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July 9, 2010

Nixon and Kissinger Admitted to CIA Assassination Attempt in Chile; Nixon Ordered Plans for Nuking North Korea
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And newly-released archives show President Richard Nixon and his
then-national security adviser Henry Kissinger privately admitted to a
CIA assassination attempt in Chile. Nixon and Kissinger were in the
midst of a campaign to overthrow Chilean President Salvador Allende at
the time of the tape in June 1971. On the recording, Kissinger and Nixon
joke about a CIA attempt to kill the top Chilean army commander who
supported Allende. The general, Rene Schneider, was killed in 1970 by
right-wing Chilean military forces. In an apparent reference to
Schneider and the CIA, Kissinger says: "When they did try to assassinate
somebody, it took three attempts, and he lived for three weeks
afterwards." Kissinger has long claimed the CIA broke off contact with
Schneider’s killers before the third attempt on his life. The US helped
overthrow Allende three years later, leading to a military takeover by
General Augusto Pinochet. In related news, other recently-disclosed
archives show the Nixon administration drew up plans for a nuclear
attack on North Korea. Nixon reportedly ordered nuclear bombers on
standby after North Korea shot down a U.S. spy plane in 1969.



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