WEEKLY SUMMARY

• Document Type: FOIA
• Collection: FOIA Collection
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): 03154550
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: U
• Document Page Count: 78
• Document Creation Date: October 23, 2023
• Document Release Date: August 28, 2023
• Case Number: F-2022-01252
• Publication Date: May 8, 1970

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DIRECTORATE OF
INTELLIGENCE
WEEKLY SUMMARY
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45
8 May 1970
No. 0369/70
(b)(3)
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The WEEKLY SUMMARY, issued every Friday morlinf_t_ by the
Office of Current Intelligence, reports and analyzes significant
developments of the week through noon on Thursday. It fre-
quently includes material coordinated with or prepared by the
Office of Economic Research, the Office of Strategt. Research.
and the Directorate of Science and Technology. Topics requir-
ing more comprehensive treatment and therefore published sep-
arately as Special Reports are listed in the contents pages.
WARNING
The WEEKLY SUMMARY contains classified information af-
ling the national security of the United States. within the
meaning of Title 18, sections 793 and 794, of the US Code, as
amended. Its transmission or revelation of its conterts to or re-
ceipt by an unauthorized person is prohibited by law.
GROUP 1
ducted horn automatic
airungrading and
dadossalcation
_ _
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CONTENTS
(Information as of noon EDT, 7 May 1970)
Far East
Page
THE WEEK IN PERSPECTIVE
VIETNAM: TEMPORIZING IN HANOI
The Communists have sharply denounced the US mil-
itary moves in Cambodia and over North Vietnam, but
they have stopped short of any decisive new course
of action either on the battlefield or at the Paris
talks. In Saigon, the Thieu government faces a
threat of new disturbances from student and Buddhist
groups, and some despondency in its own ranks may
incline the regime toward a tougher stance.
SIHANOUK FORMS HIS GOVERNMENT IN EXILE
The formation of Sihanouk's new government in exile
hardens the break between the Communists and the Lon
Nol regime.
CHINA FOCUSES ATTENTION ON CAMBODIAN DEVELOPMENTS
This year's celebrations in Peking were held amidst
heightened national attention to the latest develop-
ments in Cambodia. Mao Tse-tung and heir Lin Piao
appeared for the first time in over six months, while
the featured guest was Prince Sihanouk.
USSR REMAINS NONCOMMITTAL ON INDOCHINA
Publicly the USSR is still marking time on Indochi-
nese developments. Privately, however, the Soviets
may be using their influence with the North Viet-
namese to counsel restraint and moderation.
COMMUNISTS CONTINUE PRESSURE IN SOUTH LAOS
Communist forces continue to be active in south Laos.
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WEEKLY SUMMARY
SUMMARY
8 May 70
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MALAYSIA WORRIED ON ANNIVERSARY OF 1969 RIOTS
The government is showing considerable nervousness
as the anniversary of last year's postelection com-
munal riots approaches.
SLOW ECONOMIC GROWTH FRUSTRATES NORTH KOREANS
Slow economic growth prevents North Korea from spend-
ing as much on defense as it would like, and delays
fulfillment of its economic plan.
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Europe
THE WEEK IN PERSPECTIVE 13
USSR RESUMES NORMAL MILITARY AID DELIVERIES
The USSR arms supply effort, which focused on Egypt
during March, has returned to a normal pace. Arms
shipments now have resumed to include other recip-
ients.
BREZHNEV ENHANCES ROLE AS "PRIMUS INTER PARES"
The Soviet leadership has presented a more collective
image this week, although Brezhnev continues to press
his advantage.
SOVIETS SEE CZECH FRIENDSHIP TREATY AS TRIUMPH
Moscow regards the new Soviet-Czechoslovak friendship
treaty as a vindication of the invasion and of the
principles of the so-called "Brezhnev Doctrine."
ARMS CONTROL TALKS RECESS
The seabeds treaty will receive priority treatment
when the Geneva talks resume on 16 June.
SINO-SOVIET TALKS REMAIN ON DEAD CENTER
Top Chinese and Soviet leaders have restated their
commitment to the Peking talks, but officials on
both sides state flatly that no significant progress
has been made.
SOVIETS SQUANDER NATURAL GAS AND CRUDE OIL
Pressing for increased current production, the USSR
engages in wasteful practices that reduce prospects
for future output.
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ROMANIA COURTS THE ARABS
The Romanians have made a strong bid in recent months
to improve their poor relations with the Arab world.
Middle East - Africa
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THE WEEK IN PERSPECTIVE 21
ISRAEL PROCEEDS CAUTIOUSLY WITH SOVIETS IN EGYPT
Israeli officials have been restating their concern
over the Soviet presence in Egypt, underlining the
caution with which they view the risks of a confron-
tation and urging a strong stand by the US toward
Soviet encroachment in the Middle East.
NASIR ISSUES APPEAL AND WARNING TO US
In a lengthy May Day speech Nasir appealed to the US
to order Israel to withdraw from the occupied ter-
ritories for the cause of peace and warned against
any further US aid to Israel.
ARMY-FEDAYEEN CLASHES IN JORDAN WEAKEN KING'S POSITION
Fighting last weekend between Jordanian troops and
commandos has reinforced earlier fedayeen charges
that the regime is plotting to assassinate commando
leaders, thus further eroding King Husayn's already
shaky position.
CIVILIAN GOVERNMENT INSTALLED IN DAHOMEY
A new government of "national union"--headed by the
country's three key civilian politicians, with north-
erner Hubert Maga as "first among equals"--has little
chance of bringing long-term stability to this trou-
bled West African state.
NEW TENSIONS IN US-SOMALI RELATIONS
The expulsion of five members of the US Embassy in
Mogadiscio on trumped-up charges has quickened the
downward drift in US-Somali relations.
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Western Hemisphere
THE WEEK IN PERSPECTIVE
BRAZIL SECURITY FORCES HIT TERRORISTS
Military and security forces have carried out major
operations against terrorist groups.
CUBA AND SUBVERSION: OLD STRATEGY, NEW TACTICS
Almost every Latin American republic has felt Fidel
Castro's interference in the form of subversion and
armed struggle at least once. The involvement has
ranged from direct participation by Castro himself to
the supplying of arms and ammunition. The great ma-
jority of Castro's efforts have failed, however. De-
spite the setbacks, he has adopted revolution as a
way of life and there are no signs that he plans to
reject it.
RENEWED VIOLENCE LIKELY IN GUATEMALA
President Mendez has allowed the state of siege, im-
posed following the assassination of German Ambassador
von Spreti, to lapse despite an increase in terrorist
violence.
TRINIDAD FACES A NEW POLITICAL CLIMATE
A government shake-up and new legislative programs
are likely in the wake of black power dissidence and
the recent army rebellion.
EL SALVADOR ADOPTS A TOUGH LINE
The Sanchez government is adopting a new and tougher
approach to domestic and foreign politics.
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WEEKLY SUMMARY 8 May 70
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FAR EAST
The Thieu government in Saigon finds itself so overloaded with prob-
lems of political discontent that it is unable to deal effectively with all of
them at once. Various opposition leaders and groups are acting boldly in the
face of the government's hesitancy to take more repressive measures. A
number of top officials are weighing in with gloomy prognostications, the
police forces have been unable to cope with the daily pace of demonstra-
tions, some violent, and the government has had to return several battalions
of regular troops to Saigon, both because of the political turmoil and
because of an increasing threat of Viet Cong terrorism in the capital.
Off-balance because key lines of authority are not working, the Thieu
government may be facing a real crisis.
On the military front, activity reached substantially higher levels last
week in 1 and IV Corps, perhaps indicating the beginning-of the second phase
of the Communists' spring offensive, but also possibly representing a Com-
munist effort to divert allied attention away from sweep operations inside
Cambodia.
The allied operations aimed at Communist � sanctuaries in Cambodia
have so far not encountered sizable numbers of enemy forces, but have
uncovered large quantities of supplies. Communist military headquarters
elements have apparently been able to relocate fairly rapidly to avoid the
allied sweeps.
Deeper inside Cambodia, the Communists continue to press hard on the
Cambodian Army. Two provincial capitals were reportedly captured late in
the week, and the Communists are still blocking several major transportation
routes between Phnom Penh and the eastern and southern borders of the
country.
On the international scene, Hanoi reacted to US military thrusts into
Cambodia and bombing of certain targets in North Vietnam by boycotting
the session of the Paris talks scheduled for 6 May. Peking's denunciation of
the US moves did not imply any larger role for China in Indochina, but did
contain a sharp personal attack on President Nixon. Communist China also
announced the formal severance of relations with Cambodia and in the same
breath recognized the newly formed Cambodian government in exile, Siha-
nouk's first major step toward an attempt to re-establish himself in Cam-
bodia.
The Indonesian-initiated Asian conference on Cambodia now is sched-
uled for 16-17 May in Djakarta; 12 nations (all non-Communist) of the 21
invited have agreed to attend. Although there is little prospect that the
conference will have any practical effect on the over-all Cambodian situa-
tion, it probably will generate a degree of international political support to
Phnom Penh and some bilateral aid.
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WEEKLY SUMMARY 8 May 70
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VIETNAM: TEMPORIZING IN HANOI
Hanoi has temporized so far in
its public reaction to the allied
ground operations into Cambodia and
the US air strikes against targets
in North Vietnam. The Communists
boycotted the plenary session of
the Paris talks on 6 May, but said
that they would return to the table
next week unless the bombing con-
tinued. Their failure to rupture
the conference completely after
threatening for months to do so
shows Hanoi's reluctance to close
off any political options.
The Communists' propaganda re-
action to the new allied moves is
in the same cautious vein. They
lashed out at Washington for the
ground and air attacks, but care-
fully avoided committing themselves
to forceful retaliation. They
also have made some general threats,
but concrete decisions on their fu-
ture course are yet to be made.
Hanoi has contended that the air
strikes violate Washington's
"pledge" in November 1968 to halt
all bombing of the North. This
could mean that the Communists,
in turn, no longer feel constrained
about large-scale use of the De-
militarized Zone or attacks on ma-
jor South Vietnamese cities.
Hanoi's slight delay in rec-
ognizing Sihanouk's "government in
exile" may be caused by the same
instinct to temporize. The North
Vietnamese extended recognition to
the new "government" a day after it
was announced, but only after six
countries, including China, already
had weighed in. Unlike the Chi-
nese, Hanoi has not yet announced
withdrawal of its remaining per-
sonnel from Phnom Penh. Thus, even
at this late hour, the Vietnamese
Communists seem to be reluctant to
close off completely the possibil-
ity of dealing with Lon Nol and his
associates.
One of the reasons for Hanoi's
caution may be difficulty in con-
certing with Peking and Moscow.
Party First Secretary Le Duan's pro-
longed stay abroad suggests that
difficulties have cropped up. He
has been away for three weeks and
the Polish press reports that he
took a side trip to Warsaw, leaving
there on 6 May. His absence from
Hanoi at such a critical time
strongly suggests that the Vietnam-
ese are being pulled in different
directions by their principal al-
lies, with Peking pressing mili-
tancy and Moscow counseling modera-
tion.
It is also possible that Hanoi
has been sufficiently surprised by
the turn of events in Indochina that
it needs some time to sort out all
of the implications and to make new
decisions. This process, however,
probably would not impair the Com-
munists' ability to react rapidly
in tactical battle field situations.
Communist Military Reactions
Communist battlefield reactions
to the US and South Vietnamese oper-
ations against their long-held sanc-
tuaries in Cambodia have varied, but
no major efforts to stand and fight
or to counterattack have developed.
Page 2 WEEKLY SUMMARY
8 May 70
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-"SreR-E-42-
Although there was little di-
rect confrontation with Communist
combat forces during the opening
stages of the allied sweep opera-
tions, ground fighting picked up
as the week progressed and the op-
erations were enlarged. Cumulative
casualties as of 7 May show more
than 3,000 Communists killed in
contrast to South Vietnamese losses
of 162 killed and 840 wounded. Amer-
ican casualties totaled 37 killed
and 79 wounded. Additionally,
enemy losses included the seizure
of more than 4,000 weapons and
1,000 tons of rice.
Inside South Vietnam, increased
enemy activity in IV Corps last
weekend may have signaled the be-
ginning of the anticipated "second
phase" of the Communists spring cam-
paign. The enemy effort gained mo-
mentum early in the week with some
strong rocket and mortar attacks
against US facilities, but they were
not as intense as those in the early
April upsurge. The pattern of prep-
arations for this phase suggests
Mortars, recoilless rifles, SKS carbines, antiaircraft
guns, and light machine guns captured by ARVN
units in Parrot's Beak area.
Page 3
that there will be less coordina-
tion than the previous month, with
attacks taking place as each unit
completes its local preparations.
In some areas, moreover, enemy of-
fensive plans may have been thrown
off schedule or altered as a result
of the allied cross-border opera-
tions or other pre-emptive actions.
Higher levels of enemy action
will probably continue well into
May. Plans for renewed hostilities
by enemy forces in the central
coastal provinces, to get under way
on 7-8 May, were revealed in a re-
cently captured document.
Throughout much of the country
the enemy's local force units could
step up the tempo of shellings and
small-scale attacks on very short
notice. In addition, first-line
combat units are in a position to
threaten certain allied bases and
urban centers, especially in north-
ern Quang Tri Province just south
of the Demilitarized Zone, in cen-
tral Thua Thien Province, and in
the coastal lowlands of Quang Nam
and Quang Tin provinces. In II
Corps, Communist forces are mostly
concentrated near allied Special
Forces camps in the international
tri-border area. Although many of
the enemy main forces in III Corps
are preoccupied with allied opera-
tions, they could launch attacks
designed to divert attention away
from the allied operations in east-
ern Cambodia. Most of the major
enemy units in the delta provinces
have avoided contact with South Viet-
namese forces and apparently are
not ready for large-scale ground
operations in the immediate future.
7;1rtH744QL
WEEKLY SUMMARY 8 May 70
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CAMBODIA - SOUTH VIETNAM: Current Situation
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