THE PRESIDENT'S DAILY BRIEF 14 JANUARY 1975

• Document Type: FOIA
• Collection: President's Daily Brief 1969-1977
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): 0006007917
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: T
• Document Page Count: 12
• Document Creation Date: August 14, 2016
• Document Release Date: August 24, 2016
• Publication Date: January 14, 1975

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The President's Daily Brief
January 14, 1975
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Exempt from general
declassification schedule of ED. 11652
exemption category 5B( I
declassified only on approval of
the Director of Central Intelligence
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FOR THE PRESIDENT ONLY
January 14, 1975
Table of Contents
South Vietnam: President Thieu is sending a high-
level delegation to Washington to lobby for
more assistance. (Page 1)
USSR: The leadership apparently has not yet pro-
vided definitive guidance on the official line
regarding the US Trade Reform Act. (Page 2)
Libya-US: The tone of Tripoli's complaints about
alleged US violations of Libyan airspace sug-
gests a desire to avoid an incident. (Page 4)
Greece-Turkey: Greece and Turkey have exchanged
tough statements again over their rights in
the Aegean Sea.
Cambodia: Khmer communist ground units kept up the
pressure over the weekend, but government units
held their ground. (Page 6)
Note: Lebanon (Page 7)
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SOUTH VIETNAM
President Thieu
government's principal
next few weeks is to
lobby in the US for more assistance.
task during the
The President, who no doubt hopes that the
recent loss of Phuoc Long Province will help his
appeals, will soon send you a letter asking for
identification of specific areas where additional
aid can be provided. The letter will be drafted
by the South Vietnamese embassy in Washington.
a high-level dele-
gation to come to Washington in order to prosely-
tize on Capitol Hill and, perhaps, invite some
influential congressmen to Vietnam to inspect the
situation. The lobbying campaign will include
appeals to US organizations such as the AFL-CIO,
the American Legion, and the Red Cross.
Meanwhile, the President apparently intends
to continue to pursue his conservative military
policy of holding main forces to defend key towns
and other strategically important areas. He now
acknowledges that he has no plans to recapture
Phuoc Long Province. Moreover, his military
believes that the pro-
vincia capitals of Kontum and An Loc are equally
"indefensible," and that they could fall "when-
ever the communists decide they want to take
them."
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USSR
Private comments by Soviet bureau-
crats indicate that the leadership has
not yet provided definitive guidance on
what line to take regarding the impact
on US-Soviet relations of the US Trade
Reform Act and the ceiling on credits the
Export-Import Bank can extend to the USSR.
Critical press commentary on the trade
legislation and the emigration issue has
tapered off to occasional sniping, but
negative treatment of the U.S on other
issues remains at unusually high levels.
US embassy officials have detected no firm
pattern in discussions with representatives of
ministries directly affected by the trade issue.
A young staff member of the foreign ministry last
week described the congressional stipulations and
limitations as a "gross insult." A foreign trade
ministry official concerned with US-Soviet commerce
termed current prospects for expanded bilateral
trade "not bright."
Other Soviets have been less negative. A
deputy minister of the timber and wood-processing
industry said, without animus, that the legisla-
tion is an "internal matter" for the US. Several
officials, including some involved with fossil-
fuel development projects, have sought clarifica-
tion of the practical effects of the new Export-
Import Bank credit ceiling. They and others
seem to be proceeding on the basis of US-Soviet
business as usual.
Moscow can probably continue to finesse the
issue unless the US presses for some indication
that the Soviets will resume payments on the
Lend-Lease debt in return for the US grant of
most-favored-nation status; the first payment
will be due this July if the USSR has received
formal notification by May 31.
The Soviets will carefully consider the
political implications of any response. They
have argued in the past that political detente
cannot flourish without economic cooperation.
(continued)
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Since they have shown no serious sign of forsaking
their "peace program," despite increased criticism
of the US in recent weeks, they may prefer to settle
for little more than verbal remonstrances. If,
however, the emigration issue and credit restric-
tions are causing real pressure on the leadership,
as fragmentary and circumstantial evidence sug-
gests, the Politburo may decide to harden its
policy toward the US, even at some cost to the
momentum of detente.
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LIBYA-US
Libya's decision to handle its com-
plaint about alleged US violations of
Libyan airspace last Friday through dip-
lomatic channels, and the tone of the
note, are uncharacteristic and may re-
flect a genuine desire to avoid an in-
cident.
The protest and the circumstances surrounding
it have not been publicized, despite widespread
local knowledge that Tripoli airport was closed
and that Libyan air defense units had been placed
on alert at the time of the US Sixth Fleet exercise.
This suggests that Tripoli hopes to minimize the
event.
The Libyan official who delivered the message
made a special point of Libya's "unilateral" over-
tures to Washington, mentioning Tripoli's recent
decision to lift its oil embargo against the US--
ten months after the other Arab producers--as one
example of Libya's good intentions. He said his
country would take other positive steps and ex-
pressed his personal hope that the two countries
could put aside their differences on the "Palestine
question" and work together in other,areas.
The Libyans may be carefully measuring their
reactions out of fear that the US intends to launch
an invasion. Press stories of US plans to seize
Libyan oil fields have kept the Libyans on edge
for months, but until recently they have reacted
only by reinforcing security forces regularly as-
signed to protect petroleum installations.
In late December, however, there were indica-
tions that regular military units--perhaps three
battalions--were moved to the eastern province of
Cyrenaica, where most of the country's oil fields
are located. The deployment may have been prompted
by Sixth Fleet activities last November 23 similar
to those carried out last week.
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GREECE-TURKEY
Greece and Turkey have exchanged
tough statements again over their rights
in the Aegean Sea.
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US military personnel in Turkey report
activities at four Turkish air bases. Fighter planes
were observed being fitted with bombs, and additional
aircraft were placed on runway alert. At one air
base,
base
anti-aircraft guns Were in place around the
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These moves follow an exchange of tough state-
ments by the Greek and Turkish defense ministers.
At the swearing-in of the new Greek naval chief
last week, Defense Minister Averoff said that Greece
would aggressively defend its rights in the Aegean,
which he referred to as a "Greek sea."
The Greek government also announced last week
that it has authorized a foreign contractor to con-
duct Oil exploration in the Aegean.
Former Turkish prime minister Ecevit has
charged that the Irmak government has been negli-
gent in pressing.Turkey's claims in the disputed
area and that the Greeks were,taking advantage of
this apparent timidity. Seeking to make political
capital on another nationalistic issue, Ecevit has
called on the Irmak government to begin oil explora-
tions of its own in the Aegean as soon as possible.
Irmak, on the defensive', has responded that his gov-
ernment will take all necessary measures to protect
Turkish interests in the Aegean.
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Cambodia: Lower Mekong
7th Divisional
Government
clearing opera " $
Pochentong Airp
PHNOM
.PENH,
15
Prey Veng
Prek T naot
Government positions
under pressure
Ba
Noah Luang Navy Base
Heavy con trations
of Communist ces
Takeo
SOUTH VIETNAM
557109 1-75 CIA
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CAMBODIA
Khmer communist ground units over
the weekend kept up pressure against gov-
ernment positions on the east bank of the
Mekong some eight miles upstream from the
Neak Luong navy base and around the town
of Banam. Government defenses on the
west bank opposite Neak Luong are also
under attack.
Neak Luong itself has been hit by sporadic
shellings but has not yet been the target of in-
fantry attacks Government units have held their
ground in these areas; intercepted-messages reflect
communist plans for a major push against the base
in the near future.
Despite heavy insurgent fire from the shore,
three Cambodian naval convoys have shuttled sup-
plies and reinforcements to Neak Luong since Fri-
day. A government counterattack down Route 1,
however, has bogged down some 15 miles southeast
of Phnom Penh. Military leaders are planning to
bring a resupply convoy upriver to Phnom Penh from
the South Vietnamese border sometime this week.
The last river convoy arrived in the capital on
December 29.
Meanwhile, fighting has slackened somewhat in
the Phnom Penh area. Communist attacks have forced
government troops to abandon additional outposts
on both banks of the Mekong near the capital, but
government clearing operations are continuing on
the major battlefronts northwest and southwest of
the city. Communist rocket attacks against down-
town Phnom Penh and against Pochentong airport
have caused little damage. Intercepted messages
reveal that a major conference of insurgent com-
manders from the capital area will be held this
week, and any significant shift in communist strat-
egy should be disclosed in new orders that go out
to individual units.
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NOTE
Lebanon's requests for assistance
to defend against Israeli air and ground at-
tacks have been only partially fulfilled so far
reportedly have provided some
air defense equipment, but will probably play
the largest role in helping Lebanon defend its ter-
ritory. Two Palestine Liberation Army brigades op-
erating in the southeastern part of Lebanon report-
edly have been armed with SA-7s and other anti-
aircraft weapons. also reportedly is about
to train 200 Lebanese troops
and later provide them with the weapons.
continues to refuse offers to station
troops in Lebanon.
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