CURRENT INTELLIGENCE BULLETIN - 1955/01/08

• Document Type: SPECIALCOLLECTION
• Collection: Current/Central Intelligence Bulletin Collection
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): 02022703
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: U
• Document Page Count: 6
• Document Creation Date: September 20, 2019
• Document Release Date: September 26, 2019
• Publication Date: January 8, 1955

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8 January 1955 3.5(c)
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Copy No.
CURRENT INTELLIGENCE BULLETIN
DOCUMENT NO.
NO CHANGE IN CLASS. F
ET DECLASSIFIED
CLASS. CHANGED TO: TS S C
NEXT REVIEW DATE: 2 010
AUTH: HR 70-2
DATE: 461/22&'d REVIEWER:
Office of Current Intelligence
CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE AGENCY
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SUMMARY
GENERAL
1. Mendes-France presses for Western demarche to USSR
(page 3).
2. Eden shows little disposition to help Mende-France (page 3).
3. Moscow embassy doubts wisdom of Mendes-France proposal
(page 4).
SOUTHEAST ASIA
4. 2,000 Chinese technicians to work on restoration of Vietnamese
railroads (page 5).
5. Indonesia decides to recognize Indochinese states (page 5).
SOUTH ASIA
6.
8 Jan 55 CURRENT INTELLIGENCE BULLETIN Page 2
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GENERAL
1. Mendes-France presses for Western demarche to USSR:
Premier Mendes- France stressed to
Ambassador Dillon on 5 January the
"necessity" that some progress on
diplomatic preparations for an East-
West conference be made before mid-February, when the Coun-
cil of the Republic is expected to be ready to vote on the Paris
accords. The premier said he would prefer a tripartite demarche
calling for a conference in May. If this cannot be agreed on, Paris
will make a unilateral demarche.
Mendes- France also stressed the impor-
tance of achieving some success in the forthcoming negotiations
on an arms production pool. He said that a breakdown of these
negotiations before the� Council of the Republic acts on the Paris
accords would be "catastrophic."
Comment: Although Mendes- France has
professed to see no hope for a fruitful meeting with the USSR, some
of his closest advisers are convinced that a genuine East-West un-
derstanding is not only possible, but necessary for the success of
the French economic program to which the premier is committed.
The draft proposal for an arms produc-
tion pool which France has now circulated to the other Western
European Union countries apparently goes considerably beyond
what the other countries had been led to expect. Consequently,
the negotiations on this subject which are scheduled to start on 17
January may be much more difficult than even Mendes-France an-
ticipates.
Chances are still good, however, that the
Council of the Republic will approve the Paris accords in February.
2. Eden shows little disposition to help Mendes-France:
8 Jan 55
CURRENT INTELLIGENCE BULLETIN
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mment: Ever since last July when
they began to prepare for an a ternative to EDC, the British
have regarded the primary problem in Europe as political rather
than military, namely to sustain Adenauer and to integrate West
Germany with the West.
3. Moscow embassy doubts wisdom of Mendes-France proposal:
The American embassy in Moscow be-
lieves that Mendes-France's latest pro-
posal for a four-power conference in May
would be interpreted by the Soviet leaders
as a clear indication of the effectiveness of their present line of
intimidation. It would give Moscow an excellent opportunity to re-
assert its firm opposition to negotiations on Germany and Austria
after ratification of the Paris agreements. The USSR would frame
its answer--either outright rejection or a suggestion that ratifica-
tion be postponed--to have the greatest detrimental effect on the
decision of the French Council of the Republic.
The embassy emphasizes that the Soviet
government, while very careful not to reject the principle of nego-
tiations, has repeatedly asserted that there would be no point to
talks on Germany and Austria after ratification.
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SOUTHEAST ASIA
4. 2,000 Chinese technicians to work on restoration of Vietnamese
railroads:
under the recently announced Smo-
Viet Minh agreement on restoring commu-
nications in North Vietnam, 2,000 Chinese
tecnmcal speLialibi.b will work on the restoration of railroads. Re-
building of the Hanoi-Nam Quan railroad is characterized as only
the "first step" in the restoration of the country's railroads "in
their entirety, which in the northern region is more than 1,000 kilo-
meters, and throughout the country is 2,500 kilometers."
Comment: The number of technicians
mentioned indicates the scale of China's involvement in the eco-
nomic development of North Vietnam. China is also supplying
technicians for the restoration of postal and telecommunications
systems, highways and water conservancy, and to develop civil
air and meteorological services.
The Viet Minh's concern with the restora-
tion of railroads throughout the entire country denotes its confident
expectation of extending its control over South Vietnam.
5. Indonesia decides to recognize Indochinese states:
The Indonesian cabinet decided on 5 Janu-
ary to extend de jure recognition to Laos,
Cambodia and North Vietnam and de facto
recognition to South Vietnam, according
to the Djakarta press.
Comment: Indonesia would be the first
nation outside the Soviet Orbit to extend de jure recognition to
North Vietnam.
Djakarta's consideration of the recogni-
tion problem may have been accelerated by the forthcoming Asian-
African conference, to which all four Indochinese regimes are to
be invited.
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Of the other Colombo powers, which are
sponsoring the conference, Pakistan, Ceylon and Burma have
recognized Laos and Cambodia while India has extended full recog-
nition only to the latter. Pakistan has, in addition, extended de
facto recognition to both North and South Vietnam.
SOUTH ASIA
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