THE PRESIDENT'S DAILY BRIEF 4 JANUARY 1971

• Document Type: FOIA
• Collection: President's Daily Brief 1969-1977
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): 0005992403
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: T
• Document Page Count: 10
• Document Creation Date: August 14, 2016
• Document Release Date: August 24, 2016
• Publication Date: January 4, 1971

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Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2016/07/19 : CIA-RbP79T00936A009100030001-3
The President's Daily Brief
4 January 1971
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THE,PRESIDENT'S.DAILY BRIEF
4 January 1971
PRINCIPAL DEVELOPMENTS
Part of the Cambodian Government force trying to
open Route 4 southwest-of the capital was ambushed
over the weekend. (Page 1)
In Laos,. government-irregulars moving on. Ban Ban . from
the north have been forced to pull back from several
positions in the past few days. (Page 2)
Kosygin's interview with :a Japanese newspaper, in
which he reiterated Soviet endorsement of SALT, has
been given some play in Soviet news media. (Page 3)
Fedaveen
(Page 4)
In Bolivia, Torres? promise of elections may under-
cut some critics who have been plotting against him.
(Page 5)
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CAMBODIA
Government troops moving from the south on 1
January to retake the Pich Nil pass area on Route 4
were ambushed and routed by Communist forces about
14 miles north of Veal Renh. Part of the task
force regrouped to the south at Taney village, but
was again attacked by a large enemy force which
also destroyed a bridge on the highway. The next
day the remainder of the task force was attacked
rjust north of Taney.
IThe gov-
ernment's plans to reopen Route 4 maybe
stalled by these setbacks, although gov-
ernment units approaching the Pich Nil
pass from the north have so far proceeded
without incident.
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LAOS
Between 31 December and 3 January the Commu-
nists attacked a total of ten government irregular
positions northwest and northeast of Ban Ban. In
each action the irregulars withdrew to the north
and allowed the position to fall rather than risk
unacceptably high casualties.
This spate of attacks seems to indicate
stiffer enemy resistance to the harassing
operation by several battalions of yang
Pao 's irregulars against the Communist
logistics base at Ban Ban.
On the Plaines western flank, there was little
weekend combat activity although the irregular-
neutralist base at-Muong.Soui received two light
rocket attacks. (
In southern Laos, government irregulars have
retaken without opposition two of the three small
sites on the southern rim of the Bolovens Plateau
that fell to the enemy on 1"January. In addition,
Site 22, the last major government base on the
plateau's eastern rim, came under mortar attack
on 3 January, but there were no casualties.
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USSR
Premier Kosygin reiterated Moscow's endorsement
of SALT in an interview with a Japanese newspaper on
1.January which has been published., at least in part,
by the Soviet news agency TASS and by lIvestia. We
,have not received the full- TzveStia account, but in
the TASS version Kosygin eX1-577EgeT-the Soviet-desire
for "reasonable" agreement equally advantageous to
both sides. He said "a study of relevant questions"
continued during the last session at Helsinki, but
added that these problems are not simple and that
positive results require efforts by both sides.
Kosygin expressed similar views in an in-
terview with an-Indian:journalist last
August, but his comments-were not repeated
in the Soviet news media. Brezhnev's re-
marks on this subject were given wide
press coverage last April when he said the
USSR would welcome a 'sensible" agreement
and would do its utmost to make the SALT
talks 'useful.
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FEDAYEEN
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NOTE
Bolivia: Eight military officers who.took
part in the overthrow last October of former. Pres-
ident Ovando have been relieved of their commands,
and two members of the three-man military junta
named shortly before President Torres assumed power
have been retired. In addition, Torres has announced
that he will call elections as soon as a nationwide
referendum scheduled for June approves a new cons
tution and electoral statutes.
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