THE PRESIDENT'S DAILY BRIEF 23 NOVEMBER 1968

• Document Type: FOIA
• Collection: President's Daily Brief 1961-1969
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): 0005976477
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: T
• Document Page Count: 10
• Document Creation Date: September 16, 2015
• Document Release Date: September 16, 2015
• Publication Date: November 23, 1968

Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2015/07/24 : CIA-RDP79T00936A006600040001-0
The President's Daily Brief
23 November 1968
23
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THE PRESIDENT'S
DAILY BRIEF
23 NOVEMBER 1968
1. Rumania
a. Israel
3. United Kingdom
:The leadetship.in Bucharest con-
tinueS a "business-as-usual" appear-
ance; no alarming military moves have
been noted in.or around Rumania,
* * *
The bombing of a Jewish market
place in West Jerusalem yesterday--
killing 11 and wounding 55--wi11 un-
doubtedly provoke a strong Israeli re-
sponse. If, as seems likely, the Is-
raelis determine that the bombing was
an "outside" operation, they may well
mount an air strike on one or more of
the terrorist bases in Jordan.
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4. Soviet Union 50X1
No-U 81
5. Venezuela-Cuba
The Venezuelan Government is de-
fending its seizure of the Cuban fish-
ing boat on Wednesday as a necessary
precaution against any Cuban-backed ef-
fort to disrupt the elections scheduled
for :i December. President Leoni told
Ambassador Bernbaum on Thursday that he
had information that local Communists,
presumably with Cuban support, were in-
tending to spark disturbances in connec-
tion with the election. There is no
confirmation of press reports, however,
that the Venezuelans have found evi-
dence that the boat had been sent on a
subversive mission.
Havana's ability to retaliate is
extremely limited. Cuban action how-
ever, could take the form of hijackinz
or forcing down one or more of the 24-50X1
Venezuelan flights that pass through
Cuban air corridors each week.
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Top Secret
FOR THE PRESIDENT'S EYES ONLY
1.) Special Daily Report on North Vietnam
2.) North Vietnamese Reflections of U S
Political Attitudes
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23 November 1 9 6 8
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Special Daily Report on North Vietnam
for the President's Eyes Only
23 November 1968'
I. NOTES ON THE SITUATION
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Hanoi.Monitors Control: A recently intercepted
message indicates that the North.Vietnamese are col-
lecting.detailed information on actual Viet.Cong con-
-trol of rural areas in the South. .A 13 November mes:--
sage from Hanoi's national intelligence organization
Yto the military intelligence sections of three major
-Communist commands in_South Vietnam sets down_a_series
of reporting requirements, dealing with the situation
An the countryside:- Hanoi instructed these subordin-
ates to report, by province and district, the number
of_"strategic hamlets destroyed" by Communist forces
but reoccupied by the allies from_the beginning of
the "general offensive" to mid--November.
HanOi probably has several motives for.request-
ing this kind of information. The statistics would
.help evaluate the long-range effectiveness of such
spectacular but costly military adventures as the -
Tet attacks and provide a measure of Saigon's ability
to recover. In the context of the current negotia-
tions, however, the request also,suggests.Hanoi
could be preparing plans for either a cease-fire or
a defined system of territorial 'control in the South
Vietnamese Countryside.
Civil Air Route Arrangements: Scheduled civil
air traffic between North Vietnam and Cambodia is to
resume beginning the first of next year, after a
three-year lapse.
? A recently intercepted North Vietnamese.message
states :that Royal Air Cambodia will stop at... Hanoi'
every Tuesday en route to Canton. The flight returns
tcyPhnom.Penh via Hanoi the following day. The only
flight now available to Hanoi is a Friday:ICC?flight
Which carries no commercial passengers.
-Beginning in March, the new service is to be ex-
panded to two flights per week. Heretofore, North
Vietnamese flying westward were obliged to travel to
?Nanning or Canton first in order to make connections.
The direct Cambodian link now offers an alternative
route to and from North Vietnam.
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II. ,NORTH VIETNAMESE REFLECTIONS-OF US POLITICAL
ATTITUDES ON THE WAR
There is nothing of significance to report t
day.
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Top Secret
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