THE PRESIDENT'S DAILY BRIEF 8 SEPTEMBER 1976

• Document Type: FOIA
• Collection: President's Daily Brief 1969-1977
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): 0006466834
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: T
• Document Page Count: 6
• Document Creation Date: August 14, 2016
• Document Release Date: August 24, 2016
• Publication Date: September 8, 1976

Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2016/07/05 : CIA-RDP79T00024A000200030007-1
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The President's Daily Brief
September 8, 1976
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Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2016/07/05 : CIA-RDP79T00024A000200030007-1
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2016/07/05 : CIA-RDP79T00024A000200030007-1
Exempt from general
declassification schedule of E 0 11652
exemption category 5811).12),(3)
declassified only on approval of
the Director of Central Intelligence
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2016/07/05 : CIA-RDP79T00024A000200030007-1
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2016/07/05 : CIA-RDP79T00024A000200030007-1
FOR THE PRESIDENT ONLY
September 8, 1976
Table of Contents
Lebanon: Syria continues preparations to ensure a smooth trans-
fer of power to Lebanese president-elect Sarkis. (Page 1)
Angola-Portugal: Angolan leaders expressed to a visiting Portu-
guese Socialist Party delegation last week their wish to re-
establish diplomatic relations with Portugal. (Page 1)
FOR THE PRESIDENT ONLY
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2016/07/05 : CIA-RDP79T00024A000200030007-1
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2016/07/05 : CIA-RDP79T00024A000200030007-1
FOR THE PRESIDENT ONLY
LEBANON: Syria contin-
ues preparations to en-
sure a smooth transfer
of power to Lebanese
president-elect Sarkis.
Fighting in most of
Lebanon remains at a
generally low level.
ANGOLA-PORTUGAL: Por-
tuguese Prime Minister
Soares told Ambassador
Carlucci that Angolan
leaders expressed to a
visiting Portuguese So-
cialist Party delega-
tion last week their
wish to re-establish
diplomatic relations
with Portugal.
Pierre Jumayyil and a high-level
Phalangist delegation met with
Syrian President Asad on Monday,
and extremist Christian leader
Camille Shamun is scheduled to
visit Damascus today for consul-
tations.
In the course of his talks with
Asad, Shamun is expectedl
to press
his standard demand that the Pal-
estinians be totally disarmed be-
fore any further negotiations.
Shamun, who is skeptical about the
prospects for peace, would prefer
to resume Christian offensive oper-
ations.
PLO chief Yasir Arafat, Lebanese
leftist leader Kamal Jumblatt, and
other Palestinian and leftist lead-
ers met in Beirut on Monday and re-
jected a "Syrian peace plan"
brought back by Arafat's envoys
from Damascus over the weekend.
Exceptions are Beirut where shell-
ing has increased again and the
Mount Lebanon area where the Chris-
tians are shelling Palestinian-
held villages.
* * *
According to Soares, the Angolans
felt they had been pushed into too
close a relationship with the So-
viet Union and now wanted to de-
velop a more independent position.
Soares said the Angolans even
raised the possibility of a "priv-
ileged relationship" for Portugal.
--continued
FOR THE PRESIDENT ONLY
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They need technical assistance and
apparently hope to see the return
of Portuguese technicians. The
Angolans also made the point that
Portugal could help Luanda estab-
lish links with Europe and con-
tacts that would facilitate An-
gola's admission to the UN.
The Portuguese delegation gained
the impression that conditions had
improved in Angola. Stores were
well stocked and the people ap-
peared to have more money. Most
Angolans who were questioned on
the situation credited American
petroleum operations rather than
Soviet aid.
The exchange of views last week
was on a party-to-party basis.
Following the talks, however, both
sides publicly proposed re-estab-
lishing diplomatic relations, and
government-level exchanges can be
expected in the near future.
The minority Socialist government
in Lisbon has promised to culti-
vate close ties with all Portu-
guese-speaking nations, and the
restoration of relations with An-
gola would give it a needed for-
eign policy success. The govern-
ment would also probably like to
reduce the economic strain caused
by the return of some 600,000 refu-
gees from the territories by send-
ing some of them back to Angola.
Angola's approach to the Portu-
guese Socialists occurred during
the same week that President Neto
sent a private message to Washing-
ton--delivered through the US em-
bassy in Stockholm--expressing in-
terest in establishing normal re-
lations.
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FOR THE PRESIDENT ONLY
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2016/07/05 : CIA-RDP79T00024A000200030007-1
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2016/07/05 : CIA-RDP79T00024A000200030007-1
Top Secret
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2016/07/05 : CIA-RDP79T00024A000200030007-1