THE PRESIDENT'S DAILY BRIEF 25 MARCH 1974

• Document Type: FOIA
• Collection: President's Daily Brief 1969-1977
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): 0006007706
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: T
• Document Page Count: 11
• Document Creation Date: August 14, 2016
• Document Release Date: August 24, 2016
• Publication Date: March 25, 1974

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The President's Daily Brief
March 25, 1974
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2016/07/19 : CIA-RDP79T00936A012000010040-9
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Exempt from general
declassification schedule of E.O. 11652
exemption category 58(1),(2).02
declassified only on approval of
the Director of Central Intelligence
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THE PRESIDENT'S DAILY BRIEF
March 25 1974
PRINCIPAL DEVELOPMENTS
The Arab League foreign ministers' conference, which
opens today in Tunis, will apparently focus on rela-
tions with Europe and non-Arab Africa, as well as the
coming UN General Assembly special session on energy
and development. (Page 1)
Moscow evidently is giving added assurances of sup-
port to Baghdad as the Kurdish problem grows.
(Page 2)
The Soviets may be tightening controls on Jewish emi-
gration. (Page 3)
Heavy fighting continues in the Oudong area northwest
of Phnom Penh as a Cambodian Army relief column is
stalled by stiff resistance. (Page 4)
A. note on the USSR appears on Page
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ARAB LEAGUE
The Arab League foreign ministers' conference
starting in Tunis today apparently will focus on
relations with Europe and non-Arab Africa, as well
as on the coming United Nations General Assembly
special session on energy and development.
According to press reports, the conferees will
also discuss the progress of the peace negotiations
and again call for complete Israeli withdrawal from
all occupied Arab territories, including Jerusalem.
Egypt, Syria, and Jordan, however, probably hope to
avoid any declaration by the conference which would
impair their negotiating flexibility. Syrian Pres-
ident Asad is said to be particularly concerned that
Arab forums such as this might force him to adopt .a
more rigid negotiating position when he must keep
his options open.
The Arab ministers will probably seek to over-
come Libyan and Iraqi misgivings concerning the re-
cent lifting of the oil embargo and to work out a
joint strategy to pursue in the special UN session
and with the EC. The conference may form a committee
to pursue the possibility of a dialogue with the
Europeans on oil and related issues in response to
the Community's call for an Arab-European conference.
The Dutch reportedly are hopeful that the conference
will recommend lifting the oil boycott against them.
Moroccan Foreign Minister Benhima recently said
that Cairo, Damascus, and Amman have agreed to post-
pone the next Arab League summit conference, scheduled
to open in Cairo on April 15. He added that they
have also agreed to hold the summit in Rabat instead
of Cairo, probably next September.
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USSR-IRAQ
MOscow evidently is giving added assurances of
support to Baghdad as the Kurdish problem grOws.
Soviet Defense
'.????
Minister Grechko
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larrived on March 23 and is not 25X1
scheduled to leave until after the March 26 deadline
for the Kurdish rebels to accept the government's
autonomy plan.
The Soviets have openly praised Baghdad's pro-
posal and favor its immediate ?acceptance by Kurdish
leader Barzani. If a peaceful solution is not
reached, Moscow probably will back Baghdad's efforts
to subdue the rebels and enforce the plan.)
? Moscow reportedly has Served notice on Iran not
to stir up trouble on its common border with Iraq.
Iran has long provided material and financial sup-
port:for-the Kurds, ahd Moscow is. probably concerned
that Iran will exploit the situation.
The USSR ha'S been cautiously neutral in its
public treatment of the border problem between Iran
and Iraq
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USSR
The Soviet Union may be tightening controls on
Jewish emigration. Sources of the US Embassy in
Moscow say that new procedures for emigration ap-
plications, reportedly in effect since March 1, have
already brought a decrease in the number of applica-
tions for emigration to Israel.
Emigration applications must now be typewritten,
according to these sources, and character references
must go back at least six months. The latter require-
ment means in effect that a prospective emigrant must
quit his job six months before applying or run the
risk of being fired and receiving an unfavorable
reference when his employer learns of his plans.
Applications must also now be submitted through
local police headquarters, rather than directly to
passport authorities. Police officials are said to
be turning back a large number of applicants for
failure to meet the new requirements.
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Kompong Cham
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CAMBODIA
Heavy fighting continues in the Oudong area north-
west of Phnom Penh. A 2,000-man Cambodian Army relief
column, which late last week moved west to within one
mile of Oudong, is now stalled by stiff resistance.
Another relief force is moving toward the town from
the south but has made only limited progress. Govern-
ment troops, which were approaching Oudong from the
north, have been diverted by increased pressure on
other nearby army positions.
The army, high command is giving top priority, to
the counterattack at Oudong. River convoys have moved
armor and artillery up the Tonle Sap River to a beach-
head several miles east of Oudong, and the encircled
units near the town are receiving daily air support.
Combat activity picked up somewhat in the Phnom
Penh area over the weekend as the Communists overran
a government position ten miles southwest of the capi-
tal. Insurgent units also increased pressure against
government defenses on the east bank of the Mekong
just upstream from the capital. Government forces at
Kampot City have withstood several Communist ground
attacks and shellings in the past few days.
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NOTE
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Top Secret
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