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• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP84-00825R000100680001-1
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 36
• Document Creation Date: November 17, 2016
• Document Release Date: January 27, 2000
• Sequence Number: 1
• Content Type: FORM

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DISTRIBUTION LIST
TITLE OF REPORT
DATE
REPORT N0.
PROJECT N0.
CLASSIFICATION
CONTROL
NAME OF REQUESTER
NAME OF ANALYST
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GRAPHICS
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FORM
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CONFIDENTIAL
DIRECTORATE OF
INTELLIGENCE
Intelligence Report
GEOGRAPHIC BRIEF ON LAOS
CONFIDENTIAL
February 1967
CIA/BI GR 67 -14
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WARNING
This document contains information affecting the national
defense 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 contents to or re-
ceipt by an unauthorized person is prohibited by law.
CROVF 1
Exdad~d Thom aWanaik
dovmprodinQ and
dadauificarbn
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FOREWORD
This report is designed as a brief orientation aid for use by personnel con-
cerned with events or programs in Laos. It was produced solely by the Central
Intelligence Agency and constitutes an enlarged version of a contribution on the
geography of Laos prepared by the Office of Basic Intelligence for a project of
the Office of Research and Reports.
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Page
I. Location and Size ........................................... 1
II. Boundaries .................................................... 1
III. Terrain ....................................................... 1
IV. Vegetation .................................................... 5
V. Climate ....................................................... 5
VI. Ethnography .................................................. 6
VII. Settlement .................................................... 8
A. Towns .................................................... 8
B. Villages ................................................... 11
C. The Cluster Village Program .............................. 12
VIII. Economy ................................................... 12
IX. Transportation ................................................. 15
Page
Mean Precipitation in Laos ......................................... 7
Page
Figure 1. Northwest-southeast trending mountains and valley in vicinity
of Samneua ............................................. 2
Figure 2. Phong Saly village ............ ........................... 3
Figure 3. Representative terrain in Xieng Khouang Province ........... 4
Figure 4. View of grass-covered Plaine des Jarres .................... 5
Figure 5. Tribal Lao Theung (Kha ) village ......................... 8
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Page
Figure 6. Group of women from a Meo tribe ......... .............. 9
Figure 7. Section of Vientiane ................................... ... 10
Figure 8. Main street in Thakhek ........................ 10
Figure 9. Lao Theung (Kha) tribesmen ............................. 13
Figure 10. Mountain slope that has been cleared by slashing and burning
forest cover ......... .................................. 14
Figure 11. Opium poppyfield of Meo village ........... ......... 15
Figure 12. Route 6 in the general area of Samneua ...... .............. 16
Figure 13. Se (River) Kong near Ban Bac ....... ............... 16
Figure 14. Khone Falls on the Mekong River ... .............. 17
Page
Orientation Map (55690) ........................................ faces 1
Terrain Regions (55692) ....................................... follows 18
Plaine des Jarres (55695) ............................................ do
Ethnic Groups (55861) ................................ .............. do
Cluster Villages (55862) .............................................. do
Transportation (55691) ................................................ do
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LAOS ORIENTATION
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Sam Neua
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CONFIDENTIAL
I. LOCATION AND SIZE
Laos is situated in the northern part of continental Southeast Asia between the
Communist areas of China and North Vietnam and the non-Communist areas of
Burma, Thailand, Cambodia, and South Vietnam (see Map 55690). The country
is significantly located as an avenue for Communist infiltration into South Viet-
nam and Thailand and as a base for activities directed against these countries.
With an area of 91,000 square miles (about equal to that of Wisconsin and
Indiana combined) Laos is the largest of the "Indochina" countries. The country
extends almost 700 miles on anorthwest-southeast axis. It is widest across the
northern third, where it bulges to just aver 300 miles; the southern two-thirds
averages slightly over 100 miles in width, narrowing to about 60 miles at one
point. All of the narrow southern part of Laos is readily accessible to aircraft
based in northeast Thailand and to carrier-based planes operating from the
South Ghina Sea, which is only 50 miles from some parts of southern Laos.
Laos is bounded by China, Burma, Thailand, Cambodia, and the two compo-
nent parts of Vietnam. The total length of its international boundaries is about
3,200 miles. The boundary with China is demarcated; that is, its location is
marked physically an the ground with pillars. The other boundaries are only
delimited; their alignment has been agreed upon and described in a treaty or
other formal document, but they have not been marked on the ground. The
segment of the Laos-Thailand boundary along the Mekong River and the part
of the Laos-Cambodia boundary along the Tony (River) Repou, however, may
also be considered demarcated, as each is established by the thalweg (line of the
deepest navigable channel) of the river.
Only the Laos-North Vietnam boundary is in dispute. The alignment shown
on North Vietnamese maps published in 1964 appears to be a deliberate carto-
graphic misrepresentation in two areas, one in the vicinity of Route 7 and the
other west of the boundary segment that is bisected by the 17th parallel. In
these areas the Communist maps show a North Vietnamese infringement on
Laotian territory.
The terrain of Laos is predominantly rugged and mountainous; relatively flat
areas are restricted to a few plateaus and the river plains (see Map 55692 ).
Most of the area north of Vientiane traditionally has been known as the West
Tonkin Highland and the West Laos Highland, which are separated by the
divide between the Mekong drainage system on the west and the drainage sys-
tems of streams flowing into the Gulf of Tonkin on the east. In the West
Tonkin Highland the predominant trend of the major mountains and valleys is
northwest-southeast, and egress from the eastern ends of the valleys is toward
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FIGURE 1. Northwest-southeast trending mountains and valley in vicinity of Sam-
neua, in West Tonkin Highland Region. Forests are relatively open in this area,
where maximum rainfall is less than 65 inches annually. The road in the photograph
is Route 6, which extends from the North Vietnam border to Samneua and then south-
westward. The landing strip shown has a length of about 3,000 feet and a temporary
surface, probably of la~#erite. September 1959
the North Vietnam coast (see Figure 1) . In the West Laos Highland the major
trend is north-south (see Figure 2). Many of the mountains in both areas are
steep sided; elevations are commonly 3,000 to 6,000 feet and occasionally more
than 8,000 feet. The intervening valleys are narrow, often almost impassable,
gorges. An intricate network of secondary ridges and valleys that branch off the
main features makes cross-country movement, even on foot, very difficult (see
Figure 3). Locally, small plateaus, mainly of limestone, are bounded by precipi-
tous scarps.
South of-the northern highlands and extending in a northwest-southeast direc-
tion to the southern border of Laos is the Chaine Annamitique. Elevations of
8,000 feet are common near the northern limits of this region, but in the latitude
of the town of Savannakhet only a few peaks exceed 4,000 feet. Immediately to
the south of Savannakhet, in the eastward extensions of the range, elevations
again increase. The main Annam range and its outliers-such as the rugged
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FIGURE 2. Phong Saly village in West Laos Highland Region. October 1953
limestone areas northeast of Khammouane (Thakhek)-are imposing obstacles to
east-west traffic, but a few relatively low mountain passes exist, such as Deo
Mu Gia, 1,371 feet above sea level and traversed by Route 15/12 (see Maps
55691 and 55692). Since the stream divide is near the eastern edge of the
range, eastward-draining valleys are short, narrow, and steep. The westward-
draining valleys within the Mekong watershed have gentler slopes and are
more open.
The chief relatively level areas in Laos are the Plateau du Tranninh, the
Plateau des Bolavens, and the Savannakhet and Vientiane plains along the
Mekong River. Southeast of Luang Prabang, roughly centered on the town
of Xieng Khouang, is the rectangular Plateau du Tranninh, which has been
compared to a high fortification surrounded by many lines of ram~arts and
moats. Its military importance is due largely to the fact that it affords extensive
areas of level land, which provide sites for airbases in the midst of very rugged
mountains. At a general elevation of about 3,700 feet the surface of the plateau
is divided by hills into three plains areas, the largest being the Plaine des Jarres
(see Figure 4 and Map 55695). The Plateau des Bolovens, east of Pakse, rises
in prominent sandstone escarpments often 1,000 feet above the surrounding
valleys. The plateau surface, lying at an approximate elevation of about 3,300
feet, generally is undulating but is surmounted by isolated hills with local relief
of several hundred feet. Much of the surface is composed of lava; two large
flows descend west and north, respectively, through openings in the escarpment
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FIGURE 3. Representative terrain in Xieng Khouang Prov-
ince. Steep-sided mountains and narrow, ravinelike valleys
are common to much of this area, making movement ex-
tremely difficult. 1960
and reach the Se (River) Done Valley at two locations, in the vicinity of Pakse
and to the west of Saravane. These flows provide long ramps of gentle incline
between the lowland and the plateau surface. Route 23, which connects Sara-
vane with Pakse via the Plateau des Bolovens, follows these ramps (see Map
55691).
Of the river plains, the most important are those centered on Savannakhet
and on the capital city of Vientiane. The Savannakhet Plain, an undulating area
between the Mekong River and the Chaine Annamitique, is approximately 100
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FIGURE 4. View of grass-covered Plains des Jarres, a part of the Plateau du Tran-
ninh. Trees on the plain generally are restricted to the riverbanks. 1963
miles long and up to 80 miles wide. The plain centered on Vientiane, some
70 miles long from north to south and 20 to 40 miles wide, is almost flat and
is largely covered by swamps and marshes.
Most of Laos has a dense cover of broadleaf evergreen forest. Undergrowth
varies, from a low carpet of ferns and other small plants where the high forest
canopy is continuous, to a thick tangled mass of vines, bamboo, and smaller
trees where the canopy is broken and admits sunlight. Such dense vegetation
combined with rugged terrain creates a formidable obstacle to cross-country
movement except along established routes. The forests are more open (1) in
the area centered roughly an the stretch of the Nam (River) Hou between Luang
Prabang and Dien Bien Phu, (2) on the Savannakhet Plain, and (3) on the
Plateau du Tranninh and the Plateau des Bolovens. The plains on the Plateau
du Tranninh are largely grass covered (see Figure 4 ), as are some mountain
slopes that formerly were used for slash-and-burn agriculture.
Laos has a monsoonal climate characterized by two major seasons-the wet
southwest monsoon from mid-May to mid-September, and the dry northeast
monsoon from mid-October to mid-March. These major seasons are separated
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CONFIDENTIAL
by two rather short transitional periods-the spring transition from rnid-March
to mid-May, and the autumn transition from mid-September to mid-October.
The southwest monsoon is a season of heavy and frequent precipitation.
Approximately 70 percent of the yearly rainfall occurs during this period; rivers
overflow their banks, the ground becomes saturated and muddy, surface travel
becomes difficult or impossible, and air transport is often curtailed. Iumidities
are highest, cloudiness is at a maximum, and except at higher elevations, mean
daily Fahrenheit maximum temperatures are in the high 80's.
In contrast, the northeast monsoon is a season of little or no precipitation.
The lowest temperatures and relative humidities and the clearest skies ex-
perienced in Laos occur during this tirne.
The spring transitional season is characterized by increases in the frequency
and amount of precipitation and increasing relative humidity. Maximum annual
temperatures occur at this time, generally near the end of April. The autumn
transitional season is characterized by decreasing precipitation, temperature,
and relative humidity. Temperature changes are more rapid in autumn than
in spring. The table on page 7 shows mean monthly and annual precipitation
for selected locations in Laos.
Although Laos has an estimated population of only 2,000,000 (1~~66 ), it is
ethnographically complex. At least two-thirds of the population belong to the
Tai ethnic group. The major part of this group is comprised of the Lao, but
various other minority tribes-referred to as the Tribal Tai-are also included.
A number of smaller indigenous minority groups comprise most of the remain-
ing population. The largest of these is the group known as the Lao Theung
(mountain Lao) or Phoutheng (mountain people) but commonly called by the
derogatory generic term "Kha" (slave) . Other important indigeno~xs groups
are the Meo (about 100,000 ), the Yao (Man) (25,000 to 50,000 ), anal various
Tibeto-Burman peoples (15,000 to 25,000). Important nonindigenous Asian
minorities include an estimated 35,00Ct Vietnamese in government-controlled
areas, and up to 60,000 Chinese. There are small groups of Indians, Pakistanis,
Cambodians, and Thai, as well as some 8,000 French and about 1,700 Americans.
The distribution of the major ethnic groups is shown on Map 55861. The Lao
and other Tai groups inhabit the lowlands, mainly the river valleys; only occa-
sionally are they found at higher elevations. The non-Tai groups characteristi-
cally live at higher elevations, in the mountains or on the high plateaus. Usually,.
the Lao Theung (Kha) and the Yao live at elevations up to 3,000 feet; the Meo
and Tibeto-Burmans, above 3,000 feet (see Figures 5 and 6 ). The Vietnamese
and Chinese are generally found in urban areas.
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FIGURE 5. Tribal Lao Theung (Kha) village on mountain ridge in southern Laos. The
(onghouses are characteristic of most ?tibal villages in southern Laos. 1965
The linguistic situation is equally complex, with all of the major linguistic
stocks of Southeast Asia represented in Laos. The Tai linguistic stock, nu-
merically and culturally the most important, is represented by many languages,
dialects, and subdialects, including Lao--the official language of the nation, the
primary tongue of most people, and the "lingua franca" of the remainder.
Because of the complicated linguistic milieu, many Laotians, especially members
of minority groups, speak two or even ithree languages.
A. Towns
Laos contains few towns* and only about 8 percent of the total population is
urban. Since Laos gained its independence from France in 1954, however,
there has been a trend toward urban growth. In large part this trend has
reflected the pressure of the country's constant state of war. The administrative
and military significance of a few towns in particular has increased as the greater
physical security of urban centers attracted people from rural areas. This factor,
combined with the relatively higher standard of living in the towns, has resulted
in the growth of the urban population from about 70,000 in 1954 to about
180,000 in 1963.
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FIGURE 6. Group of women from a Meo tribe. The silver rings
worn around the neck are an indication of personal wealth. Silver
is usually procured with proceeds from the sale or barter of opium
processed from poppies grown by the tribes. 1952
Most of the towns are located in the Mekong River plain, with others sparsely
distributed in plateau areas and river valleys. In the river basins, towns generally
exhibit an elongated form because of the concentration of nearly all activity
along the riverbanks (see Figure 7 ). In contrast, towns on the level sites afforded
by the plateaus are usually more compact and generally have nucleated patterns.
Most urban areas are small and are generally administrative, military, and
transportation centers for the agriculturally based economy.
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FIGURE 7. Section of Vientiane. Note the generally elongated pattern of Vientiane
along the Mekong River, part of which is visible at the right. Vientiane airfield is at
left foreground. 1963
FIGURE 8. Main street in Thakhek. In most towns, masonry buildings are Chinese
business establishments, public buildings, or residences of the upper classes. Open
sewer gutters, noticeable on left of road, are common. 1960
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The chief urban areas and their estimated populations as of 1963* are:
Vientiane, the administrative capital (180,000); Luang Prabang, the royal capital,
i.e., the residence of the King (20,000); Savannakhet/Servo (30,000); Pakse
(25,000) ; Thakhek (6,000) ; and Xieng Khouang (4,000) . See Map 55692
for the location of towns.
In appearance the towns reflect a thin veneer of Chinese and European influ-
ence superimposed upon the basically Laotian culture of most of the urban
population. Traditional Lao huts and Buddhist temples and shrines generally
surround centrally located Chinese chophouse areas and French-constructed
residential and administrative buildings. Laotian dwellings, built on stilts about
5 feet above the ground, are crudely made of bamboo or other local wood with
thatched or corrugated metal roofs. Chinese sections, generally constituting
the commercial centers of the towns, consist of two-story, masonry shophouses
(see Figure 8) . Larger public buildings and residences of the upper class are
usually constructed of masonry along European lines. In most towns the street
pattern forms an irregular grid. The main traffic arteries in the cities are
asphalt surfaced, about 2 lanes wide; secondary streets are generally laterite
surfaced, one to two lanes wide. Most towns have only one through route and
no bypass routes.
B. Villages
The village is the characteristic form of settlement in Laos; there are an
estimated 10,000 to 11,000 villages, which together account for the largest part
of the total population.
The villages vary in appearance, size, shape, setting, and permanence. They
range in size from tiny hamlets of a few families to relatively large settlements
of hundreds of inhabitants. Some are permanently located; others change their
locus every few years. Some are unpatterned arrays of buildings, compact or
scattered; others are laid out in a formalized pattern with each building having
a rigidly prescribed place.
The greatest concentration of villages occupies the plains and lower valleys
contiguous to the Mekong River and its tributaries. These villages are primarily
permanently established Lao settlements based on rice agriculture. The pattern
of Lao village settlement also extends from this preferred area up into the fertile
valleys of the tributary streams. In these higher valleys, Lao villages merge
with the settlements of the various ethnic minorities, particularly those of the
Tai tribal groups. Like the Lao, the Tai groups are primarily wetland rice
farmers and their settlements are distinguishable from those of the Lao only
in matters of detail.
The villages of the other ethnic tribal groups are generally concentrated in
the upland forests which, being unsuitable for the cultivation of wetland rice,
"` The continuing influx of refugees from the countryside has undoubtedly enlarged these
population figures.
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have no appeal to the Lao or Tai. As the upland groups practice a shifting
(slash-and-burn) type of agriculture, they live in rather widely separated, semi-
permanent villages. Further, there is an attitudinal stratification of the tribal
settlements. The Lao Theung (Kha) and the Yao villages are usually found
at elevations up to 3,000 feet above sea level; the Meo from 3,000 to 4,500 feet;
and the Tibeto-Burmans at between 5,000 and 8,000 feet.
C. The Cluster Village Program
The strategic importance of rural settlements to the political and economic
well-being of Laos is reflected in the combined efforts of the US and Laotian
governments to further the development of the cluster village program (now
known as Khet Phatanakhane but formerly called the Mu Ban Samaki program).
A "cluster" is a grouping of villages :;elected for improvement because of its
"visibility" to other rural villages as well as for economic, social, and political-
strategic reasons. The cluster village program has the specific objective of
displaying the concern of the Laotian government for the villager and his needs.
In effect, the program aims to build the confidence of the rural population in the
central government and create the necessary community ambience for? economic
and social development. The location of existing cluster villages is shown on
Map 55862.
The economy of Laos is probably the most primitive in Southeast Asia. It is
primarily agricultural, with agriculture supporting some 90 to 95 percent of the
population. Modern industry is extremely limited.
Laotian agriculture is almost completely subsistence in character anti is largely
outside the monetary economy. Farmers acid their families, living in villages,
work small fields by age-old methods to provide their own food acid a small
surplus to barter for other essentials.
Less than 5 percent of the country is under cultivation. An overwhelming
proportion of the cultivated land is planted to rice, the great staple food of-Laos.
Wetland rice, produced along the rivers, accounts for most of the crop, but prob-
ably 40 percent of the population grow dryland rice under a system of shifting
cultivation that is often supplemented by hunting and fishing (see Figures 9
and 10). The production of milled rice fell from approximately 620,000 metric
tons in 1955 to 450,000 metric tons in 1960 because of a labor shortage and the
insecurity caused by fighting between progovernment and Communist forces.
In 1965 the output rose to 540,000 tons, but Laos must still import 50,000 to
60,000 metric tons of rice per year, chiefly from Thailand. As a step toward
overcoming Laotian dependence on imported rice, efforts are being made to
develop dependable irrigation water supplies for an additional 25,000 acres of
riceland in fiscal year 1967.
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FIGURE 9. Lao Theung (Kha) tribesmen of southern Laos
carving steaks from a freshly killed wild elephant. The
tribespeople supplement their precarious slash-and-burn
agriculture by hunting and fishing. 1957
In addition to rice, Laos grows corn, coffee, tobacco, cotton, sugarcane, manioc,
opium poppies, peanuts, soybeans, and various other vegetables and fruits.
Large quantities of corn are grown, mainly by the hill people for domestic
consumption. Coffee production, centered on the Plateau des Bolovens in
southern Laos, should increase as coffee bushes planted in recent years become
productive. Domestic tobacco, grown mainly in the Vientiane area, is becoming
CONFIDENTIAL 13
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FIGURE 10. Mountain slope that has been cleared by slashing and burning forest cover,
preparatory to planting rice, corn, manioc, or millet. As no irrigation is involved in
this shifting agriculture, the crop is completely dependent upon the vagaries of the
monsoonal rains and is also open to depredation by wildlife of the surrouncling jungle.
1957
increasingly important to the cigarette industry in Vientiane. Opium poppies
are grown and processed by some of the hill tribes.
The only significant modern industrial enterprise in Laos is the French-owned
tin mine at Ban Phon Tiou, northeast of Khammouane, which produced 578
metric tons of 50 percent tin concentrate in 1965.
Salt deposits exist in different parts of Laos. About 2,500 metric tons of salt
a year are processed on a small scale, using primitive methods, to satisfy local
needs. The forest industry provides lumber, benzoin, sticklac, and rc;sin.
The planned Nam Ngum hydroelectric project, a component of the overall
Mekong River Project, will in its first stage supply electricity to Vientiane, the
Nam Ngum Valley, and Thailand (see Map 55692). The potential capacity of
this project is 120,000 kilowatts. Upon completion, the project will make an
important contribution to the economic development of Laos, as it will be able
to supply electricity, for example, for exploitation of mineral resources of the
Xieng Khouang area if those resources prove to be commercially c;xploitable.
14 CONFIDENTIAL
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FIGURE 11. Opium poppyfield of Meo village. The poppy is the "cash crop" of
the Meo and some other mountain tribes. Moneywise, opium smuggled out of the
country is the most important export of Laos. 1963
The value of legal Laotian exports for 1965 is estimated at $1.0 million. The
most important export, opium, is taken out of the country illegally (see Figure
11 ). Its value is estimated at about $2 million yearly. The main legal exports
are tin concentrates, green coffee, wood, and benzoin. Tin generally represents
60 to 80 percent of the total annual legal exports of Laos.
The principal recipients of Laotian exports are Malaysia and Singapore, which
receive all the tin concentrates exported from Laos and most of the coffee.
Thailand imports Laotian agricultural and forestry products, partly to be mixed
with Thai products for reexport.
Import statistics for Laos reveal that in the calendar year 1965 foodstuffs
represented about 32 percent of the total imports (estimated to be about $32.9
million) and that rice represented 43 percent of the total foodstuffs imported.
Other imports included chemicals, petroleum products, paper products, scientific
instruments, and ceramic and glass products.
Thailand and the United States were the largest suppliers of Laotian imports
in 1965. The United Kingdom, Indonesia, Malaysia, Japan, Taiwan, and Hong
Kong were other suppliers of products needed by Laos. Imports from Indonesia
and Malaysia were mainly petroleum products.
IX. TRANSPORTATION
Transportation facilities in Laos are among the poorest and most primitive in
Southeast Asia. The country has a sparse road network and no railroads (see
Map 55691). Inland waterway traffic is extensive but largely local in character.
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FIGURE 12. Route 6 in the general area of Samneua, near the North Vietnam border.
Dirt roads such as this are often dry-season roads only; during the rainy season, land-
slides and washouts may limit vehicular traffic to local segments of the rc~ad. 19b4
FIGURE 13. S~ (River) Kong near Ban Bac in the vicinity of Route 92. Rapids re-
strict navigation of many rivers to smaller country craft. 195
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FIGURE 14. Khone Falls on the Mekong River. The falls and rapids in this
area near the Laos -Cambodia border prevent large boats from reaching
Vientiane. 1958
Air transport is extremely important, as it is often the only means of supplying
remote areas.
The principal road in Laos is Route 13, which extends from the Cambodian
border along the banks of the Mekong River to Vientiane and then north to
Luang Prabang. It is an all-weather road from Pakse to Vientiane, and work
is underway to make the Vientiane-Luang Prabang segment an all-weather road.
In general, most of the other roads in Laos, including those of the extensive
Communist-built network in the eastern part of the country, are dry-season roads
with some segments usable the year around (see Figure 12 ). Coolies and
animals play a major part in the movement of materials over tracks and trails.
The existence of road connections with North Vietnam and Communist China
facilitates the use of Laos as a corridor for Communist movement to South
Vietnam.
Many of the rivers of Laos (see Figure 13) are navigable for country craft
(pirogues) ; in addition, relatively large boats ply the Mekong River, the main
CONFIDENTIAL 17
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riverine artery of Laos. Navigability of the Mekong, however, is ir.~terrupted
by several rapids; the Khone Falls (see Figure 14) are the main impediment.
Because of the prime importance of air transport, Laos has an impressive
number of smaller airfields in addition to the larger airfields such as at 'Vientiane.
More than 200 airstrips are suitable for aircraft with short takeoff and landing
(STOL) capability.
As a landlocked country, Laos is largely dependent upon Thai transportation
lines for its imports from the non-Communist world. Much of this traffic moves
from Bangkok to Nong Khai, Thailand, by rail or road and then across the
Mekong River to Laos by ferry or small country craft.
lg CONFIDENTIAL
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 Approved For Release 2000/05/31 ~ c:ln_RnpRe
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 Approved For Release 2000/05/31 :CIA-RDP84-008258000100680001-1
CONFIDENTIAL
CONFIDENTIAL
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 Approved For Release 2000/05/31 :CIA-RDP84-008258000100680001-1
MEMORANDUM FOR:
13 July 1970
Sent copy of GR 67-14 February 1967
To: FE/DDP
5E10 Hqs
via telephone rQquest of
(DATE)
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