THE PRESIDENT'S DAILY BRIEF 26 JUNE 1972

• Document Type: FOIA
• Collection: President's Daily Brief 1969-1977
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): 0005993375
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: T
• Document Page Count: 10
• Document Creation Date: August 14, 2016
• Document Release Date: August 24, 2016
• Publication Date: June 26, 1972

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The President's Daily Brief
26 June 1972
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FOR THE PRESIDENT ONLY
THE PRESIDENT'S DAILY BRIEF
26 June 1972
PRINCIPAL DEVELOPMENTS
In South Vietnam, most government positions along
the My Chanh River defense line are holding firm
against Communist attacks.
(Page 1)
The continuing fallout from the Israeli raids in
Lebanon last week is discussed on page 2.
Britain's future partners in the European Community
are under pressure to find a unified response to the
pound float
(Page 3)
The Italians have finally settled on a formula for a
new government, but it is a fragile one. (Page 4)
(Page 5)
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Demilitarized Zone
Chanh River defense line
Capital Special Zone
Gulf of
Thailand
104
553282 6-72
SOUTH VIETNAM
MILES
1 Ir
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VIETNAM
During the weekend, North Vietnamese infantry
units supported by tanks and artillery began at-
tacks on government positions along the My Chanh
defense line to the north of Hue and in the vicin-
ity of Fire Support Base Bastogne to the west.
Intercepts show that elements of three Communist
divisions are involved in the attacks. Enemy mes-
sages also indicate that the Communists have cap-
tured some government positions south of the My
Chanh River, but for the most part South Vietnam-
ese troops, aided by allied air strikes, appear to
be holding the line.
In the western highlands, Kontum City was
quiet, but in the Kontum Pass Along Route 14, well-
entrenched Communist forces are still preventing
government reinforcements from moving along the
highway. Other Communist units in the area appear
to be building defensive positions and undergoing
extensive refitting in base areas north and west
of the city.
Artillery attacks on An Loc increased over
the weekend', but caused only light casualties to
the defenders. South Vietnamese units patrolling
the town's perimeter skirmished with the enemy a
number of times. To the south, elements of the
enemy's 7th Division continue to bar government
reinforcements from using Route 13.
On 19 June, the North Vietnamese reactivated
a communications authority in the panhandle that
had passed position reports on US ships operating
in the Gulf of Tonkin in mid-April. The informa-
tion'was used by two MIGs that came from the Khe
Phat airfield on 19 April to attack the US de-
stroyer Higbee. The communications terminal had
been inactive for the past two months.
Aerial photography of 22 June showed that the
airfield at Khe Phat was operational; just three
days earlier the runway was cratered.
The rapid restoration of Khe Phat, along
with the reappearance of the communications
terminal, North Vietnamese messages indi-
cating -plans to increase MIG activity ov.er
the panhandle
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ISRAEL - ARAB STATES
The Lebanese Army is apparently moving to pre-
vent further fedayeen attacks against Israel, de-
spite Beirut's public declaration that it would not
crack down on the terrorists. 2
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The Israelis concede that Lebanon has taken
some measures to curb the fedayeen--but not enough.
Foreign Minister Eban says Lebanon should shut down
all fedayeen offices in Beirut and prevent the train-
ing of foreigners in fedayeen camps in Lebanon. Re-
garding the Syrian and Lebanese officers captured
last week, Eban said Israel would agree to return
them, along with a large number of Egyptian and
Syrian prisoners, in return for the relatively few
Israelis held by Syria and Egypt. 25X1
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A prominent Israeli, meanwhile, has publicly
raised the possibility that Israel may occupy a por-
tion of southern Lebanon. He described the region
as a,no-man's land abandoned to the fedayeen by the
Lebanese Government and said that Israel, which is
being attacked from the area, should have as much
right in it as others.
These remarks, made in an English-language
radio interview, Zook like an effort to
gauge world opinion on an Israeli occupa-
tion and to increase the pressure on Leb-
anon.
The United Nations Security Council will con-
vene again this morning for its third round of de-
bate since Friday on the recent Israeli attacks on
Lebanon.
2
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FOR THE PRESIDENT ONLY
EUROPEAN COMMUNITY
Britain's future partners in the European Com-
munity are under heavy pressure today to come up
with a unified response to the decision to float the
pound. No consensus emerged over the weekend at
meetings of European central bank and finance minis-
try officials. Most major European foreign exchange
markets remain closed today but are still scheduled
to reopen tomorrow.
The viewpoint of an interested outsider was
provided on Saturday by a spokesman of the Swiss
Finance Ministry. He said he believes that all mem-
bers of the European Community except France will
eventually decide to float their currencies--presum-
ably individually rather than jointly--against the
dollar. Swiss and Japanese officials have already
said that if this happens they would also be forced
to float their currencies.
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ITALY
Seven weeks after the national election last
May, Italy has finally settled on a formula for a
new government, Premier-designate AndreOtti will
seek parliamentary approval for a three-party cen-
.trist government composed of his own Christian Dem-
ocrats, the Social Democrats, and the Liberals. He
has promises of parliamentary support from two other
parties.
This is an extremely fragile coalition.
Its majority in the lower house is only
two votes and it is in the minority in
the Senate. Some of the coalition part-
ners may well regard it as only a care-
taker regime until autumn. National con-
gresses of the Christian Democratic and
Socialist parties then might reach some
compromise to permit a return to the
center-left alliance that governed Italy
for most of the decade preceding the last
election.
The centrist formula may in part be an
attempt by the Christian Democrats to
pressure the Socialists to abandon their
campaign pledge to allow the Communist
Party a bigger role in parliament. If
so, the maneuver may backfire. The So-
cialists will be in a stronger position
to push their demands if, as seems likely,
Andreotti's centrist experiment ultimately
fails.
4
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VIETNAM
Ban Karai
Pass
Do Nang
Sara
-.'Khong Sedan
4
rre ul s disper
P.a"ksr:2,3 g
ie 16
Houei-7
hampl Bolovens, -
1Plateau(
1
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THAILAND
Pakse
em Pang
553281 6-72.CIA
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FOR THE PRESIDENT ONLY
NOTES
France:
Yugoslavia-Poland: Tito's successful visit to
Poland from 19 to 23 June reflected the conciliatory
line Brezhnev had earlier taken toward Yugoslavia..
In his departure speech on Friday, Tito said he was
very pleased, particularly with the signing of an
agreement that is intended to raise bilateral trade
by 25 percent--to over $1 billion--during the 1971-
1975 five-year plan. Following the pattern of Tito's
visit to Moscow in early June, the Poles and Yugo-
slays took pains to avoid contentious issues and prom-
ised to improve bilateral contacts.
Laos: Government efforts to clear the area
northeast of Pakse received a setback this week-
end. Three of the four irregular battalions attempt-
ing to move north of the town dispersed following
clashes with elements of the North Vietnamese 9th
Regiment. These battalions appear to have suffered
only minor casualties, but the attacks have further
hurt their morale. The irregulars have been in the
field for nearly two months, and many are suffering
from malaria and other diseases. In the Khong Sedone
area Communist troops are still holding positions
west of the town, despite assaults by irregular units
supported by air strikes.
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