THE PRESIDENT'S DAILY BRIEF 18 DECEMBER 1971

• Document Type: FOIA
• Collection: President's Daily Brief 1969-1977
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): 0005993036
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: T
• Document Page Count: 12
• Document Creation Date: August 14, 2016
• Document Release Date: August 24, 2016
• Publication Date: December 18, 1971

Declassified in Pa-rt - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2016/06/14 : CIA-RDP79T00936A01026-0170601-5
The President's Daily Brief
18 December 1971
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FOR THE PRESIDENT ONLY
THE PRESIDENT'S DAILY BRIEF
18 December 1971
PRINCIPAL DEVELOPMENTS
In West Pakistan President Yahya is coming under
criticism in the wake of defeat in the East and his
acceptance of a cease-fire with India on the West.
(Page 1)
A sampling of recent statements by Soviet officials
indicates that they hold high hopes regarding Pres-
ident Nixon's forthcoming visit to Moscow, but are
concerned lest they appear to be on the defensive
in relation to Peking. (Page 3)
Cambodian Government positions on Route 6 are again
under heavy Communist attack. (Page 4)
In Laos, the Communists have dealt a setback to
government forces in the south and have moved ahead
with offensive preparations in the Plaine des Jarres
area in the north. (Page 5)
(Page 6)
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ot '"--
hakargarh
era epore
AB
552321 12-71 CIA
Indian advance
Am= Pakistani advance
Road
Railroad
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INDIA-PAKISTAN
President Yahya is coming under criticism in
West.Pakistan for the loss of the East and his ac-
ceptance of*a cease-fire on the West. Shortly be-
fore Yahya issued his cease-fire order yesterday,
a senior Pakistani Army officer told US officials
that most of his colleagues preferred to fight on
rather than accept India's ultimatum. Another sen-
ior officer stated later in the day that most of
the officer corps would no lonaer hank Yahva. and
that he was now "finished."
considerable civilian discontent.
with Yahya is being voiced in the Rawalpindi-Islama-
bad area. There was a small anti-government deMon-
stration yesterday in Peshawar, instigated by the
strongest party in the West, the Pakistan People's
Party,
People's Party leader Z. A. Bhutto has told a
member of the US delegation at the UN that he is
no longer willing to accept Nurul Amin, a political
rival from Bengal, as prime minister of a: new civil-
ian government 'planned for later this month. Local
leaders in Bhutto's patty say that Bhutto, who had
agreed to be deputy prime minister and foreign min-
ister in the new government, may return from the US
soon and may no longer want a government post as
long as Yahya remains president.' Yahya has can-
celed a broadcast' scheduled for this evening con-
cerning the new constitution and government. The
press in Rawalpindi is speculating that Yahya is
about to be removed and,
rumors circulated in Islamabad yesterday
he was under house arrest.
that
No US official has reported seeing Yahya
for several days, and his radiobroadcast
to the nation on 16 December was pre-re-
corded. So far, however, there has been
no hard evidence of any specific attempts
or plans to replace Yahya as president.
It is likely that he is deeply depressed
by recent events and he may be feeling
reluctant to pick up the pieces and carry
on.
Information remains scattered concerning the
effectiveness of the mutual cease-fire that went
into effect on the western front yesterday at 9:30
A.M. EST, In Lahore the US Consulate reports that
heavy artillery fire could still be heard early this
morning. In the East, scattered street fighting con-
tinued in the city yesterday, but diminished as the
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day wore on. In at least some outlying areas else-
where in the East, Pakistani troops apparently had
not received word of the surrender and were still
resisting.
In the 1965 Indo-Pakistani war, both sides
committed a number of serious violations
of the cease-fire after it went into ef-
fect. These gradually subsided over a
period of a few weeks. Almost until the
last minute yesterday, fighting was con-
tinuing on the western front as each side
tried to make last-minute gains. The In-
dian press claims India now holds about
1,400 square miles of West Pakistani ter-
ritory and that Pakistan holds 60 miles
of Indian ground.
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FOR THE PRESIDENT ONLY
USSR
A sampling of recent statements by Soviet
officials on the President's trip to Mos-
cow next spring reveals high Soviet hopes,
mainly in the field of increased economic
cooperation. At the same time, there is
concern Zest the visit be interpreted in
the USSR as a defensive response by Mos-
cow to the improvement in US relations
with China.
A party lecturer in Leningrad recently said
that many Soviets were questioning the invitation,
given the continuation of the Vietnam war and US
anti-Soviet policies elsewhere. Despite this, the
propagandist said that the Soviets are committed to
improving relations, particularly in the field of
trade, and that there was reason to believe that the
US is so committed too.
Another propagandist in Leningrad has said that
the summit will "crown" recent Soviet diplomatic
gains in Europe and help frustrate Peking's aspira-
tions to engage in "plots" with the US. On the lat-
ter score, he ?said that Moscow's relations with
China are "bad," and that to prevent Soviet isola-
tion from the other Pacific powers, the USSR must
work to improve relations with Japan and the US.
Soviet official propaganda on the President's
trip has been relatively sparse, positive in tone,
and generally devoid of anything that could affect
the trip.
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CAMBODIA: Route 6 Area
ompong Thom
Enemy held
Tang Kou
Encircled
Government relief
force stalled
6
Heavy mortar
Enemy held
Prakham
21
S Government-held location
d rocket attacks
IHq 271st
koun
Kornpong Cha
Hq 272nd Regt
Hq 165thl
Regt
hup
PHNOM PENH 0 5
MILES
552319 12-71 CIA
46. 116-.
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CAMBODIA
Two government battalions at Prakham on Route
6 have come under heavy Communist attack. They are
now encircled and unable even to evacuate their
wounded. A four-battalion relief column is on its
way from Skoun to try to help effect a withdrawal
of the Prakham forces. This column is having trou-
ble advancing along damaged portions of Route 6 and
has itself come under Communist rocket fire.
The Communists are also continuing to shell
and carry out ground probes against government posi-
tions in and around Tang Kouk. Although there has
been no major change in the situation, Cambodian
commanders in the village say they can no longer
maneuver effectively and are adopting a static de-
fense posture.
The increasing enemy pressure along Route
6 apparently comes from elements of the
271st Regiment of the Vietnamese Communist
9th Division. Although the 271st head-
quarters had been moving eastward, it has
remained within striking distance of Route
6, and division reconnaissance units have
continued to monitor government troop dis-
positions and defenses around Tang Kouk
and Skoun. It is now likely that the
forces the Communists still have at their
disposal west of the Mekong River can push
the demoralized Cambodians all the way
back to Skoun, if they choose to do so.
The sudden but orderly withdrawal yester-
day of the South Vietnamese from the Chup
rubber plantation has undoubtedly dashed
Cambodian hopes that South Vietnam opera-
tions to the east would force the Commu-
nists to withdraw more troops from the
Route 6 area.
4
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