THE PRESIDENT'S DAILY BRIEF 9 AUGUST 1966

• Document Type: FOIA
• Collection: President's Daily Brief 1961-1969
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): 0005968462
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: T
• Document Page Count: 5
• Document Creation Date: September 16, 2015
• Document Release Date: September 16, 2015
• Publication Date: August 9, 1966

Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2015/07/24 : CIA-RDP79T00936A004600340001-9
CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE AGENCY
THE PRESIDENT'S
DAILY BRIEF
9 AUGUST 1966
-Tz7r:,-s-EeF;v-Ez_
50X1
23
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2015/07/24 : CIA-RDP79T00936A004600340001-9
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2015/07/24 : CIA-RDP79T00936A004600340001-9
ouX1
DAILY BRIEF
9 AUGUST 1966
1.5South Vietnam
2. North Vietnam
3. South Vietnam
The Buddhists are mounting a new
effort to get international attention
and make next month's elections as dif-
ficult as possible.
On Saturday the Buddhist Associa-
tion fired off a letter to the UN com-
plaining of government "oppression" and
"mistaken US policy." Next came a com-
munique from the association demanding
a civilian government now and calling on
all the faithful to boycott the elections
for a constitutional convention.
The Buddhists probably do not have
the strength to risk summoning up the
street mobs again--their political line
is getting a little threadbare, even for
Vietnam. But their malice runs deep,
and they clearly intend to contribute
any disruptive background noises possi-
ble as elections draw near,
The skipper of a Chinese Communist
merchant ship in Haiphong harbor last
month was stopped by the North Vietnamese
when he fired on US aircraft overhead..
A European merchant officer who
watched the episode through binoculars
reports that port officials told him
later they had ordered the Chinese to
knock it off for fear US pilots would
return fire and endanger other shipping
in the harbor.
Malaria appears to be a major prob-
lem among Communist troops. Prisoners,
defectors, and captured documents all
point to a high incidence with some units
reporting almost every guerrilla
Of 20 prisoners captured on 6 August,
at least half had malaria,
50X1
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2015/07/24 : CIA-RDP79T00936A004600340001-9
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2015/07/24 : CIA-RDP79T00936A004600340001-9
4. Communist China
5. Soviet Union
6. East Germany
Peking now seems to be trying to
keep the "cultural purification" drive
from getting further out of hand and to
reduce the confusion and fear it has
created in recent months.
Yesterday, the party Central Com-
mittee issued a directive saying that
students should not be treated "severely"
and that scientists and technicians
should receive special protection from
political harassment. Although the "cul-
tural revolution" is to continue, it will
be kept under direct party control.
Mao has sometimes in the past over-
ridden the Central Committee, and there
have been some increasingly tough pro-
nouncements on domestic affairs in the
past few days.
The latest satellite photography,
the first from the new very high resolu-
tion camera system, has provided the
best coverage to date of the Tyuratam
Missile Test Center. Construction con-
tinues rapidly at the two pads that are
to support very large space boosters.
Detailed study of the new pictures will
provide new insights into this important
new system, which probably is associated
with a Soviet manned lunar program.
The regime is showing increased con-
cern over public unrest, which was grow-
ing even before a set of unpopular price
increases was decreed last month. This
is apparently the explanation for a big
parade planned for East Berlin this Satur-
day, the fifth anniversary of the erec-
tion of the Berlin Wall. It seems in-
tended to discourage the kind of antire-
gime demonstrations that have occurred
on other recent anniversaries,.
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2015/07/24 : CIA-RDP79T00936A004600340001-9
50X1
50X1
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2015/07/24 : CIA-RDP79T00936A0046003400019 xi
7. West Germany
8. France
9. Dominican Republic
Erhard's political problems may be
aggravated by his growing difficulties
over the budget. He could be faced with
the unhappy choice of either squeezing
the budget or asking for a tax increase.
If he decides on budget cuts, he
may well look to the Defense Ministry.
This, in turn, would run directly counter
to US and British military offset requests.
De Gaulle's popularity at home has
risen significantly since his return
from Moscow. The latest poll, taken by
the most reputable French polling out-
fit, gives him a higher rating than he
has enjoyed since early 1962 (65 percent
satisfied, 26 dissatisfied, 9 no opinion).
Some Gaullist political leaders
will urge early national parliamentary
elections, which must in any case be
held before next March. They could come
as early as this autumn.
President Balaguer, in office now
for nearly six weeks, seems intent on
reducing the political potential of
some of the more reactionary military
officers. Some of these officers, who
had looked on Balaguer's comeback as ,a
chance to feather their own nests", will
be cut down to size by a series of or-
ganizational changes in the armed forces
Balaguer directed last weekend.
Just to be on the safe side, Bala-
guer wants to complete the changes before
the scheduled departure next month of
the last units of the Inter-American
Peace Force,
50X1
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2015/07/24 : CIA-RDP79T00936A004600340001-9
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2015/07/24 : CIA-RDP79T00936A004600340001-9
TOP SECRET
TOP SECRET
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2015/07/24 : CIA-RDP79T00936A004600340001-9