MCNAMARA: This is a change of pattern, now why it's a change of pattem we don't know. RFK: Yeah. VOICE: The important thing to find out if we possibly can is whether this was a SAM-site. MCNAMARA: There's no way to find out. What we know is that that particular SAM was the one that had the .... radar .... which was required for control of the missiles. VOICE: Would we know whether it's in operation? MCNAMARA: And it was in operation, we believe, at the same time that the U-2 was over. We checked it this morning.... JOHNSON: It's a very different thing. You could have an undisciplined anti-aircraft-Cuban anti-aircraft outfit fire, but to have a SAM-site and a Russian crew fire is not any accident. JFK: I think we ought to-why don't we send an instruction to Hare to have a conversation, but also have the NATO meeting? And say to them what's happening over here. Otherwise we're going to be carry- ing a hell of a bag. DILLON: I think we're going to have such pressure internally in the United States too, to act quickly .. JFK: .... That's why I think we'd better have a NATO meeting tomorrow .... Explain the thing, where we are-uh-I'm just afraid of what's going to happen in NATO, to Europe, when we get into this thing more and more, and I think they ought to feel that they've a
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October 27, 1962: Transcripts of the Meetings of the ExComm

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