THE PRESIDENT'S DAILY BRIEF 23 NOVEMBER 1974

• Document Type: FOIA
• Collection: President's Daily Brief 1969-1977
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): 0006007876
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: T
• Document Page Count: 9
• Document Creation Date: August 14, 2016
• Document Release Date: August 24, 2016
• Publication Date: November 23, 1974

Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2016/07/15 : CIA-RDP79T00936A012300010053-2
The President's Daily Brief
November 23, 1974
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Exempt from general
declassification schedule of E.O. 11652
exemption category, 5B( I 2.121.(3)
declassified only on approval of
the Director of Central Intelligence
4r.
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FOR THE PRESIDENT ONLY
November 24, 1974*
Table of Contents
United Nations: Cambodian and Korean questions to be
taken up Monday. (Page 1)
Arab States - EC: Arabs put off meeting with the
EC. (Page 2)
Portugal: Moderate party may be frozen out of moni-
toring voter registration for election in March.
(Page 3)
France:
(Page 4)
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Notes: USSR-Japan-US; Ethiopia; Australia. (Page 5)
*Information as of noon EST November 23, 1974.
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UNITED NATIONS
The UN will probably take up the Cambodian
and Korean questions simultaneously on Monday.
The Cambodian issue will be debated in the
General Assembly and the Korean question in the
political committee. This will be the first time
two important regional issues are debated at the
same time.
Assembly President Bouteflika and Sihanouk's
backers have insisted that the Cambodian question
be pushed forward to an early debate and vote.
The vote will be extremely close on the crucial
issue of priority for the,coUnterresolution initiated
by Phnom Penh's supporters. Much depends on the
vote Of still wavering Arab states.
There are rumors that an effort may be made
to invite Sihanouk to take part in the debate.
His supporters probably recognize, however, that-time7
consuming deliberations would undercut the drive
for an early vote on Cambodia.
Chances are good that the two conflicting
resolutions on Korea will be passed by the political
committee. North Korea's supporters want the
withdrawal of "all foreign,troops stationed in
South Korea under the flag of the UN." South
Korea's friends advocate Security Council review
of the entire issue of,Korean peadekeeping
before any move is made to terminate the UN military
role in the peninsula.
If both resolutions pasS,Lthe UN will have
failed for the first time sinde 1950 to 'speak with
a clear voice on the Korean issue, and it will be
up to the General Assembly to sort out' the matter.
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ARAB STATES - EC
The Arabs are attempting to enhance the
status of the Palestine Liberation Organiza-
tion by exploiting the strong desire of the
EC for a broad dialogue on economic coopera-
They are threatening, in effect, to scuttle
the nascent dialogue unless the PLO is
permitted to attend the talks.
The Arabs have told the EC that they are "not
ready" to hold what was to have been the first
meeting of the EC-Arab general committee. The
session had been scheduled for next Tuesday in
Paris.
The Nine had failed to reach agreement earlier
on a common response to an Arab request that the
PLO be granted observer status. In addition, on
Friday the EC countries abstained during the UN
General Assembly vote on Palestinian rights, despite
Arab warnings earlier in the week that abstaining
would harm the EC-Arab dialogue.
The incipient dialogue developed from a French
initiative early this year, and was intended to pro-
vide a broad framework for relations. Progress in
organizing working groups and in completing other
administrative preparations was slow even before
the Arab attempt to extract political benefit for
the Palestinians.
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PORTUGAL
As preparations proceed for the election
next March, there are signs that the moderate
Social Democratic Center may be frozen out of
monitoring voter registration. The Center
is the only well organized conservative party
left in Portugal.
Voter registration will probably begin early
next month. It will be supervised on the precinct
level by five-man commissions, and much will depend
on the make-up of these groups.
Leftists have recommended that the commissions
include one representative each from the Communist,
Socialist, and Popular Democratic parties, as well
as from the Communist-dominated Portuguese Democratic
Movement. The fifth representative would be an
"independent." This plan would give the Communists
and other leftists control of the commissions; it
would also allow them to cite the absence of members
of the Social Democratic Center as evidence that the
party is not deemed to be "representative."
The recommendation of the leftists is not bind-
ing on the presidents of the municipalities, who
select the commissions, but in the absence of further
guidance it could set a precedent. In any case, the
extent to which it is? followed will provide a good test
of Communist influence in the municipal governments
installed after the military takeover. It has been
widely rumored that Communist and other left-oriented
groups have had considerable success placing their
people in these bodies.
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FRANCE
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NOTES
USSR-Japan-US: The two-year agreement announced
yesterday by El Paso Gas, the USSR, and Japan on
exploration for natural gas in eastern Siberia calls
for Soviet investment of $400 million. Japan will
invest $100 million in the project provided the US
does the same. Soviet gas deposits in the area to
be explored--near Irkutsk--are believed to be
huge. Confirmation of this could lead eventually to
contracts for delivery of liquefied natural gas to
Japan and the US. The Soviets would not be able to
finish building a pipeline to the Pacific and a gas
liquefication plant until the early 1980s.
Ethiopia: General Aman, head of the pro-
visional military government, is apparently on his
way out. There are reports that he has already
been taken into military custody and that he may
be put on trial. Aman reportedly lost a crucial
vote of confidence on Friday when the ruling mili-
tary council voted to reaffirm a decision to send
reinforcements to fight insurgents in Eritrea
Province. Aman has strongly opposed such a move,
preferring to pursue a political settlement. Earlier,
he had threatened to resign over the issue, and it
now appears the military council has decided he must
go. There is no clear sign that the members of the
council have agreed yet on a replacement for Aman.
Australia: Prime Minister Whitlam has announced
that Deputy Prime Minister Cairns will drop his
foreign trade responsibilities ?and become treasurer next
month. The shift confirms Cairns' domination of overall
economic policy, but it could weaken his political
standing with the left by forcing him to make
unpopular decisions in coping with Australia's
sagging economy. The Labor government is already
drawing heavy criticism from the labor unions, its
main base of support. No major policy changes
are expected.
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Top Secret
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