[Editor’s note: This document was released both as a State Department cable as part of its 1981 FOIA release, and as Serial 1841 of the FBI’s RYMUR release.
[The text for this document was released in 2014 by the now-defunct Wikileaks website at https://wikileaks.org/plusd/cables/1979STATE031525_e.html. This URL may be available through the Wayback Machine.]
UNCLASSIFIED
PAGE 01
STATE 031525
ORIGIN EUR-12 INFO OCT-01 ISO-00 L-03 JUSE-00 TRSE-00 SS-15 NSC-05 CIAE-00 INR-10 NSAE-00 FBIE-00 PA-02 CA-01 /049 R
DRAFTED BY EUR/CE:RPORTER
APPROVED BY EUR/CE:WMWOESSNER
L/EUR:JWILLIS (SUBS)
JUSTICE:LCHAMBLEE
——————080076 070018Z /61
R 061652Z FEB 79
FM SECSTATE WASHDC
TO AMEMBASSY BERN
INFO AMCONSUL MUNICH
UNCLAS STATE 031525
E.O. 12065: N/A
TAGS: EFIN CASC SZ
SUBJECT: PEOPLES TEMPLE FUNDS IN SWITZERLAND
REF: BERN 386
1. THERE FOLLOWS TEXT OF CHAMBLEE-FREI LETTER OF JANUARY 23, RESPONDING TO FREI LETTER REFTEL.
2. BEGIN TEXT
DEAR DR. FREI:
PERMIT ME TO APOLOGIZE FOR ANY DIFFICULTY CAUSED YOU BY THE EVENTS DESCRIBED IN YOUR LETTER OF JANUARY 4, 1979. I ASSURE YOU THAT I HAD NO KNOWLEDGE OF MR. CHARIG’S VISIT TO ZURICH UNTIL AFTER IT WAS COMPLETED. NATURALLY, I HAVE GIVEN A COPY OF YOUR LETTER TO MR. RISTAU FOR HIS FUTURE
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PAGE 02 STATE 031525
GUIDANCE. LIKE YOU, I AM CONVINCED OF THE WISDOM OF THE PROVISION OF THE TREATY PROVIDING FOR A SINGLE LINE OF COMMUNICATION BETWEEN OUR GOVERNMENTS IN CRIMINAL MATTERS. IN THIS CASE I CAN ONLY SAY THAT I AM GLAD THAT YOU HAVE BROUGHT THIS MATTER TO OUR ATTENTION AND EXTREMELY GRATEFUL THAT YOU ACTED SO PROMPTLY IN OUR BEHALF EVEN WHEN WE HAD NOT USED THE PROPER PROCEDURE.
KINDEST PERSONAL REGARDS.
LAWRENCE W. CHAMBLEE, ATTORNEY
CRIMINAL DIVISION
END TEXT
3. JUSTICE HAS CONFIRMED THAT CHARIG WAS ACTING UNDER RISTAU’S INSTRUCTIONS AND NOT, REPEAT NOT, ON HIS OWN. DEPARTMENT APPRECIATES EMBASSY EFFORT TO CLEAR THE AIR ON THIS ONE. WE BELIEVE ALL PARTIES HAVE THEIR SIGNALS STRAIGHT.
VANCE [U.S. Secretary of State Cyrus Vance]
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