SITUATION IN VIETNAM

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: Library of Congress
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): LOC-HAK-547-10-4-9
• Release Decision: RIFLIM
• Original Classification: T
• Document Page Count: 8
• Document Creation Date: January 11, 2017
• Document Release Date: December 18, 2012
• Sequence Number: 4
• Publication Date: June 20, 1972
• Content Type: MEMO

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DOS, ARMY and
JCS reviews
completed.
MEMORANDUM FOR:
FROM:
SUBJECT:
June 20, 1972
W
ON-FILE NSC RELEASE
INSTRUCTIONS APPLY
PRESIDENT HAS SEEN...
HENRY A. KISSINGER / Y,~'~
Situation in Vietnam
Military activity throughout the Republic of Vietnam ranged
from moderate in Military Regions 1 and 4 to low in Regions
2 and 3.
In Military Region 1, the South Vietnamese Marine offensive
operation has terminated. Although some Marine units remain
north of the My Chanh River, it is expected they will with-
draw to the south upon breaking contact with the enemy. Enemy
armor made its first appearance since June 10. Seven enemy
tanks were destroyed.
In Military Region 2, ground combat activity remained at a low
level. ARVN units are conducting clearing operations out to
a distance of 10 kilometers from Kontum City. Late reports
indicate that an ARVN armored convoy successfully transited the
the Kontum Pass.
In Military Region 3, combat activity was at a low level through-
out the region except for An Loc and Route 13 south of An Loc
where friendly initiated actions increased.
In Military Region 4, activity was at a moderate level and was
centered in Kien Tuong Province. ARVN units are conducting
mobile ground operations in the Cai Lay area of Dinh Tuong
Province.
A total of 597 tactical air sorties were flown in Vietnam by
U.S. aircraft on June 20, 239.of which hit targets in North
Vietnam. In addition, 6 ARC LIGHT sorties were flown over
North Vietnam.
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Military Region 1
South Vietnamese Marines terminated their offensive operation
across the My Chanh River yesterday. In a five hour fight nine
miles east of Quang Tri City 127 enemy were killed while Marine
losses were 5 killed and 23 wounded. Forty-seven enemy wea-
pons were captured.
--- Two of the four Marine battalions have withdrawn to
positions south of the My Chanh. However, the two remaining
battalions are reported to be in contact with enemy units and
have thus far destroyed five tanks and damaged another. This
marked the first appearance of NVA armor since June 10.
-- Enemy shelling attacks increased somewhat in the south-
western portion of the Marine area of operation but caused only
light casualties.
-- Southwest of Hue other attacks by fire occurred near
Fire Support Bases Bastogne, King, Arsenal and Anzio. In
several contacts near Fire Support Base Bastogne, 70 enemy were
killed while ARVN losses were 7 wounded.
-- Agent reports indicate that the enemy may emplace 130mm
guns along Route 548. This would significantly increase the
threat to friendly forces defending the western approaches to
Hue.
Military Region 2
Ground combat activity remained at a low level through the
region.
-- No significant activity was reported in the Kontum City;
however, friendly operations northwest of the city are beginning
to meet with increased enemy resistance.
-- Government forces south of the city continue to meet
stiff resistance in their attempt to reopen Kontum Pass.
However, a late report reveals that an ARVN armored convoy
successfully transited the Kontum Pass today. Details are
not yet available.
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-- In coastal Binh Dinh Province, the enemy continues to
disrupt friendly operations along Route 1. Also in Binh Dinh
Province, 47 enemy bodies were discovered in the area of Phu
My District town.
-- The gradual southerly deployment of the 2nd NVA Regiment
and the corresponding increase in enemy presence to the south
suggest enemy intentions to expand the battlefield into Phu
Cat District, probably in an attempt to disperse friendly forces
in Binh Dinh Province.
Military Region 3
An Loc reported only light shelling attacks and sporadic small
unit contacts.
-- To the south along Route 13, sporadic ground clashes
continue as friendly units attempt to gain the initiative. Re-
sults of contacts with enemy units along Route 13 were 23 ARVN
killed and 33 wounded while enemy losses were 59 killed. The
senior U.S. advisor to the 32nd ARVN Regiment was also killed
in action.
-- The planned extraction of the airborne brigade from the
An Loc area was delayed as all three airborne battalions made
contact, killing 21 enemy while losing nine killed and 33 wounded.
-- Activity elsewhere in the region was generally light.
Military Region 4
Enemy activity decreased somewhat to a moderate level, consisting
primarily of harassment and light shelling attacks.
-- Particularly noteworthy is the decrease in enemy activity
in the northern Kien Tuong Province/Elephant's root area.
Heavy enemy casualties and the apparent failure to achieve
initial objectives have probably caused the lull in the area.
However, it is believed that enemy attacks will be renewed in
the near future.
-- ARVN units are conducting mobile ground operations in
the Cai Lay area of Dinh Tuong Province.
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U.S. Air and Naval Activity:
The following air-strikes were flown on June 19:
MR 1
MR 2
MR 3
MR 4
NVN
Total
TACAIR US
171
63
80
44
239
597
TACAIR VNAF
36
33
64
63
0
196
ARC LIGHT*
41
26
9
6
6
100
*There were 12 ARC LIGHT sorties flown against targets in Laos.
-- Eighty-seven USAF strike sorties were scheduled against
targets in North Vietnam today. The majority of these were
flown as armed reconnaissance missions in the southern part
of the country. Results of a planned strike on the Lang Lau
railroad bridge are not yet available. Weather forced the
concellation of a strike against the Thai Nguyen supply depot.
-- Sixty-eight'USA aircraft were scheduled to strike rail-
road sidings, highway bridges, railroad bridges and the Nam
Dinh thermal power plant. Another 44 strike aircraft were to
carry out armed reconnaissance missions in the southern and
central sectors of North Vietnam.
-- Yesterday bomb damage from air strikes over South Viet-
nam included 4 boats, 32 structures, one armored vehicle, one
storage area, 204 fortified positions two tanks, 10 guns, 43
secondary explosions and seven secondary fires.
Linebacker Operations
Other bomb damage assessment of June 19 Linebacker operations
includes the Xon Mit highway bridge near Dong Hoi (two roadcuts)
and three bridges at Ninh Xa, 55 nautical miles south of Hanoi
(destroyed). Also, armed reconnaissance in route packages 1-4
resulted in 37 SAMs, 10 SAM canisters, one locomotive, four
bridges, five trucks, eight gunboats and two buildings destroyed.
Damaged were eight SAMs, 10 SAM canisters, one SAM transporter,
one bridge, two gunboats, eight buildings, and three railroad
cars.
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Coastal Mining Operations
Aircraft from the USS Midway supplemented the coastal mine-
field near Vinh with a total of 197 MK-36 destructors. The
total number of mines/destructors in the Vinh area is now 903.
Aircraft from the USS Kitty Hawk placed 66 additional MK-36
destructors in the minefield near Hon La Island, bringing the
total in that area to 659. The total number of mines/destructors
planted in NVN harbors and coastal waterways is now 4,155.
U.S. Naval Gunfire
Six ships in two surface striking units fired on targets in
North Vietnam. A three-destroyer unit maintained surveillance
of the Chinese merchantman anchored at Hon La Island, interdicted
waterborne logistics craft, and fired harassment and interdic-
tion missions against transshipment points, landing beaches, and
army barracks in the vicinity of the island. In four strikes,
a one-cruiser, two-destroyer unit fired on the Dong Hoi Airfield,
a SAM support facility west of that city, a highway maintenance
facility and a military storage area to the southeast, and a
truck park just north of the DMZ. The units received no hostile
fire and did not observe the strike results.
Soviet Naval Ships
-- Two Soviet destroyers and a cruiser remain in the Paracel
Islands-Macclesfield Bank area. A submarine detected entering
the Sea of Japan over the weekend is probably one of the two
units that had been in the South China Sea. Two E-class units
continue east of Taiwan and the Luzon Strait and the fourth
E--class submarine is believed still to be in the northeastern
part of the South China Sea.
Foreign Shipping in North Vietnam
-- The number of foreign ships in North Vietnamese ports
and anchorages remains at 31. No additional diversions have
been noted, and there has been no evidence of any attempt to
transit the minefields since their activation.
Friendly forces participating in the four battalion operation
to recapture the southern provincial capital of Khong Sedone
are reported to be engaged in house-to-house fighting in the
town. A late report indicates that two irregular battalions
were in Khong Sedone and had cleared the enemy from the main
part of the town.
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Political/Diplomatic
Statement on Podgorny Visit Reflects Probable Hanoi-Soviet
Friction
The press statement on the June 15-18 Podgorny visit to Hanoi
(broadcast by Radios Hanoi and Moscow on June 19) indicated
that there were probably serious differences between the Soviet
delegation and their North Vietnamese hosts. The statement
reported that "the talks passed in an atmosphere of frankness,
friendship and comradeship." "Frankness" is about as far as
Communist parlance goes in indicating disagreement between two
"fraternal" parties, and its use in characterizing the atmos-
phere of a high level Soviet-North Vietnamese exchange is highly
unusual, if not unprecedented.
The statement indicated that the Hanoi talks focussed on USSR-
DRV relations and on U.S. actions against North Vietnam. The
absence of economic and military experts further indicated
that specific technical problems of Soviet assistance were
not discussed. Only Le Duan, Truong Chinh, Foreign Minister
Nguyen Duy Trinh and Xuan Thuy were specifically mentioned as
having met with the Soviets. This suggests that the talks
focussed on the basic differences which have resulted from
U.S.-Soviet summitry at a time when Hanoi was suffering from
U.S. air and naval power. The mention of Xuan Thuy probably
shows that the Paris Talks were discussed; however, the state-
ment did not go beyond routine support for Hanoi's standing
negotiating proposals.
Interestingly, Podgorny's expressed wishes for "further successes"
in Vietnam applied only to "repulsing" U.S. "armed aggression"
and to "the construction of Socialism" (in the North) and not
to the offensive in the South. Here the statement only noted
"with satisfaction" the "serious defeats" inflicted on South
Vietnamese and U.S. troops.
Since Hanoi no doubt expected the visit to produce disagree-
ments, it probably preferred no public mention of the visit.
Despite worldwide knowledge of Podgorny's trip (largely thanks
to the Soviets), neither Moscow nor Hanoi publicly mentioned
it until June 19, the day after Podgorny had informally given
his impressions of the trip to reporters in Calcutta (where he
reporteldy said: "the Soviet Union will do everything possible
for a deescalation of the Vietnam war" and predicted that the
Paris Talks will "soon" be resumed.)
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Hanoi Editorial Snipes at the Soviet Union
A June 18 editorial in North Vietnam's Army Daily implicitly
criticized Soviet policies and indicated by its timing some
dissatisfaction with the results of recent talks between
Hanoi's leaders and Soviet President Podgorny. Seeming to
attack the Russians for compromising with the United States
during the Moscow summit, the editorial warned against U.S.
efforts to "counter the world revolutionary movement and re-
stated charges that we are attempting to divide the socialist
camp with "perfidious tricks" (i.e. summit conferences). Re--
calling the language of a similar article which immediately
preceded your visit to Moscow, the paper cautioned against
"placing national interest over the general interests of the
world revolution."
Liberation Radio Notes VC Shortcomings
An article broadcast four times by Liberation Radio on June 15
and 16 indicates that a popular uprising remains a prime Com-
munist goal but criticized cadre for failing to "thoroughly
realize the significance, requirements and content of the
concerted uprising." The broadcast' noted that "it is necessary
to resolutely oppose rightist thoughts, the tendency to fall
back on the defensive,...wait and see attitude..." and it
urged the elimination of "carrying out tasks in a furtive
indecisive and unaccomplished manner, failure to vigorously
attack and tightly besiege the enemy and failure to thoroughly
solve problems." This article is but the latest public reflec-
tion of Hanoi's discontent with the frequently poor performance
of the Viet Cong infrastructure in supporting the current
offensive.
GVN Plans to Oust Indian ICC from Saigon
On June 16 President Thieu's Private Secretary stated that
the GVN will no longer accept Indian representation on the
International Control Commission and will not renew the visas
of the Indian representatives in Saigon which are scheduled
to expire in September. The official said that the GVN would
welcome any truly non-aligned country as a replacement for
the Indians.
Continued Recession in South Vietnam
Embassy Saigon reported that there are some signs that the
recession may have bottomed out and that prices have remained
steady in recent weeks' however, so far there are no indications
that the South Vietnamese economy is making a strong recovery
from a severe business recession produced by the NVA offensive.
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Captured GVN Officials Executed
Refugees who escaped from enemy-occupied areas in the central
coastal province of Binh Dinh reported numerous cases of enemy
executions of local GVN officials.. The executions often were
preceded by summary trials and torture. Most victims were
government policemen, hamlet and village administrators and
local GVN cadre.
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