THE PRESIDENT'S DAILY BRIEF 7 AUGUST 1972

• Document Type: FOIA
• Collection: President's Daily Brief 1969-1977
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): 0005993451
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: T
• Document Page Count: 8
• Document Creation Date: August 14, 2016
• Document Release Date: August 24, 2016
• Publication Date: August 7, 1972

Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2016/06/14 : CIA-RDP79T00936A011000060001-8
The President's Daily Brief
7 August 1972
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Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2016/06/14 : CIA-RDP79T00936A011000060001-8
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2016/06/14 : CIA-RDP79T00936A011000060001-8
Exempt from general
declassification schedule of E.O. 11652
exemption category 5B( I )E2),(3)
declassified only on approval of
the Director of Central Intelligence
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2016/06/14 : CIA-RDP79T00936A011000060001-8
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2016/06/14 : CIA-RDP79T00936A011000060001-8
FOR THE PRESIDENT ONLY
THE PRESIDENT'S DAILY BRIEF
7 August 1972
PRINCIPAL DEVELOPMENTS
Heavy Communist artillery fire is continuing to ham-
per South Vietnamese clearing operations in Quang
Tri City. (Page 1)
Soviet
(Page 2)
Egypt
Warsaw Pact leaders are reported to have decided at
their recent summit meeting to help West German
Chancellor Brandt in his campaign for re-election.
(Page 3)
FOR THE PRESIDENT ONLY
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Demilitarized Zone
y Chanh defense line
mp Evans
Gulf of
Thailand
104
Capital Special Zone
0
South
China
Sea
SOUTH VIETNAM
100
12-
Io-
MILES 1110
553424 8-72
Mr INN
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FOR THE PRESIDENT ONLY
SOUTH VIETNAM
Over the weekend, heavy Communist artillery fire
continued to hamper South Vietnamese clearing opera-
tions in Quang Tri City. Elements of at least two
North Vietnamese regiments remain dug in north of the
citadel.
Farther south, fighting was light along the My
Chanh River defense line. Communist gunners, however,
on Saturday shelled Camp Evans, the main government
support base for the Quang Tri offensive, destroying
over 60 tons of artillery ammunition.
West of Hue, South Vietnamese troops reoccupied
Outpost Checkmate near Fire Support Base Bastogne.
Although the Communists have kept up heavy
shellings and some ground probes in this
area, intercepts indicate that allied air
strikes and artillery fire have disrupted
plans to attack Bastogne and Checkmate.
The intercepts also indicate, however,
that additional North Vietnamese units
are being moved in, presumably to help
launch new attacks on the two bases.
In Military Region 2, South Vietnamese Army
troops pushed back a Communist assault on the coastal
town of Bong Son. Bong Son and two other nearby
district capitals, Hoai An and Hoai Nhon, have been
almost completely destroyed in the recent fighting,
and some 69,000
refugees have fled these areas.
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USSR-EGYPT
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FOR THE PRESIDENT ONLY
USSR - WEST GERMANY - EAST GERMANY
A source of the US Embassy in Bonn quotes a
visiting East German official as saying that the
leaders of the Warsaw Pact states decided at their
summit meeting on 31 July to help Chancellor Brandt
in his campaign for re-election. They apparently
also decided, however, that they would take no
further steps toward normalizing East European -
West German relations until Bonn's negotiations
with Pankow, and possibly also with Prague, are
satisfactorily concluded.
The Pact leaders are apparently concerned
about the recent efforts of the opposition
Christian Democrats to promote a normaliza-
tion of West German - Chinese relations.
They evidently fear that a future Christian
Democratic government might find a community
of interest with the Chinese in opposing
any increase of Soviet influence in Western
Europe. We doubt, however, that the Pact
states will make important concessions that
would help Brandt before the West German
election campaign gets under way this fall.
The West German cabinet, meanwhile, is expected
to decide on Wednesday to open formal negotiations
with the East Germans.
The negotiators in the exploratory East
and West German talks made no progress on
the remaining six points of difference
when they last met on 2-3 August. Pankow
is clinging to its basic positions because
it has had to make some concessions in the
past in the interests of broader Pact policy
and now needs to strike the best bargain
possible. Moscow would have to exert heavy
pressure for Pankow to give further ground.
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FOR THE PRESIDENT ONLY
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Top Secret
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2016/06/14 : CIA-RDP79T00936A011000060001-8