WHITE HOUSE REACTION TO NORIEGA CHARGES

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP90-00965R000504470003-2
• Release Decision: RIFPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 2
• Document Creation Date: December 22, 2016
• Document Release Date: February 27, 2012
• Sequence Number: 3
• Publication Date: June 12, 1986
• Content Type: REPORT

Declassified and Approved For Release 2012/02/28: CIA-RDP90-00965R000504470003-2
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The Today Show
June 12, 1986 8:30 A.M.
STATION W R C- T V
NBC Network
White House Reaction to Noriega Charges
Washington, D.C.
BOB JAMIESON: NBC News chief diplomatic correspondent
Marvin Kalb reports that Panama's army chief, Manuel Noriega, has
been accused by U.S. intelligence officials of deep involvement
in drug traffic, money-laundering and gun-running in Latin
America. The charges are likely to be an embarrassment for the
Reagan Administration.
White House correspondent Andrea Mitchell is standing by
with more.
ANDREA MITCHELL: Bob, no one here is denying the
charges that Noriega has been involved in these alleged illegal
activities, but the White House wants to downplay the problem as
much as possible. Officials here concede that they need a
strongman in Panama; and for better or for worse, Noriega is it.
Now, while they would prefer to see a democracy develop
there similar to what they think has developed in Costa Rica and
in El Salvador, they don't see any sign of that happening.
Contrary to one report that Natio.ial Security Adviser
John Poindexter specifically warned Noriega to cut out his
alleged illegal activities, one senior official here told me that
what Poindexter actually did was spend one-half hour with Noriega
at the airport in Panama when Poindexter was wrapping up a tour
of the U.S. military command there. So, on departure, he sat
down with Noriega for simply a half-hour and told him that the
United States would like to see him play a more positive role,
but that there was no mention of any of his alleged illegal
activities.
So, it seems very clear here that they are going to try
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Declassified and Approved For Release 2012/02/28: CIA-RDP90-00965R000504470003-2
 Declassified and Approved For Release 2012/02/28: CIA-RDP90-00965R000504470003-2
to downplay the problem. And for better or for worse, they think
that they are stuck with Noriega because he is a strongman in an
area where they think they need a strong military presence.
JAMIESON: Andrea, among the charges circulating today
is that Noriega was dealing intelligence information both to Cuba
and the United States. Has there been any reaction there to
that?
MITCHELL: They're obviously most concerned about that
and his support, his alleged support for leftist rebels, such as
the M-19 in Colombia. But they say that he is a military
strongman. There's no sign of the democratic institutions
developing, even with the new president, in Panama. So they're
going to have to live with this. And they're hoping to downplay
it by having the State Department respond, and keeping the White
House out of it.
Declassified and Approved For Release 2012/02/28: CIA-RDP90-00965R000504470003-2