U.S. AIDE IS KILLED IN GREECE

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP80M00165A001700040056-2
• Release Decision: RIFPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 6
• Document Creation Date: December 22, 2016
• Document Release Date: May 20, 2010
• Sequence Number: 56
• Publication Date: January 1, 2000
• Content Type: NSPR

Approved For Release 2010/05/20: CIA-RDP80MOO165AO01700040056-2
U.S. Aide
Is Killed'
In Greece
From News Dispatches -
ATHENS, Dec. 23-Richard
S. Welch, special assistant to
the U.S. ambassador * to
Greece, was shot to death
outside his suburban home
here tonight, a U.S. embassy
spokesman said.
Welch's name was among
seven on a list of alleged U.S.
Central Intelligence Agency
agents working in Greece
published recently by the
English-language daily
Athens News. "
A police spokesman said
Welch, 46, a first secretary at
the embassy, was shot in front
of his villa in the fashionable
suburb. of Palaion Psyhiko,
about eight miles from the
Greek capital.
, Three masked gunmen drew
up in a car, one got out and
shot Welch three times. He
died soon after he was rushed
to a hospital, the police
spokesman said.
(According to -intelligence
sources in Washington Welch
was CIA chief of Station in
Athens at the time of his
murder. A CIA spokesman in
Washington, asked about
Welch's alleged undercover
activities, . replied: "The
agency does not confirm
employment, either past or
present. It never has and
never will." A State Depar-
tment tment spokesman said he did
not know if Welch worked for
the CIA.),
Welch and his wife Kiki
were apparently returning to
their residence from a
Christmas party given by U.S.
Ambassador Jack B. Kubisch-
for hundreds of Greek and
American guests. Mrs. Welch
was reportedly unhurt in the -
shooting incident.
Welch was a career
diplomat with previous
overseas service at the U.S.
embassies in Peru,
Guatemala and Cyprus.
A 1951 graduate of Harvard,
he spent nine years as an
See GREECE, AS, Col. 5
GREECE, From'Al
economic analyst for the
Department of the Army
before entering the Foreign
Service in 1960. He was
assigned to the embassy here
about five months ago.
When it published the names
of alleged CIA agents, the
Athens Daily News said it had
received the list from an
organization` calling itself
"The Committee of Greeks
and Greek-Americans."
The committee said in a
letter that Welch's job was "to
see that the government of
Premier Constantine
Karamanlis does not get out of
control." It did not say how
A few days later another
previously unknown
organization calling itself
"The Committee- to Keep
Greece Greek" sent the
Athens News a letter naming
10 alleged agents of the Soviet
KGB, or secret police,.;:
working in Greece.
The News refused to publish
the KGB list but foreign news
agencies received a copy of it
and published the story.
There has been some anti-
American feeling in Greece,
stemming from belief in some
quarters that the United
States supported the Turks in
their invasion of Cyprus last
year. Many Greeks also
believe Washington propped
up the military junta that:
ruled Greece for seven years
before the Cyprus crisis.
Diplomat's Death
Laid to Publicity
While President Ford ex-
pressed his shock and sorrow:
at the murder in Athens of U.
S. diplomat Richard S. Welch,
a former CIA official said that
such tragedies 'become
"inevitable" because of
recent exposures of CIA
personnel.
David Phillips, president of
the Association of Retired
Intelligence officers and a
close personal friend of Welch
said in Washington yesterday
that his organization for
several months "has ex-
pressed its concern for a
number of American foreign
service officers abroad
because of their identification
as CIA officers by a small
group of ex-intelligence people
who have been engaged in a
i program of exposing in-
telligence officers."
Phillips, who retired from
the CIA in May of this year,
identified Philip Agee,
another former CIA em
ployee, . as the main
"protagonist" in the effort to
identify CIA agents abroad. In
a recent book Agee named
more than a hundred CIA
agents, both Americans and
others of foreign nationalities. -
Phillips said "our
association believes that the
murder of Welch in Athens -
..represents the tragic kind of
occurrence which becomes
inevitable" through the
practice of identifying CIA
agents as practiced by Agee.
President Ford, vacationing
in Vail,.Colo., said he was
"shocked and horrified by the
terrorist murder" of Welch.
The President said
"the hearts of all Americans
go out to hie family in
sympathy and in gratitude."
[25 YEAR RE-REVIEW
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WASHINGTON P0?
ichctrd S,; W7e1
THE IMURDER OF Richard S. Welch, CIA station
chief in Athens. was the entirely predictable result of the
disclosure tactics chosen by certain American critics of
the agency as part of their effort to destroy it. His was
one of the names published in a periodical called
Counter-Spy; in a book, former CIA officer Philip Agee
has also named names. Precisely because those using
these tactics include experienced former CIA men, they
would be in a position to know that public identification of
.Richard Welch was tantamount to an
i
open
nvitation to
hiii him. The surprise is not that this happened to him,
but rather that it had not happened previously to others.
That none of the critics pulled the trigger is meaningless.
'I'liere. are enough potential killers at large around the
?''rirld to spare the critics that chore.
If anyone is to blame for Mr. Welch's death. it is the
CIA, "`explained Tim Butz of Fifth Estate; the group here
,,,at, publishes Counter-Spy. "We don't want to see
anyone shot." One can understand why Mr. Butz does not
wish to acknowledge that. his group set Mr. Welch tip for
the hit. He no doubt believes every word, he says. To
blame the victim for the murder, however, is simply to
flee one's own responsibility for contributing to it. What
other result than killing did Mr. Butz and his colleagues
expect when they fingered 1h?. Welch? The'ironies are
overwhelming. Here are some American foes of the CIA
adopting the morality and even abetting _ the
technique-indirect assassination-which they have so
often described as characteristic of the agency itself.
Here are critics of the CIA employing a disclosure tactic
virtually certain to lead to assassination, just as the rest.
of the country comes to the view, which the government
has already formally embraced, that assassination is an
unacceptable abuse of power.
Institutionally the CIA has a good deal to account for
over the years. It is. however,' currently making an
accounting in the only way acceptable in a democratic
society: -according to internal and congressional.
processes of review. 't'hat review must, of course, go
on--with clue vigilance against such perils to individuals
as have been freshly dramatized in Athens. To think that
any of the CIA's past excesses constitute a moral license
for extra-legal punishment of its employees is just
wrong. Richard Welch, after all, was not the agent of a
hostile power. IIe was an American citizen serving his
government, and he had been accused of no crime. We
mourn his death.
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NEW YORK TIMES
aC\, e~_ -n a
GREEK GROUP SA ?S
..-ITKILLED C.I.A. MAN
ATHENS, Dec. 28 (Reuters)---
A secret political group said to-
day it assassinated Richard S.
Welch, chief agent in. Greece
for the Central Intelligence
Agency, to demonstrate that-
the Greek Government and ar-
my were under the control of
United States imperialism.
Greek police officials said
the group's statement, sent to
foreign news agencies, could
provide new clues for detectives
investigating the Athens murder
last Tuesday.
Mr. Welch, 46 years old, first
!secretary at the United States.,,
Embassy, was acknowledged-.
'by the White House as an oper-
ative of the C.I.A. He was
gunned down by three masked
men as he returned home from
a Christmas party, The killers
escaped.
The two-page statement was
distributed for the "organiza-
tion of 17 November," narned
after the IP73 student revolt on
that date against the former
military regime.
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WASHINGTON POST. 28 DEC
Fears for Viher Agents' i4ires
VAIL, Colo., Dec. l
27-President Ford believes
the murder of Central
Intelligence. Agency station
chief Richard S. Welch in
Athens this week is partly the.
result of publication of.
Wel h's name as a CIA agent
shortly before he was killed,
White House press secretary'
Ron Nessen said today.
Nessen also said the
President is concerned about
the lives o,' other agents `_?
"whosecover may have
been blown."
The press secretary made
these comments while an-
swering reporters' questions
soon after an announcement
that the President has waived
various restrictions so Welch
can be'huried in Arlington
National Cemetery Friday.
Nessen announced that a
government plane will be sent
to Providence. R.I.. to bring
Welch's mother, sister. and
brother to the funeral. He said
both of these measures had
been recommended by
Democratic Sens. Claiborne
Pell of Rhode Island and Gary
Hart of Colorado.
The President, as quoted by
Nessen, said the reason he
waived, the military restric-
tions on burial at Arlington
was that Welch "certainly
died in the service of his
country."
Welch. 46. who also was
special assistant to the U.S. ambassador to Greece, was
shot by three masked gunmen
outside leis suburban Athens
home 'Tuesday after an
American embassy Christmas
party.
tie had been identified as a
CIA agent in a Washington-
based publication. Coun-
terspy, which is critical of-
f ;.S. intelligence activities.
.n d al:?o in the Enkllish-
l.ingua Atiter?s L)aily News.
Nessen declined to single
out any publication in- his,
. By Lou Cannon
Washington Post Staft Writer
briefing but both Counterspy:
'and the Athens newspaper
were mentioned in questions
by reporters. When Nessen
was asked if Mr. Ford thought
the publication of Welch's-
.name was responsible for his,
death, he answered:' "Partly:
responsible, yes."
Nessen said in response to a'
question about congressional'
responsibility for Welch's
death that he "did not mean
for a minute to imply'*
-Congress' had any i?espoi
,sibility in the matter. But-he,
said Mr. Ford "emphatically'?,
is concerned that publication
of other names will put the
,.lives of other CIA agents in'
jeopardy. .
"During various.
negotiations and discussions
'with committees on the. Hill
which wanted to reveal'
names, I think the White'
House made very clear, and so'
did Secretary (of State Henry
A.) Kissinger and (CIA;
Director) Bill Colby, that the
publication of agents' names.
could jeopardize their- lives,"..
Nessen said.
Nessen was asked about-
progress Mr. Ford is making
on his plan to make some
.changes in the CIA and other'
intelligence agencies.
lie said that before Mr. Ford
left Washington Tuesday for
his eight-day skiing vacation,
his staff gave the President "a'
very large book" of recom-,
;; endatious. Mr. Ford' is
studying it, and is moving.
toward decisions, Nessen said.
On another matter, Nessen
announced President Ford
will speak Jan. 5 to a national
convention of the American
Farm Bureau Federation in.
St. Louis.
s'1 . i
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WASHINGTON POST
14tlrens Halts' Press orera e
By Dusko Doder
,Wash r, ron Pqs Foreign Service
ATHENS, Dec. 27-The'
Greek government. today,
-imposed a news blackout-onr_
the assassination of Robert
Welch. the senior Central
Intelligence Agency official in
Greece, in a move suggesting
growing official sensitivity
about the incident.
The action, relayed by the
Athens. public prosecutor, to-
the Greek media, prohibits-
publication here of any in-:
formation surrounding the,
case. The ban does not affect'
foreign correspondents;:
however.
Welch's slaying continued to
dominate public discussion
here, and today's afternoon
press was filled . with
speculation about the at-
tackers' identity and their
'possible motives. The ban, the
first instance of censorship
since the restoration of
democracy in Greece 18
months ago. was issued after
the afternoon papers reached
newsstands.
The government's move
comes in the wake of
widespread speculation here
that the assassination was
organized by extremist groups
in an effort to embarrass
,Premier Constantine
Karamanlis.
Police are reported to have
raided the homes of an un-
disclosed number of anar-'
chists, left-wing extremists'
and Greek Cypriots living;
here. The police drive'
reportedly has failed to turn
up any clues about the attack.
Approved For
" Welch; 46, stationchief fold
the CIA here. was one of the,
seven alleged CIA operatives'
in Greece whose nanmes,'
addresses and phone numbers'
were published in the Athens'
press recently.' Welch was.
gunned down Tuesday night in,
front of his suburban home by
three men in what observers'
have described
"professional job."
as a:
During the past two years a
number of U.S. embassy
employees have been sub-'
jected to attacks such as car,
bombings. But no American
diplomat was hurt in these
incidents; ' which reflected a
tide of anti-American feelings
grounded in the widespread
conviction that the United
States, and the CIA in par-
ticular, had installed, sup-
ported and maintained the
military government that
ruled Greece for seven years
until July 1974.
The CIA has been deeply:
involved in Greek affairs since
the time of the Greek civil:
war. It helped establish the
Greek intelligence agency,'
known as KYP, and the in-
timate contacts br'tween the
two organizations were
reported to have been the
principal channel of com-
munication between the two
governments during one
period of the military dic-
tatorship here.
The CIA is also accused of,
helping to organize a coup in
July. 1974, against Cypriot
President llakarios. The
subsequent-Turkish invasion
of Cyprus and Greece's.
inability to challenge it has
been a source of deep national
humiliation.
2 8 DEC 1
~. Anti-American feelings, and.
specifically denunciations of
the CIA, have been stimulated
by a steady stream of
disclosures of CIA misdeeds in
Washington. According to
some political observers, the
congressional investigations
of the agency have helped
create a climate here in which
,the assassination of a CIA-
station chief had become a,
desirable objective of some'
.extremist groups.
'I.' The Greek press has been of
'pains to suggest that the
':murder was not committed by'
Greeks. Some newspapers
have suggested' that the','
rassassination of Welch was
done by.the Turks, Greece's
`traditional enemy. Others said
'Welch was a victim of in,-'
teragency struggle. The Daily
Kathimerini strongly
suggested that Welch had
been assassinated by.
Americans. - '
Welch had served in Athens'
in the 1950s, under a different
cover. He spent the period of
1960-64 in Cyprus and, before
his assignment to Athens last
summer, he served 11 years in?
Latin American countries.
Greek government leaders,
including Premier
Karamanlis, have gone out of
their way to express regrets
for Welch's death and it seems
unlikely that the relations
between the two countries
would be affected by the in
cident. However, it has
focused public attention on the
CIA's large presence in
Greece and raised questions
about the future scope and
form of its opera tion.htcre.
The bock, of Welch is. at an
American - airbase near
Athens, awaiting the arrival of
his 19-year-old son. who will
accompany the body to
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TheWashington Star
fiord Sets burial
In. ,~r~~ngton for
-Slaih aA'Agent
VAIL, Colo. (UPI) --
President Ford yesterday
authorized burial of Richard
S. Welch in Arlington Na-
tional Cemetery, and a
spokesman said Ford be-
lieves published reports
identifying Welch as a CIA
agent were "partly respon-<
sible" for his assassination
in Greece.
Press Secretary Ronald
Nessen, in disclosing Ford's .
decision, also said the
President felt Welch was
entitled to a burial at Ar-
lington because "he cer-
tainly died in the service of
his country."
Nessen said that Ford'
feared other CIA agents.
might be in danger if their
"cover" was disclosed in a
similar way.
Welch, 46, was slain by
Greek terrorists last Tues-
day as he was returning to
his Athens home from a
Christmas party. An
English-language news-
paper, the Athens News,
and other publications had
reported a short time earli-
er that he was an agent of
the Central Intelligence
Agency, although he served
officially as a special as-
sistant at the U.S. Ernbas-
sy. .
Approved
ASKED IF Ford thought
disclosure of Welch's iden-
tity in the press was a cause
of his death, Nessen said
the President thought it
was "partly responsible."
And, asked if Ford was
worried now about the safe- '
ty of other CIA agents who
might find themselves in a.'
similar situation, he said,
"The answer is yes, em-:1
phatically - he does have
some concern." :
Nessen said Welch would
be buried next Friday at,
Arlington and that. Ford
had ordered a military jet
to go to Providence, R.I.,. to
bring Welch's brothzr, 'sis-
ter and mother to the funer-
al.
He said Ford decided to
waive restrictions limiting
burial at Arlington to mili-
tary veterans and to pro-
vide transportation for the
Welch family at the request
of Democratic Sens. Clai-
borne Pell of Rhode Island
and Gary Hart of Colorado.
Asked if Ford had taken
any action to try to prevent
similar problems for other
CIA agents, Nessen recall-
ed that the President ob-
jected when the' Senate
Intelligence Committee de-
cided to identify former
CIA agents in its report on
assassination plots against
foreign leaders - but said
he. did not mean to connect
the committee's action and
Welch's death.
IN RESPONSE to ques-
tions, Nessen said Ford was
now studying "a large book
of recommendations" from
U.S. intelligence agencies
to try to determine steps
possible to make sure
American agents do not
again become involved in
activities described by the
Senate committee.
Nessen said Ford re-
ceived the material just be-
fore leaving Washington for
his holiday at Vail last
Tuesday, and the President
was moving toward adop-
tion of his long-awaited
proposals, but he could not
say how soon they would be
announced.
As Nessen was meeting
with reporters, Ford was
heading for another round
of skiing at the Rocky
Mountain resort. New snow
fell through the night and
was still coming down
heavily in late morning as
the President set out,
carrying his ski boots.
Ford, who invited three
members of the White
House press corps to join
him, arranged to ski for a
couple of hours despite low
visibility in the falling
snow. Asked if it would
make skiing . harder, he
.said, "It sure will but it's
sure fun."
The President expressed
delight over his skiing
progress after sharing the
slopes Friday with mem-
bers of the U.S. Olympic ski
team . He took a fall at one
point.
"It was really great ex-
cept for that stupid fall,"
Ford said later. "It was
pure stupid carelessness." .
Nessen' announced that
the President will fly to St.
Louis on Jan. 5 to deliver an
address to the national con-
vention of the American
Farm Bureau Federation.
"It is a speech in his role
as aresident." Nessen said.