8 OCTOBER 1990
The new Dutch ambassador, Hoekman, called and offered his congratulations on our entry into the ERM. As Simon Broadbent said at my morning meeting, all the experts who have been pushing for our membership for years are now discovering reasons why we should not be in.
9 OCTOBER 1990
The United Nations has been thrown into confusion by an appalling massacre of Palestinians on the Temple Mount, following the annual attempt by extreme Orthodox Jews to plant a foundation stone for a synagogue. William Waldegrave is convinced that it was almost certainly provoked by pro-Iraqis wanting to muddy the waters in New York – provocation to which the Israelis overreacted disgracefully. Douglas Hurd thinks that the Prime Minister will be very reluctant to vote differently from the Americans at a time when our troops are alongside each other in Saudi Arabia, even though Research Department has produced some helpful figures showing the fourteen-odd times when the Americans have vetoed in isolation in recent years.
10 OCTOBER 1990
Len Appleyard called this afternoon, discussing the lack of any proper ministerial discussion about our real objectives over Kuwait. The Prime Minister tends to use OD(G) to discuss irrelevant details; no one has yet grappled with the real question, or discussed with the Americans, how to deal with Iraq’s nuclear, chemical and biological facilities. As for talks with the Americans, Percy Cradock plans to visit Washington for talks with the National Security Council on 22/23 October. I later argued that it was high time ministers tried to establish what our objectives are, reminding them that the Franks Committee had criticised ministers in 1983 for failing to meet before the Falklands War, and that one of the reasons had been that the Foreign Secretary, Peter Carrington, was away in Israel. Douglas Hurd goes there next week.
15 OCTOBER 1990
Douglas is in Israel today, with the Israelis in a very sour mood, after the United States had joined the vote in the Security Council for a resolution which any previous administration would have vetoed. The Israelis showed their displeasure (having already complained about Douglas Hurd’s speech last week), by refusing to welcome him properly on arrival; by searching all his party’s luggage; and by arresting one of the Palestinians he was due to meet the next day.
Tom King told me privately at dinner this evening that US Defense Secretary Cheney had told him that absolutely no decisions have yet been taken in Washington on whether to launch military action, or if so when.
16 OCTOBER 1990
The Russians have just signalled that we can probably keep our residence in Moscow. When Charles Powell put a note to the Prime Minister telling her this, but saying that the FCO had no money for it, she minuted: ‘Rubbish.’ When the Chief Secretary spoke to the PM about our PESC round, she is quoted as saying: ‘They have too many meetings’ – whatever that means?
17 OCTOBER 1990
An Emergency Unit meeting this morning, to discuss the total apparent confusion between Washington and New York on what resolution to go for next. Antony Acland has meanwhile asked for assurances that people here are both thinking about strategic and long-term policies towards Iraq, and are discussing these with the White House. It is not easy to keep Antony informed, when the Prime Minister has ruled that her talk with Cheney this week is not to be recorded at all; and when the mere fact of a meeting of ministers (now scheduled for next week) is classified as Top Secret.
18 OCTOBER 1990
More confusion today over UN resolutions, with the US apparently pressing for something which will give them a pretext to attack Saddam Hussein.
I wrote three personal letters this morning: one to Lynda Chalker, to thank her for her staunch defence of David Colvin against opposition attacks during Questions on Cambodia this week. Second to Brian Mower, to express my outrage at a silly article in the Times diary today, claiming that FCO officials were smirking with satisfaction at the trouble Douglas Hurd had got into in Jerusalem, over his remarks about a Palestinian State, and claiming that this proved that Brian was ‘not one of us’. And thirdly to Harold Caccia, who has developed cancer, and is reported by Philip Adams to be sinking fast (though still mentally alert).
19 OCTOBER 1990
Percy Cradock called, before leaving for Washington, having received firm instructions from the Prime Minister that he is not to discuss military matters at all. I aired my continuing worries about the failure of ministers to clarify their aims and objectives towards Iraq. Percy replied that the Prime Minister was very clear in her objectives, and that he agreed with them! I pointed out that none of the rest of us (including, most importantly, the military) had been told what they were.
The Prime Minister has sent two messages to Bush this week, and has had one long telephone conversation – all of which have been recorded for the eyes of the Foreign and Defence Secretaries, and no one else. I told Percy that I was adult enough not to mind not seeing them myself; but that there was a serious risk that if war broke out, and there were heavy casualties or some disaster, a later version of the Franks Committee would be severely critical of the failure of ministers to discuss these things in a proper committee.
Patrick Fairweather called, on his return with Douglas Hurd from Cairo, Israel and Jerusalem. He revealed that, unknown to me, Douglas had received a message in Luxor from the Prime Minister telling him to go easy on his criticisms of Israel, which had no doubt inclined him to be rather more resistant on the question of a Palestinian State than he would have been otherwise. He has had an appalling press this week (not helped by today’s disaster for the Tories at Eastbourne), though he has personally come top of the poll as the best Conservative politician. He himself seems typically to have been unmoved by it all. As I told Stephen Wall, if it had been Geoffrey Howe, I would have written him a personal letter of encouragement and sympathy; but if I were to do that for Douglas, I suspect that his first reaction would be: ‘What on earth has he written this for?’
22 OCTOBER 1990
Nigel Broomfield and I attended the first of Robin Butler’s twice-weekly meetings with Michael Quinlan and David Craig to discuss the Gulf crisis, and how to brief ministers for their first real discussion of objectives tomorrow. Robin revealed that he has been given sight of the Prime Minister’s exchange with the President (though unknown to the PM herself, who is being formidably sensitive about secrecy). There seems to have been quite a sharp difference of view at one of last week’s exchanges, in particular over whether the United States should use the Security Council Resolution on their embassy in Kuwait as a means of provoking Iraqi military action. David Craig seems very unenthusiastic and uncertain about the military balance, even though the Americans now have more than 100,000 men in Saudi Arabia.
Ted Heath, meanwhile, seems to have succeeded in extracting some of the sick and elderly hostages from Iraq, though the Iraqis were still haggling over numbers this evening.
23 OCTOBER 1990
Douglas Hurd held a meeting to prepare for his talk with Tom King, and their later meeting with the Prime Minister – their first real attempt to tackle the basic question of what we want to achieve. Douglas told David Craig this evening that the meeting with the Prime Minister had gone well.
Curious stories today of Saddam Hussein having had a vision, with the Prophet calling on him to leave Kuwait – either a very clever ploy to save face, or Kuwaiti black propaganda. We are having some difficulties with William Waldegrave, who takes an extremely hawkish view, and finds it difficult to grasp the problems involved in military action involving only the United States and ourselves.
24 OCTOBER 1990
Persistent reports today that the Iraqis may be about to do a partial withdrawal from Kuwait. One way to react might be to put Arab forces in at once, though Charles Powell told me today that virtually no Syrians or Egyptians have yet arrived at the front.
Douglas Hurd attended a meeting at No. 10 on the Soviet Union, at which the Prime Minister made the memorable remark that she had been ‘a bit hard on the Foreign Office’!
25 OCTOBER 1990
Robin Butler chaired another of his Gulf meetings today, at which it emerged that Michael Quinlan and I are the only two who are not privy to the Prime Minister’s meetings and exchanges. No. 10 has ruled that only one extra official in each department can be brought in, and Nigel Broomfield and Richard Mottram have been nominated for the privilege.
29 OCTOBER 1990
The press is full of splits and rows at the European Council in Rome, where the Prime Minister was arguing (quite rightly) for an agreement on agriculture for CAP negotiation, while the Italian presidency was pressing for a discussion of Political and Economic Union. A Times editorial included an outrageous reference to ‘inefficient and fiercely disloyal diplomats’.
Both the Prime Minister and Douglas Hurd want me to find an embassy for Richard Luce. But as there can be no question of a by-election, David Gillmore will have to tackle that one.
30 OCTOBER 1990
I attended a meeting in Douglas Hurd’s office with David Waddington and others to discuss political asylum and frontiers, on both of which Waddington is in something of a panic, given the very high rise in numbers (though nothing like the French or German figures). Unfortunately, on frontiers, our island status has yet again isolated us from the other eleven, including (ironically, but typically) the Irish, with whom we have a free travel area.
1 NOVEMBER 1990
A very highly classified telegram from Antony Acland, addressed to four named officials, reporting on American plans to rescue their hostages in Kuwait – allegedly known only to six officials in Washington. This was followed about four hours later by a front-page report in the Evening Standard, attributed to ‘White House officials’!
The Princess of Wales visited the office this afternoon. On very good form, and very chatty with both the Emergency Unit and with East European Department. William Waldegrave flatly denied that he had ever sent me a message saying that he wanted to accompany her throughout, and insisted that I came as well – just as well, since I was able to jolly the staff into behaving naturally. Everyone was charmed by her, and the crowds were literally five deep on both sides of King Charles Street when she left.
I went to a dinner at which Geoffrey Howe was to have been the speaker. The news that he had scratched, having resigned from the government today, reached us after I had arrived. Richard Ryder, the Paymaster General (and a former PPS of Geoffrey’s), stood in, and gave a very witty speech. He explained that he had looked at Geoffrey’s text, but was unable to use the jokes, which consisted of headings only, such as ‘Patrick Wright = the Singing Detective’.
Sad news about Geoffrey’s resignation, but perhaps it will lance the boil. Richard Ryder’s private reaction was that it would be very damaging for the Conservative Party. Tim Yeo had already reported to my meeting this morning that the party was badly split on Europe. I am not sure whether this brings the election nearer or not – the Prime Minister may be tempted to make Europe an election issue.
2 NOVEMBER 1990
Robin Butler described Geoffrey Howe’s resignation last night, saying that the Prime Minister is in a fiercely resentful mood and had already dealt very brutally with the consequential ministerial changes. Someone has described her as ‘a woman incapable of love’.
At lunchtime, I saw a rather flushed William Waldegrave going into No. 10. It later emerged that he has taken Kenneth Clarke’s place as Secretary of State for Health, with Douglas Hogg (from the Home Office) taking his place at the FCO.
Douglas Hurd is thinking over the weekend whether to change ministerial portfolios; but Hogg is likely to keep the Middle East. The general view is that Geoffrey’s resignation pushes back the election date; but there must now be a real possibility that Douglas Hurd will be pushed forward in a leadership contest.
Yesterday’s Sun carried the headline ‘Up Yours Delors’. As Christopher France commented to me: ‘If their diplomatic correspondent can write that, what do you think their non-diplomatic correspondent would write?’
5 NOVEMBER 1990
A weekend of press speculation on whether Michael Heseltine will make a leadership challenge to the Prime Minister this year or next, following Geoffrey Howe’s resignation.
I called on William Waldegrave this morning to say goodbye. He is obviously thrilled to have reached the Cabinet at last (and, at forty-four, the youngest member of it). He seemed to be genuinely grateful for what he called ‘the Rolls-Royce treatment’ he had received from the FCO. He thought there would be a leadership struggle this autumn, and referred to his own appointment as ‘joining a sinking ship’.
I called on William’s successor, Douglas Hogg, this afternoon – a very bright politician, described as a ‘chip off the old Hailsham’. He assured me that he was a hard and quick worker, though he is a bit daunted by the size of his portfolio. (William Waldegrave had told me that he would have recommended passing responsibility for Eastern Europe to Tristan Garel-Jones.) I told Douglas Hogg that I remembered his father’s strong interest in Israel from my time in Middle East Department, and hoped that he would not find the FCO the biased den of Arabists, as portrayed by the press. I told him about my own efforts to cultivate the Jewish community (and vice versa!). I also warned David Gore-Booth this morning that he would have to tread carefully.
Douglas Hurd made a major speech today on Europe, and did brilliantly on the Brian Walden show. He is having to play his hand very carefully to avoid accusations of disloyalty or policy differences from Margaret Thatcher. He has hardly put a foot wrong so far. The PM has meanwhile referred (in my view, unwisely) to her contempt for Michael Heseltine.
I gave lunch today for the chiefs of staff and Michael Quinlan. Not much talk of the Gulf, since most of those present have a very restricted knowledge of what is going on (including myself, who – unlike the Chief of Defence Staff – has had no account of the Prime Minister’s telephone call to the President this weekend).
6 NOVEMBER 1990
Lynda Chalker made a bid today to take over ministerial responsibility for Africa. I later advised Stephen Wall against the idea, on the grounds that Africa provides more policy differences with the ODA than any other part of the world. I also argued that the Africa departments are already fairly demoralised by the low priority given to Africa; to be supervised by a minister a mile away would not help. Douglas Hurd is nevertheless likely to give her what she wants. He must realise that she is in a low state, having again missed Cabinet rank to William Waldegrave.
7 NOVEMBER 1990
Robin Butler today gave perm secs a fairly frank account of Geoffrey Howe’s resignation, and the PM’s ‘insensitive’ behaviour towards reshuffles. John MacGregor in particular was clearly very dismayed to be transferred from Education to be Lord President. There is still some mystery about last night’s news that a challenger to the party leadership has emerged; Robin reported that the party managers still didn’t know this morning who it was (if anyone). Martyn Lewis of the BBC told me after the speakers’ reception that there had been a row last night, since he, as newsreader, had queried the inclusion of the news if no one knew who it was.
I attended a one-and-a-half-hour meeting with Douglas Hurd to prepare for Baker’s visit on 9 November, in preparation for decisions to be taken in Washington next week. I am still alarmed at the prospect of decisions being taken without adequate military advice; we have still not agreed our objectives with the Americans, and it looks as though Bush, and the Prime Minister, may be about to take decisions on reinforcement which will in fact commit them to war.
The handling of the Gulf crisis is still worrying; so few people (not including either Michael Quinlan or myself) are allowed to know everything that it is impossible for most of us to give ministers sensible advice. I can see all the makings of a very critical Franks-type inquiry at a later stage.
8 NOVEMBER 1990
Geoffrey Howe was waiting as I emerged from credentials this morning, and commented: ‘Here comes the Stalking
Horse.’ I reminded Geoffrey that, if anything, I was a ‘Stalking Puss’ (a reference to what he called me as his PUS).
At the Buckingham Palace diplomatic reception this evening, I nobbled Hermann von Richthofen, at Douglas Hurd’s request, about Genscher’s behaviour at the recent European Council meeting, where Genscher himself had pressed colleagues to ‘discourage further missions to Baghdad’, immediately before appearing to sponsor Willi Brandt’s visit. There are other signs that German behaviour in Rome ruffled Community feathers; one member (probably Portugal) commented: ‘This is what a unified Germany is going to be like.’
9 NOVEMBER 1990
An early meeting with Douglas Hurd to divide our responsibilities vis-à-vis Baker and Kimmitt. When I suggested a similar division of responsibilities between himself and the Prime Minister, he commented: ‘There is no point; she would pay no attention to it anyway.’
Bob Kimmitt called for one and a half hours, mainly reporting on Baker’s other visits, while Baker himself was upstairs with Douglas Hurd. Bob was suitably apologetic on being told that the State Department had not (although instructed by Baker) forewarned our embassy about US plans for reinforcement in the Gulf. An impressive man. As usual, he spoke at length, and in great detail, without a single note.
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