CIA & BUSINESS INTELLIGENCE AGENCY'S REQUESTS POSE PROBLEMS FOR SOME GLOBAL FIRMS

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP73-00475R000200800001-7
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 1
• Document Creation Date: December 27, 2016
• Document Release Date: December 17, 2013
• Sequence Number: 1
• Publication Date: February 24, 1967
• Content Type: OPEN SOURCE

eclassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release @ 50-Yr 2013/12/17 : CIA-RDP73-00475R000200800001-7
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.11,-;uests Pose Problems
1-i'or Some Global Firms
Kaiser Jeep Shows Its Sales'.'
"Movies; Traveler to Soviet.
'Xebuffs Two Bids for Help
nye on the eubject, the tntth may be elusive: travel schedules ,of its foreign sales officials,
I. At some firms the. top officer may be un- William si Plekette vice
FEB 24 1967
has ever had anyth
Charles, Ada me, chairman, says: "No com-
ment. That's all I have to say. I'll talk to,
you about nnything but that."
. .
run is also good for Abe ALS: as a whole.;
. . .
"Being effective worldavide is, in a sense, in
the 'national interest," he aeserts.
I
A surprising number of U.S. compenies do
The . president of a Southwestebese.d. come,. own up, at least privately, to cooperating with
pany that drills oil wells abroad at first t the CIA to the extent' Of providing informas i
agreed to talk about, the CIA on an anony- , tion. ?
mous baste, then changed his mind midway , Some firms say the agency has a pproacSnTeAnT
through the interview and ordered the reel employes before they departed on tries over-
Porter to tear up his notes; he watched intent- Fees and asked them to pick tip specific bits
ly to make sure the reporter, complied. '"I %;ef information, which, they proceeded to do.
hope you realize," he said, "hew delicate a The companies suggest the CIA must have
Imatter this is."
ig ' ?:. ! ' ? learned of the impending +rips from passport
lieepin the Tanes in the Dark
,
. . I applications or other sources. American Mo.
Even when businessmen are more talka.' tors Corp. provides the ? Government with
president, indicates.
.1. op Bosses May Not Be Told aware a eubordinate has ever dealt with the Despite. occa.sfonal advance planning with
CIA because, as ? one American executive ? the CIA, however, most companies say over.
based in Geneva, Switzerland, puts it,. "This seas travelers' contact with the agency gen-
WALL STREKT JOURNAL XCIV8 nOttfldtip
The web of Central Intelligence Agency
to private organizations extends to busi-
neeses-in particular, to big 'companies that
operate around the globe.
?Cnlike the recently disclosed CIA ties ,to
erucient groups, foundations and labor unions,
e.agency's relations .with firms a-pparently
involve financial subsidies. Instead, the
CIA has sought on occasion to ? use positions
on overeeas staffs of ?companies as cover for
its employes. More frequently, it has turned
O Iluxiness se a source-of information, In. )
?terviewing? business travelers and other bust-
:10.SSillell involved in foreign, operations to
gather clues to political and economic develop-
ments a.bree
At least within the business world, compas
rain' relations with the' CIA usually don't ap.
rear to peck the emotional content they do
in the case of some of the other private or ?
eanizatione that have cooperated with the
eeericy. Most executives take a matter-of-fact ?
view of the situation.. ?
-,caiser Jeep Corp.,' a subsidiery of Kaiser;
:relitetriee Corp., says it was approached by
the CIA last year for a report on a promo-
tionel jaunt by 25 salesmen through several
eaet European countries, including Poland
,zeenosloyakia and Rumania. "We thought wel
houicl cooperete with them," comments a v
Saiser official. "They were asking legitimate ?
uestions concerning business information."
maging Foreign Operations
On the other hand, some businessmen say
hey are uneasy about'leven seemingly casual
eaations with the CIA. Their concern is based
et so ; much on ethical grounds as on 'fears
idt the slightest hint of involvement with..
.5. intelligence could damage their foreign ;
?seratisns,
sort of thing is never on a company baste erally comes in "debriefing" interviews with
but on an individual basis." In other instances.. agents following. a trip.
businessmen may feel obligated to mislead ' The CIA appears to deal with some bust-
questioners. . .. , . . . .. nessmen on a continuing basis. "T have regu-
: One of these situations may . well apply in. lar contact with the CIA," saye William Boyd
the case of a major U.S. corporation with Jr., an International vice prelident of Pitts- i
extensive operations 4irt Asia. At ? the corn- burgh National Bank. "They call up and ask
if we have anything in our files of a statistical
pany's Midwest headquarters, 'the president -
nature on industries abroad, and we end up..
says- he 'would bar any cooperation by em-
I by giving them 'a lot of printed material." He ,
plOyes with the CIA. "You've got to decide 1
whethery employes working ? as, however, that it is always material that 1
V
or for someone else." he declares firmly. YOU
try and
be picked up easily in the foreign coun
,t
and doesn't represent data about client 0
another source familiar ?with the firm's aver- i.companies. !
iseas staff insists .jitst as firmly that for years e
one of its "zalesmee. in ,Japan was actually ;Casual Arrangements.. . .
,a CIA ,operative. . , ? More often, businessmen's dealings with
The president of a West Coast mantifacturer :the CIA are on a casual, irregular or even ?
,involved with' the CIA front time to time .sug-.?pne-shot basis. Where information-gathering by::
teivests that it would . be wise for a company would
travelers. is involved, companies!
that wanted to assist the agency to issue a;:.would prefer to keep things that way, fearing!
well-publicized statement that "International .,more fixed arrangements are likely to land the:
Widget will not allow its' employes to cooper- company in hot water abroad sometime.
ate in any manner with the CIA." Then, A vice-president of a, giant international
he ,company says that a few times a CIA. agent .
says, the company would ?be free to cooperate
has approached an employe and said:. "You
as much as it pleased. : . . '
. ....travel a lot-how about supplying us with
co Truck With the CIA ? . , ? ' ',regular reports?" The company says it al.
?
With-at least seeming ,sincerity, some bust- ;:ways therm 'clown that kind of request.
nessmen do insist in sweeping fashion' that they Companies sometimes are puzzled by the f
will have no truck with the CIA: Romaine
. sort of information sought by the CIA. "Some .
Fielding. 47-year-old president and ,owner set a i of ' these things they; could get out 'of news- ?
Los Angeles concern that islets as sales rep-. ,papers," says a spokesman for an oil. cone.
resentative for ? about 40 U.S. manufacturentespany ?that has at tithes been asked its views
has made 13 trips to the Soviet Union over the . on the economic stability of a foreign country.'
past eight years. Twice the CIA has asked him : An executive of ?a Chicago drug manufac-
for help,' : he says, and both times be has titrer reports that 'about two years ago he
refused. .. . . ? ' . ? .'; was 'interviewed by, the CIA after a trip to
"At no time did I let the conversation even .England, a' nation that would seem . to held
get into specifics," he recalls., In Mr.- Field- 'few secrets for the U.S. "They wanted, my ;
lug's 'view, "the. only., row for a businessman, . impressions from talking with businessmen- ,
to hoe is right down the middle, without in- i how they viewed business prospects, whether
volvement." , .? ? , the pound looked strong, whether they liked ,
J. L. Camp, vice president in charge of
e. overseas division of International Han'
.ter Co., says he spends three-quarters of
a time abroad but' has never been ap-
()ached by the CIA-and hopes he never is.
Vizi., out terrific investment overseas, if any-
seepected us of cloak-and-dagger work, it
ela wreck us,"- says Mr. Camp.: ?
Mer.y, executives flatly refuse to discuss'
eeible reletions between' business and Gov.'
tment intelligence gatherers. "This is a no-
111)110in area,", says an official Of General
e & Rnbber Co.
Most compeller; have no hard-ancl-fast rules
about relations with the CIA. They weigh each
request for ceoperation as it arises. In 'gen-
eral, they seem to he willing to go along when
they are convinced that doing so won't hurt
them. "Obviously. 'you are going to ?help as
much as you can without jeopardizing your.
self overseas,". says one Ohio executive. ?
?''One has to balance the national interest"
with one's own interest in being effectiVe
world-wide, says a corporate official In Los
Angeles. He gone on to argue that rejecting a,
CIA request for assistance is not necessarily
a selfish flouting Of the common good-sug-
gesting, in essence", that. What is good for a
private American ?
; Americans," says the executive. "I gave them
I no, profound information that they couldn't
have mitten from any bank doing business
. there or any embassy." .
Looking at Movie..
? According to Kaiser Jeep, the CIA was,
V particularly interested in looking at movier0
"the firm had made on its promntional venture.
behind the Iron Curtain, even theueli the films,
'consisted primarily of Mote of Jeep sales dis-
plays in the countries visited. Kaiser shipped
the movies to Washington an requested, but a se
Kaiser official observes: "We never did figure ,
.out what was so important about the movies.
.We were showin the
Sr.
-Annroved for Release ,@ 50-.Yr 2013/12/17 : CIA-RDP73-00475R0002008000014