THE PRESIDENT'S DAILY BRIEF 8 APRIL 1976

• Document Type: FOIA
• Collection: President's Daily Brief 1969-1977
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): 0006015077
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: T
• Document Page Count: 11
• Document Creation Date: August 14, 2016
• Document Release Date: August 24, 2016
• Publication Date: April 8, 1976

Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2016/07/19 : CIA-RDP79T00936A013300010008-1
The President's Daily Brief
April 8, 1976
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Exempt from general
declassification schedule of E.O. I 1652
exemption category,513(1),(2).(3)
" declassified only on approval of
the Director of Central Intelligence
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April 8, 1976
Table of Contents
Lebanon: Syria's direct military involvement may be increasing
as the Lebanese parliament prepares to act on the presiden-
tial succession. (Page 1)
USSR-Lebanon: An authoritative Moscow statement on Lebanon
praises the cease-fire but charges that Israel and "imperi-
alist forces" are responsible for the strife. (Page 2)
China: The Central Committee's announcement that Teng Hsiao-ping
has been dismissed from all his positions inside and outside
the party specifically links this move to Monday's demonstra- 25X1
tions. (Page 3)'
USSR:
Notes: India-China; Iran-Cuba (Page 6)
FOR THE PRESIDENT ONLY
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Tartus
Sidon amascus
Mediterranean Sea
Tel Aviv-Yafo
Gaza
GAZA STRIP
Saudi
Arabia
\
.\SINAt
559575 476
20 ap Statute Miles
0 I 20 410 Kilometers
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LEBANON: The Syrian
naval blockade of the
northern Lebanese port
of Tripoli remains in
force and may now be
supported by helicop-
ters. Syrian helicop-
ters have reportedly
been assisting a Syrian
ground force that
crossed into northern
Lebanon on Tuesday.
That force may have as
many as 2,000 troops
and some 100 to 150 ve-
hicles, including ar-
mored personnel carriers.
These troops are said to be wear-
ing uniforms of the Syrian-con-
trolled Saiqa fedayeen organiza-
tion. Their mission appears to be
to control the area between Trip-
oli and the air base at Kleiat.
The Syrians presumably have chosen
to move increased numbers of Syr-
ian regulars into Tripoli rather
than into central or southern Leb-
anese cities to minimize the
chance of an Israeli countermove
into southern Lebanon. Damascus
may calculate that Tel Aviv will
continue to tolerate a gradual
Syrian buildup inside Lebanon if
Syrian troops are disguised as
fedayeen and do not have armored
units.
The great danger in the Syrian
move is that it might fail in its
intention to intimidate the Leba-
nese leftists, yet through lack
of Israeli reaction cause Damascus
to misjudge the limits of Israeli
tolerance for a similar move in 25X1
central or southern Lebanon.
1
--continued
FOR THE PRESIDENT ONLY
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USSR/LEBANON: The
most authoritative So-
viet statement to date
on Lebanon appears to-
day in a Pravda article
signed by "Observer,"
to denote the Kremlin's
endorsement.
A French government spokesman an-
nounced yesterday that Georges
Gorse, a former minister and dip-
lomat, will leave for Lebanon to-
day on a "fact-finding" mission,
as opposed to a "mediation effort."
Gorse accompanied Maurice Couve
de Murville on his unsuccessful
mediation mission last November.
If Gorse is well received, it is
likely that Couve will also return
to Beirut.
"Observer" terms the current cease-
fire agreement "a new, positive
element." The article welcomes
Syrian mediation efforts and calls
for "the preservation of a united,
integral, and independent Lebanese
state."
The article charges that it is
"naive" to view the events in Leb-
anon as solely a manifestation of
Christian-Muslim strife. Rather,
it says the conflict was unleashed
by Israelis and "imperialist
forces" bent on diverting Arab at-
tention from efforts to liberate
the Israeli-occupied Arab terri-
tories, weakening Palestinian re-
sistance, and dividing Lebanese
territory.
The way the US is singled out is
new. One paragraph condemns the
movements of the Sixth Fleet to-
ward Lebanon, "the fully bankrupt
'from the position of strength'
policy which some political cir-
cles dream of reviving," and Sena-
tor Jackson's "openly calling for
landing the US Marines on Lebanese
soil."
2
--continued
FOR THE PRESIDENT ONLY
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CHINA: The Central
Committee's announce-
ment that Teng Hsiao-
ping has been dismissed
from all his positions
inside and outside the
party was specifically
linked to the demon-
strations last Monday.
"Observer" closes with a call for
a maximum effort to consolidate
the cease-fire and to normalize
the situation. The article ac-
knowledges that Lebanon remains
tense and that "a good deal of
combustible material has accrued."
It warns that another outburst
would be "fraught with still
graver consequences" for Lebanon
and for the entire Middle East.
Teng and his supporters appeared
to have badly overplayed their
hand by arranging the demonstra-
tions. A month or more earlier,
a party directive had indicated
that Teng was in a relatively good
position to survive the attacks on
him. It reportedly stated that
Teng was not to be "struck down,"
and that his case was different
from those of party leaders purged
in the recent past.
The demonstrations and the wide
international coverage given them,
however, clearly angered and em-
barrassed Mao and the left, and
may have enabled them to win the
support of moderates for Teng's
removal.
Although the decision on Teng's
case was "unanimous," indicating
his supporters had abandoned him,
concessions from the left may well
have been involved. One such con-
cession could be the end of the
current political campaign. The
reappearance yesterday of Polit-
buro member Li Hsien-nien, one of
Teng's staunchest backers, who had
been absent from public view since
mid-January, suggests that other
supporters of Teng will not suffer.
--continued
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The appointment of Hua Kuo-feng--
who is not in the leftist camp--
as premier and as first vice chair-
man of the party over Wang Hung-
wen, a young party leftist, may
also be part of a compromise solu-
tion. The reappearance of Li
Hsien-nien, the party's leading
economic specialist, suggests that
Teng's ambitious economic policies
may continue with little change.
Teng's backers may have agreed to
drop their support of him once they
were assured that the relatively
moderate Hua would be promoted to
a party position of sufficient im-
portance to give him a major voice
in policy issues.
Hua's new position is second only
to that of Mao. Hua is closely
identified with Teng's agricultural
policies. As acting premier, he
frequently indicated there would
be no change in China's foreign
policy. Others in the leadership,
who may have opposed the abrasive
Teng for personal reasons, may now
close ranks with those who person-
ally supported Teng, thus giving
the moderates a major voice in pol-
icy matters.
Yesterday's decisions do not
provide a long-term solution to
China's leadership problems. A
People's Daily editorial acknowl-
edged on Tuesday--for the second
time--that the central committee
of the party remains split. Given
the depth of public sentiment re-
vealed on Monday and the relatively
powerful position of the moderates
in positions of authority through-
out the country, a "blacklash"
against the left is still a real
possibility.
--continued
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