REASONS FOR IMPLEMENTING A MODIFIED* 'OPEN SKIES' POLICY AS A PART OF UNITED STATES NATIONAL POLICY

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP82M00531R000800050002-4
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: T
• Document Page Count: 2
• Document Creation Date: December 16, 2016
• Document Release Date: August 1, 2005
• Sequence Number: 2
• Publication Date: January 5, 1972
• Content Type: PAPER

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Approved For Release 2005/08/08 : CIA-RDP82M00531 R000800050002-4
January 5, 1972
REASONS FOR IMPLEMENTING A MODIFIED* "OPEN SKIES"
POLICY AS A PART OF UNITED STATES NATIONAL POLICY
Franklin. Murphy and Edward Teller
1, The only two nations that have at present a credible satellite
photography capability are the USSR and the US.
The USSR is a closed and tightly controlled society,- secrecy
is its game and it has an effective capability of enforcing secrecy.
The US is a free and open society and therefore has the greatest
difficulty in enforcing secrecy.
We have been trapped into playing the Soviet game which they can
play far better than we. To put it another way... wherever possible,
we should make a virtue of our national strength--namely, freedom
and openness.
2. There is a great and still growing credibility gap between national
policy makers on the one hand and our society on the other. Since
a picture speaks louder than a thousand words, if we are to convince
our people of the validity of the Soviet threat, we must show them,
in addition to talking to them. This way it may be made more clear
that we need e enses to insure survival rather than more arms for
superiority. Our technological skill will not avail, if the people of
the US will not provide the funds to apply these skills for defense.
4. We can add to the publication of our pictures (which is the modified
Open Skies policy) a proposal of cooperation between nations willing
to pursue the objective of surveillance in an open fashion. This might
*It is suggested that only the pictures obtained from satellites should be
released; it is not suggested that electronic intelligence should be opened
up.
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