Interview with Richard Helms, 1986

Item Information

Title:
Interview with Richard Helms, 1986
Description:
Richard Helms spent most of his career in intelligence, serving in the OSS during World War II before joining the Central Intelligence Agency where he rose to become Director of Central Intelligence, remaining in the position from 1966-1973. In the interview he discusses the U.S. position regarding Cuba, particularly the Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962, at which point he was Deputy Director for Plans in charge of clandestine activities. He describes the Kennedy administration’s use of covert operations, including Operation Mongoose and other actions during the Bay of Pigs in 1961, as well as the challenges of conducting intelligence gathering activities, all ultimately aimed at unseating Fidel Castro. In his opinion, the Bay of Pigs had nothing to do with Castro’s decision to accept Soviet missiles. He recalls the White House reaction to the discovery of those missiles, and the interactions he had with members of the Executive Committee of the National Security Council (EXCOMM) during the 13 days of the crisis. He denies that President Kennedy attempted to interfere with CIA operations. In his view, maintaining nuclear strength was important as a deterrent during the crisis and beyond. To his mind, the belief that the world came close to nuclear war is “just hyperbole.” Among the lessons he draws from the crisis are the danger of the United States confronting a Soviet proxy, the desirability of having a greater deterrent force than one’s adversary, and the need to avoid cornering an opponent (the “cornered rat syndrome”) so as to forestall the possibility of escalation. He also notes that crises are often unexpected and impossible to predict; therefore it is best to avoid military confrontations whenever possible.
Interviewee:
Helms, Richard
Date:
March 10, 1986
Format:
Film/Video
Location:
WGBH
Collection (local):
WGBH Open Vault
Series:
War and Peace in the Nuclear Age
Subjects:
United States. Central Intelligence Agency
Korean War, 1950-1953
United States. Dept. of Defense
Intermediate-range ballistic missiles
Kuznetsov, Vasily
Nuclear weapons
Communism
United States. Dept. of State
Nuclear Test Ban Treaty (1963)
Cuban Missile Crisis, 1962
Nuclear arms control
United States. Air Force
MX (Weapons system)
Soviet Union
McNamara, Robert S., 1916-2009
Kennedy, John F. (John Fitzgerald), 1917-1963
Lansdale, Edward Geary, 1908-1987
McCloy, John J. (John Jay), 1895-1989
Acheson, Dean, 1893-1971
Castro, Fidel, 1926-
Khrushchev, Nikita Sergeevich, 1894-1971
Pen'kovskii, Oleg Vladimirovich, 1919-1963
Kennedy, Robert F., 1925-1968
McCone, John A. (John Alex), 1902-1991
Eisenhower, Dwight D. (Dwight David), 1890-1969
Harriman, W. Averell (William Averell), 1891-1986
Taylor, Maxwell D. (Maxwell Davenport), 1901-1987
Places:
District of Columbia > Washington
Cuba
Extent:
00:42:52:06
Link to Item:
http://openvault.wgbh.org/catalog/V_4DCA2FEDD38B4920B0FA048ED4B6C72D
Terms of Use:
Rights status not evaluated.
Contact host institution for more information.
Publisher:
WGBH Educational Foundation
Identifier:
V_4DCA2FEDD38B4920B0FA048ED4B6C72D