Records on Memcons and Telcons, January 1989 to December 1991 Between President George H.W. Bush and various heads of state

The materials in FOIA 2000-0429-F are a selective, not necessarily all inclusive, body of documents responsive to the topic of the FOIA. Researchers should consult the archivist about related materials. FOIA 2000-0429-F consists of memoranda of in-person conversations (memcons) and telephone 2000-0429-F 1 conversations (telcons) between President George Bush and other heads of state between January 1989 and December 1991. In most instances, memcons and telcons are detailed transcripts of such conversations and are based on the notes of National Security Council staff members or White House Situation Room personnel who monitor the conversations. On some occasions, these talks were not monitored or no memcon or telcon was produced by the notetaker. When this occurred, generally a marker was placed in the file by the NSC indicating a conversation had taken place, who the participants were, and the date and time of the contact. Also, there are instances where the memcons and telcons contain a mere summary of the conversation rather than a detailed transcript. Memcons and telcons were generated primarily to record conversations between President Bush and other heads of state. However, there are also a small number of non-head of state memcons and telcons filed here as well. These conversations are most often with important world figures, such as African National Congress leader Nelson Mandela and Manfred Woerner, Secretary General of NATO. Memcons and telcons also are present for Pope John Paul II and the United Nations Secretary General. Finally, memcons and telcons are not always limited solely to a transcript of the discussion of the two heads of state. Secretary of State James Baker and National Security Advisor Brent Scowcroft were, on rare occasions, active participants in these conversations. While these memcons and telcons will one day be a valuable resource to researchers studying foreign policy issues during the Bush administration or President Bush's interaction with specific world leaders and/or their countries, currently little of this material is available for research. While processed, these records have been closed in accordance with Presidential Records Act (PRA) restrictions and the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) exemptions which restrict the release of national security classified information. Memcons and telcons are organized separately and are filed chronologically by the date of the conversation. On many occasions President Bush had multiple conversations with a head of state on the same day. Generally, each conversation was recorded in its own memcon by the NSC staff. These memcons are listed separately on the withdrawal sheets. Finally, these documents were maintained by the NSC for the specific purpose of having a record copy of all memcons and telcons. Therefore, there is little extraneous material located in these files. Read less