IT IS nice to see you all, and I just came out with all the Cabinet members and others in the Administration to express our appreciation to the Secretary of State for going on this vitally important mission and to indicate my full support and the support of the Administration for the, I think, tremendous efforts to bring peace in an area of the world that has been so volatile and controversial that it is important for the world, as well as the countries involved, that the maximum efforts for peace be made.
This country and this Administration are going to work with the skill and imagination of Dr. Kissinger in seeking that result.
We wish you the very best.
Note: The President spoke at 12:40 a.m. at Andrews Air Force Base, Md., where Secretary Kissinger departed for a 7-day trip to seven Middle East countries.
Secretary Kissinger responded to the President's remarks as follows:
I appreciate very much, Mr. President, your coming out to see me off. The problem of contributing to peace in the Middle East is a very complicated one, but as I have had occasion to say before, it is a source of pride to all Americans that it is the United States that all parties trust, and that we will attempt to make some progress.
I would like to say to the President that this is the first time in a long time that one can go on these missions with an America that is at peace with itself.
Thank you very much.
Gerald R. Ford, Remarks on Departure of Secretary of State Henry A. Kissinger for the Middle East. Online by Gerhard Peters and John T. Woolley, The American Presidency Project https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/node/255933
