CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE BULLETIN

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP79T00975A026100190001-1
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: T
• Document Page Count: 17
• Document Creation Date: December 15, 2016
• Document Release Date: March 19, 2004
• Sequence Number: 1
• Publication Date: February 19, 1974
• Content Type: REPORT

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Top Secret
Central Intelligence Bulletin
State Department review completed
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3,38
C
February 19, 1974
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February 19, 1974
Central Intelligence Bulletin
CONTENTS
ISRAEL: National Religious Party and Labor Align-
ment resume talks on coalition. (Page 1)
SOUTH VIETNAM: Cabinet changes reflect Thieu's
drive for economic reforms. (Page 4)
USSR: Soviets close Pacific area for ICI3M test.
(Page 5)
FRANCE - WESTERN EUROPE: Paris proposes plan for
point construction of "Mirage F-1 International"
aircraft. (Page 6)
AFGHANISTAN-USSR: Moscow and Kabul conclude nego-
tiations for $120-million trade agreement. (Page 8)
CHINA-JAMAICA: Peking signs economic aid agreements
with Kingston. (Page 9)
FOR THE RECORD: (Page 11)
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L ISRAEL: The National Religious Party has resumed
coalition talks with Prime Minister Meir's Labor Align-
ment, and a breakthrough on the controversial religious
issue is possible,
According to an Israeli press report, the majority
of the National Religious Party negotiating team is
willing to accept a compromise proposal by the Align-
ment on the religious question which has been the
major stumbling block preventing the formation of a
new cabinet. Under the plan, a special ministerial
committee will have one year to propose changes in
those portions of the Israeli Law of Return defining
who is a Jew. In the interim, only conversions to
Judaism in accordance with orthodox procedures will
be recognized. In effect, this would appear to meet,
at least temporarily, the National Religious Party's
demands.
The National Religious Party reportedly is also
demanding, as a price for joining the cabinet, that
the new government not be empowered to conclude any
agreement, concerning the future status of the Jordan
West Bank. Such a decision, the party claims, can
be settled only by new general. elections. A workable
compromise on this point should be easier to find
than on the religious issue, however.
The Independent Liberal Party--the third partner
in the Alignment-led coalition that Mrs. Meir is
attempting to re-establish--has apparently not yet
reacted. The party has pressed for maintenance of
the status quo on the religious issue, however, and
will presumably be unhappy over these developments.
It may, perhaps, even balk at joining the cabinet.
An Alignment coalition with the National Reli-
gious Party, but without the Independent Liberal Party,
would still give Mrs. Meir a workable coalition con-
trolling 64 of the 120 Knesset seats. She would
undoubtedly prefer to have the Independent Liberal
Feb 19, 1974
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Party in the cabinet to give her a more comfortable
governing margin with four more Knesset seats and to
provide some counterweight to the National Religious
Party. Mrs. Meir conceivably could also ask the
ultra-orthodox Agudah Religious Front with its five
Knesset seats to join her government if the Liberals
refused to do so.
Mrs. Meir remains adamantly opposed to calling
for new elections to break the current deadlock. Such
a process could, in any event, take two or three months
at a time when the country urgently needs a government
to continue the peace negotiations with the Arabs and
to deal with numerous domestic problems. Mrs. Meir
is also opposed to forming either a broad coalition
government with the rightwing Likud or a narrow coali-
tion with the liberal parties. She presumably is
also against an Alignment-only minority government.
Mrs. Meir may be operating, however, under a
self-imposed deadline to form a new cabinet by tomor-
row and may have to compromise. She reportedly does
not, want to ask President Katzir to renew her mandate
to form a coalition for another three weeks when it
expires on February 20. Although there has been some
speculation that if Mrs. Meir fails to reach agree-
ment on a coalition by tomorrow, she will step down
and, retire, the US Embassy in Tel Aviv doubts that
she actually wants to make such a move at this time.
Feb 19, 1974
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SOUTH VIETNAM: The government changes announced
on February 18 re lect an effort by President Thieu
to upgrade the status of Prime Minister Khiem and to
put greater momentum behind economic policies.
The most significant features of the changes are
the transfer of certain functions from the president's
office to that of the prime minister and the appoint-
merit of two new deputy prime ministers to oversee
welfare and development activities. The naming of
controversial presidential aide Hoang Duc Nha as
minister of public information enables Thieu to
formalize Nha's recent authority over information
activities while moving him, at least ostensibly,
under Prime Minister Khiem,,who has been chafing under
Nha's growing influence.
The three deputy prime ministers in the cabinet
now include Nguyen Luu Vien, who is without portfolio
and serves as Saigon's chief negotiator in Paris;
Phan Quang Dan, who is concurrently minister of social
welfare; and retired General Tran Van Don, named in
charge of "inspecting" national development programs.
Both Dan, a cabinet holdover, and Don, a Lower House
deputy and unofficial adviser to Thieu, are activists,
presumably expected to bring stronger direction to
the economic ministries now headed by able technicians
and bureaucrats.
Kim Ngoc.
The chief casualty in the latest reshuffle is
Pham Kim Ngoc, who was replaced as commissioner of
planning by Nguyen Tien Hung, a former instructor,
at Howard University. Ngoc had been kept on last
October when older officials concerned with economic
and financial affairs were changed, probably because
of his good rapport with Americans. All of the minis-
ters appointed in October have been retained, indi-
cating that Thieu's dissatisfaction with the direction
of economic policies continued to center on Pham
Feb 19, 1974
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USSR: The Soviets have again closed an area in
the Pacific Ocean for extended-range tests of one of
their new ICBMs. Moscow announced yesterday that an
area about 1,500 nautical. miles southeast of the
Kamchatka Peninsula would be closed beginning today
until March 10. The closure coincides with the
reopening of the SALT talks in Geneva.
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FRANCE - WESTERN EUROPE: Avions Marcel Dassault
has propose that France, Belgium, the Netherlands,
and Australia participate in the construction of a
"Mirage F-1 International" aircraft, according to the
French press. The proposal is said to have the finan-
cial backing of the French Government.
This proposal appears to be one of several current
maneuvers by France to capture the European market for
fighter aircraft during the second half of the 1970s.
France is competing with the US to provide a replace-
ment aircraft for the aging F-104 interceptor, the
backbone of several European tactical air forces.
Sweden also is in the competition with its Viggen
aircraft, but appears to be running a distant third.
The F-1 International--or Super Mirage--is the
planned export model of the Mirage F-l, an aircraft
just now entering France's inventory. The Super Mirage
will have an improved engine over the F-l, giving it
greater speed and altitude capabilities. Engine
development is under way, but the Super Mirage will.
not. be operational before 1976.
French sales inducements probably will include
licensing agreements and joint production plans in
which the aircraft will be assembled in purchasing
countries. If France corners the European market,
assembly in the purchasing countries probably will
be required for near-term delivery because French
production facilities are limited.
Both Belgium and the Netherlands are expected
to make a decision on replacement aircraft for their
F-104s by summer. Their decision will influence the
aircraft replacement programs of other European
nations because of current efforts toward standardizing
military equipment at a time of tight military budgets.
Feb 19, 1974
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AFGHANISTAN-USSR: Moscow and Kabul have con-
cluded negotiations for a $120-million trade agreement
for the current year. The dollar amount is 40 percent
higher than last year. Most of the increase is the
result of applying world market prices--for the first
time--to Soviet sugar and Afghan cotton and wool.
Preliminary reporting on the agreement does not
indicate what Moscow's price for petroleum products
or Kabul's price for natural gas is to be. These
prices were expected to be a major issue in negotia-
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CHINA-JAMAICA: Peking has signed an economic
aid agreement with Kingston after a year-long lull
in Chinese aid initiatives to Latin American countries.
Peking will design and build complete plants and pro-
vide equipment and technical assistance to Jamaica.
The agreement was preceded by the visit of a Chinese
trade mission and the provision of flood relief assist-
ance to Jamaica last year.
Less than 15 percent of some $135 million in
Chinese credits to all Latin America has been drawn,
and this has been in the form of commodity aid and
foreign exchange credits. Not a single project has
been initiated. Administrative problems on both
sides have caused the delays since the program began
in 1971.
Feb 19, 1974
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Peru: The Foreign Ministry has announced that
a multimillion dollar agreement to compensate US
firms that have been nationalized will be signed
today in Lima, according to press reports. The sign-
ing of the compromise agreement will, remove an issue
that has strained relations with the US since a
military regime took power in Peru in 1968.
Feb 19 , 19 74 Central Intelligence Bulletin
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