Did the United States at one time prefer Mugabe over Nkomo and Muzorewa to lead Zimbabwe?

3) GRENNAN,WHO HAS KNOWN MULCAHY FOR OVER 15 YEARS, SAYS HE TOLD MARTIN HE THOUQHT DOCUMENT CONFIDENTIAL

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WAS CLEARLY SPURIOUS, COULD NOT POSSIBLY REPRESENT MULCAHY'S VIEWS AND SHOULD NOT BE PUBLISHED WITHOUT AUTHENTICATION.  TO DATE MARTIN'S STORY HAS NOT BEEN PUBLISHED, BUT GRENNAN BELIEVES IT MAY YET BE.  HE BELIEVES NYERERE MAY CONFRONT SECRETARY WITH SECRET US PLAN FOR RHODESIAN SETTLEMENT.

4) COMMENT:  I BELIEVE WE MAY BE CONFRONTED HERE WITH A POSSIBLE FORGERY CASE.  I HAVE NEITHER DRAFTED NOR APPROVED ANY PIECE OF PAPER PROPOSING ANY PARTICULAR SOLUTION TO RHODESIAN PROBLEM (AT LEAST FOR PAST 10 YEARS) MUCH LESS ANY PAPER SINGLING OUT ROBERT MUGABE — WHOM I CONSIDER A HAS BEEN – FOR ANY KEY ROLE IN ANY RHODESIAN SOLUTION.

5) WHILE GRENNAN MAY HAVE SUCCEEDED IN HIS EFFORT TO DISSUADE MARTIN FROM PUBLISHING THIS STORY, POTENTIAL EMBARRASSMENT TO US BY NYERERE'S REPORTED ACCEPTANCE OF IT AND RAISING IT WITH SECSTATE REMAINS.  I FEEL IT URGENT TO REPORT THE FOREGOING LEST IT BE USED IN DAR ES SALAAM IN MANNER TO EMBARRASS SECRETARY.  END COMMENT.

6) RECOMMENDATION:  I RECOMMEND THAT A SEARCH BE MADE OF CURRENT AF FILE FOR ANY PIECE OF PAPER BEARING MY NAME WHICH, TAKEN OUT OF CONTEXT, COULD HAVE ANY RESEMBLANCE TO ALLEGED DOCUMENT.

EMBASSY FOOTNOTE:  DAVID MARTIN MADE REFERENCE TO "A SECRET POLICY DOCUMENT I HAVE SEEN" DISCUSSING UNITED STATES POLICY TOWARDS AFRICA IN A STORY IN THE SUNDAY OBSERVER, APRIL 18, 1976.  ONLY REFERENCE IN MARTIN'S STORY TO RHODESIA IS AS FOLLOWS:

"THE NSC HAS CONSIDERED A NUMBER OF OPTIONS IN RHODESIA, INCLUDING, ACCORDING TO A DOCUMENT IN THE HANDS OF AFRICAN LEADERS, DIRECT MILITARY INTERVENTION."

ARMSTRONG

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