◆ SpookStack

be dissuaded from making any press release which would be critical of the British for it was pointed out to 1 1 that the British had been most helpful in terms of getting the C-54 released and in cancelling the original flight plan without any 'further publicity. 801* J. GOG - J~~TE and the Kennedy Administration Even though President Ydigoras had already assured the Agency that the training activity could continue, he felt some concern about the change of administrations in the US; and an EMERGENCY cable from I- - - - - - - - on 25 February 1961 indicated that c==Jhad been called· to a meeting with Ydigoras. c==Jwas told that Ydigoras was writing a personal letter to President Kennedy * At the end of 1961, in his New Year's Eve speech of 31 December 1961, Ydigoras for the first time ac- knowledged that his government had participated with the exiled Cuban leaders, and that Guatemala had been used as a training site for the Bay of Pigs invasion. In that same speech he reportedly said that as a fair price the "friendly government" that was supporting the Cuban exiles -- the US -- had agreed lito request good offices to convince Britain to return Belize to us under certain conditions, acceptable to a majority of tfiat colony's inhabitants." Reportedly the train- ing activity did not begin until after this agreement with the US had been reached. 80al