THE PRESIDENT'S DAILY BRIEF 21 OCTOBER 1968

• Document Type: FOIA
• Collection: President's Daily Brief 1961-1969
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): 0005976419
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: T
• Document Page Count: 10
• Document Creation Date: September 16, 2015
• Document Release Date: September 16, 2015
• Publication Date: October 21, 1968

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The President's Daily Brief
October 1968
23
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THE PRESIDENT'S
DAILY BRIEF
21 OCTOBER .1968
1. Soviet Union.- At least some of the Soviet divi-
Czechoslovakia sions reported Saturday morning to be
returning to the USSR now appear to
have reached their home stations in
the Baltic Military District. Some So-
viet fighter planes also flew back to
Poland Saturday. They had been in
Czechoslovakia since late August.
2. Czechoslovakia
The new status-of-forces treaty
with Moscow is threatening the facade
of unity the top leadership has tried
to maintain.
Although Dubcek is said to be re-
signed to the agreement, President Svo-
boda, among others, is described as
violently opposed. Premier Cernik on
the other hand appears to be using the
treaty as a means of currying favor
with the Soviets. We have it on good
authority, that he has an eye on Dubcek's
job as party first secretary. He may
have some competition, however. Slo-
vak party boss Husak, thought to be
Moscow's fair-haired boy, gave a speech
Saturday supporting the treaty.
This polarization is also becoming
more pronounced at lower party levels.
The conservatives are becoming more
open in their attacks on the post-Janu-
ary leadership, while as yet unrecon-
structed liberals are organizing a fac-
tion in the central committee to counter
them.
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3. Egypt
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4. Cambodia
5. Communist
Parties
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Sihanouk's security forces are
trying harder, but they still seem to
be making little headway against Cam-
bodia's various dissident groups. In
the northeast especially. tribal rebels
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appear to have gotten their sec- 50X1
ond wind. A number of new attacks have
been reported recently, and the dissi-
dents seem to be waging a fresh campaign
to cut the main roads and intimidate
progovernment villagers.
The government has brought up
army reinforcements, and Cambodian in-
tercepts indicate some of the air
force's T-28s may see some rare action
against dissident positions along the
main road into South Vietnam's western
highlands.
The Italian Communists, meanwhile,
have an operative making the rounds in
Latin America trying to persuade Com-
? munist parties there to come out against
the Soviets on Czechoslovakia. All ex-
cept the Mexican party have supported
the Soviet intervention.
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6. Soviet Union
One indirect cost to Moscow of
its intervention in Czechoslovakia may
be a smaller than expected grain crop
this year. Poor weather is part of
the answer, but another factor has been
a shortage of trucks to haul the grain
to elevators. The Soviets normally
avoid transport bottlenecks during the
harvest by requisitioning military
trucks, but there were fewer available
this year because of the partial mobi-
lization of the armed forces.
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Top Secret
FOR THE PRESIDENT'S EYES ONLY
1.) Special Daily Report on North Vietnam
2.) North Vietnamese Reflections of U S
Political Attitudes
Top Secret
16
21 October 1968
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Special Daily Report on North Vietnam
for the President's Eyes Only
21 October 1968
I. NOTES ON THE SITUATION
Peking Speaks Up: Peking's uneasiness about
North Vietnam's current tactics and the possibility
of progress in the Paris talks have finally prompted
the Chinese Communists to acknowledge publicly that
Hanoi is engaged in negotiations with the United
States. A New China News Agency (NCNA) release on
19 October marks the first time Chinese Communist
media have referred directly to the Paris talks.
This belated response is underscored by the item's
lead, which says that the talks started on 13 May
and that 26 official meetings have been held so far.
NCNA rounds up recent Western press reports con-
cerning the talks and says that these indicate that
President Johnson is preparing to "dish out a big
plot and fraud of 'halting all bombings' of North
Vietnam." NCNA includes a sprinkling from most re-
cent press speculation, but leaves its readers dan-
gling by saying that these reports "remain to be
confirmed by the further development of the situa-
tion."
* * *
Hanoi Propaganda: North Vietnamese propaganda
during the weekend offered no clues to Hanoi's in-
tentions. An article in the army paper on 19 Octo-
ber went to great lengths to describe the US posi-
tion in Vietnam as "hopeless" and to link US foreign
and domestic problems to the Vietnam war. It argued
that the next US administration will face the same
"painful choice" as President Johnson in deciding
whether to continue or to stop the war, but it failed
to mention the bombing issue or the usual arguments
against reciprocal restraint on the part of Hanoi.
* * *
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* * *
II. NORTH VIETNAMESE REFLECTIONS OF US POLITICAL
ATTITUDES ON THE WAR
There is nothing of significance to report today.
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Top Secret
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