Report of the President's Commission on the Assassination of President John F. Kennedy

Post-Visit Interactions with Reporters and Family

Returning to his hotel angry about the delay but “elated” by the “showdown,” Oswald was approached by A. I. Goldberg, an Associated Press reporter whom the Embassy had told about his actions; Oswald refused to speak to him. He answered a few questions for two other reporters, R. J. Korengold and Aline Mosby, but again refused to be interviewed. News services made repeated unsuccessful attempts to interview him thereafter, which he interpreted as an indirect form of pressure from the Embassy. The day after his meeting with Snyder, his family read about his Embassy appearance in newspapers and tried to contact him; his mother was shocked at his decision but initially respected his motives, though she later suspected he had been forcibly removed to Russia. She placed a phone call that Oswald either refused or cut short, and on November 2 he rejected the Embassy’s efforts to deliver or read over the telephone a telegram from his brother Robert. A call from Robert was either canceled or refused, and Robert’s telegram was eventually sent to Oswald from the Embassy by registered mail.

Formal Renunciation Request and Period of Isolation

A few days later, the Embassy received a letter from Oswald dated November 3 requesting that his citizenship be revoked, stating he had appeared at the Embassy “for the purpose of signing the formal papers” and protesting the “conduct of the official” who had refused him this “legal right.” He noted his pending Soviet citizenship application and said he would ask the Soviet Government to lodge a formal protest on his behalf. The Embassy replied on November 9 that Oswald could renounce his citizenship by appearing in person and executing the necessary papers. Oswald’s diary describes the period from November 2 to November 15, during which he continued to isolate himself, as “days of utter loneliness.” On November 8, he wrote to his brother Robert insisting he had waited over a year to take this action, claiming to speak a fair amount of Russian, and declaring he would never return to the United States, which he said he hated. Oswald refused to speak to anyone from the United States by telephone, suspecting calls might be taped. Although he claimed to have been told he could remain in Russia, his diary indicates he was not actually told this until later, and only in January was he told he could remain indefinitely. The Embassy’s attempt to deliver a telegram from his brother John on November 9 was also refused, with the message eventually sent by registered mail.