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MEMORANDUM OF CONVERSATION May 17, 1968 
PARTICIPANTS: 	Hayek Czech Foreign Minister 
8· 
Professor Henry A. Kissinger 

PLACE: 	Hotel Esplanade Mairanski Lazne 
COPIES TO: 	s EUR AmEmbassy Moscow u INR M AmEmbassy Prague G Wh.ite House 
Hayek came to the conference to deliver a most subtle and ambiguous talk. Its highlights (including the question period) were an affirmation of the Warsaw pact as much on national as on ideological grounds; an insistence that Czech socialism had to be deepened by humanism and democracy; a reference to the Czech crise de conscience; some sarcastic remarks about "spectacular" plans for European security; a call for the broadest exchange between Western and Eastern. intellectuals. After the talk, Snejdarek sought. me out to say that Hayek wished to talk with me. We talked alone for about an hour though in a corner of the dining room in full view of ~he Soviet delegation. After telling me how pleased he had been by my talk with Snejdarek, Hayek covered the following items in this order: 
Czech Internal Developments. Hayek gave an account of Czech internal developments very similar to Snejdarek though in much less detail. He stressed the importance of the May 31 meeting of the Central Committee. Cz;eeft81~PltllW.& 'ili•,• ·.,'69GlllCllll:EeG 
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to himself and Prague's embassy staff an "escort" wherever it. went. Still he was con­vinced that Hanoi had not entered these talks lightly. Prague 
had "certain indications" that they had been prepared over a 
long period of time and through many channels. Having embarked 
on this course Hanoi would want to explore it to the fullest · 
extent possible. He thought the analogy to Korea was very 
inappropriate. The big difference was that China had stood 
behind North Korea while it opposed North Vietnam. Hayek 
t~refore expected major progress this year ·--at a minimum 
he exp<acted a cease•.fire. In reply to a question, Hayek said 
that he thought a de facto cease-fire easier to accomplish 
~h a negotiated one. 
Hayek added that even a full settlement this year was not impossible. He said that Hanoi recognized it wou~d not be able to humiliate the United States. He added that Hanoi wguld probably settle for a minimum NLF participation in a coalition government. It was easing our task by fonning a new group which could replace the NLF. He refused to elab­orate on what he meant by minimum participation. I told him that I knew nothing beyond our official position. 
U.S.-Czech Relations. Hayek asked --as Snejdarek had done -­whether the U.S. wanted Czechoslovakia to leave the Warsaw pact and whether we wanted Czechoslovakia to end its Socialist system. As in the case of Snejdarek I replied that the. U.S. had no 
ng the balance of power in Central Europe and no 

interfere in Czech internal affairs. Though he could not have had any doubt about my answer, Hayek seemed visibly pleased. He stressed that he appreciated the U.S. stance. 
Hayek then said that the chief Czech complaint against the