THE PRESIDENT'S DAILY BRIEF 24 AUGUST 1973

• Document Type: FOIA
• Collection: President's Daily Brief 1969-1977
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): 0005993911
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: T
• Document Page Count: 13
• Document Creation Date: August 14, 2016
• Document Release Date: August 24, 2016
• Publication Date: August 24, 1973

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The President's Daily Brief
24 August 1973
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THE PRESIDENT'S DAILY BRIEF
24 August 1973
PRINCIPAL DEVELOPMENTS
The appearance of a new Soviet fighter regiment near
the Chinese border is the latest sign that Moscow
is continuing to add gradually to its strength along
the frontier. (Page 2)
An intercepted message shows that the insurgents plan
to attack near Phnom Penh this weekend, but they al-
ready have doubts as to how long they will be able
to remain on the offensive. (Page 3)
Looking toward a fall visit by President Nixon, some
EC countries, particularly Italy and West Germany,
are trying to hasten the pace of negotiations to
work out community positions without provoking the
French. (Page 4)
Recent criticism of Bonn's policies by French Agri-
culture Minister Chirac has strained Franco-German
relations, and is having repercussions on the West
German political scene. (Page 5)
(i)age 6)
UN Secretary General Waldheim sounds more bullish
on prospects for his visit to the Middle East next
week than the evidence suggests he should be.
(Page 7)
Notes on developments yesterday in Chile and Laos
appear on Page 8.
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New Soviet Fighter Regiment Near Chinese Border
1.5X-
' Siberian
Military District
k
Trans-Baikal( ?
Military District t Far East
Military District
USSR
Central Asian
Military District
Karabulak airfield
554543 8-73 CIA
CHINA.'
0 500
NAUTICAL MILES
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USSR-CHINA
The Soviets are continuing to add gradually tcl
their strength on the frontier.
a MIG-17
regiment at an airfield under construction in the
Central Asian Military District about 40 miles from
the Chinese border.
This is the first additional fighter regi-
ment sent to the border since August 1972.
As for ground forces, the emphasis is still
on fleshing out units already there. The
Soviets added one division in early 1972,
but no significant reinforcement has been
detected since then.
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2oAl
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Phnom Penh
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(51
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:PHNOM -
PENH:- .
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554545 8-73 CIA
Statute Miles
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CAMBODIA
The insurgents plan to go on the offensive in
the area of the capital this weekend, but they al-
ready have doubts as to how long they will be able
to sustain the fight. An intercepted message of
August 22 shows that rebel commanders have agreed
to launch initial attacks on August 25. Although
no specific targets were mentioned, the insurgents
apparently intend to implement earlier plans to re-
sume fighting along Routes 2, 3, and 4 and in the
Mekong River corridor below Phnom Penh.
A major coordinated effort of this kind
may be too ambitious, however, and some
slippage is likely. Units on the south-
ern front took heavy casualties during
the final US bombing and have had little
time to recover. Sizable shipments of
ammunition and supplies have arrived since
the bombing halt, but intercepted messages
suggest that flooding has hindered distri-
bution.
The August 22 message added that "during the
15 days of fighting, there will be two meetings to
decide whether to stop or continue." This suggests
that the insurgent leaders anticipate problems and
foresee a need to reassess the situation after the
initial attacks.
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WESTERN EUROPE - US
Looking toward a fall visit by President Nixon,
some EC countries--Italy and West Germany, in par-
ticular--are trying to hasten the pace of negotia-
tions aimed at working out community positions.
They seem to appreciate that serious attempts to
achieve consensus will take time, however. The
French continue to argue that at this stage only
bilateral talks with the US are possible.
While NATO discusses a draft declaration focus-
ing on defense and security matters, the Nine are
getting ready for a foreign ministers meeting on
September 10-11 at which they will try to agree on
a list of topics the community might take up with
the President. most of
the Nine would like to go further and establish
"European" positions at the September session.
They are aware, however, that if they
press too early and too hard, the French
in particular will get their backs up.
They also want to avoid giving any support
to the charge that in encouraging timely
action, the US wants to "dictate" to the
Europeans.
EC working groups will hold meetings beginning
at the end of August in preparation for the Septem-
ber ministerial. Presumably these will give the
various capitals a better feel for how much the min-
isterial is likely to accomplish.
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WEST GERMANY - FRANCE
The recent criticism of Bonn's policies by
French Agriculture Minister Chirac has
strained Franco-German relations and is
having repercussions on the West German
political scene.
Chirac's charge last week that West Germany is
"turning away from Europe," has led opposition party
leaders in Bonn to warn that the country is drifting
toward neutralism. Their spokesmen, led by Christian
Democratic parliamentary leader Karl Carstens, have
also questioned whether the Brandt government, in
its preoccupation with Ostpolitik, is paying adequate
attention to Western Europe.
The US Embassy reports that the government's
initial reaction to both Chirac's charges and its
domestic critics was restrained. Brandt and other
government officials, however, privately expressed
displeasure and anger, and German officials are now
sharply rebutting the charges. Brandt reportedly
made a heated defense of his European policies dur-
ing a meeting with Carstens on Tuesday. He also in-
structed the Foreign Office to make known his dis-
pleasure to the French. This was done in Bonn and
in Paris. A meeting between the French ambassador
and a senior Foreign Office official was described
as quite unpleasant.
West German officials now are publicly question-
ing Chirac's sincerity, and are generally distrustful
of French policies. Their view of l'Affaire Chirac
was best expressed by a Foreign Office spokesman who
said that if there is a problem about European inte-
gration, "it is a French problem." He also stated
that the other EC countries were prepared to compro-
mise "whereas France frequently held back and made
it difficult, for itself and also for us."
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JAPAN
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UN - MIDDLE EAST
Secretary General Waldheim recently told
that he would take an activist
approach during his visit to the Middle East next
week. Waldheim said that, although his trip re-
sulted from an Egyptian suggestion, the Israelis
had told him that they too wanted progress. The
Secretary General said he might suggest to both
sides that they begin talks under the "Rhodes for-
mula," a procedure designed to circumvent the per-
ennial impasse of whether negotiations should be
direct or indirect.
Soundings taken by State Department offi-
cers among Arab delegates at the UN showed
little enthusiasm for indirect negotiations
so long as Israel continues to hold the
occupied territories. The delegates pro-
fessed to see little hope for a break-
through of any kind during Waldheim's
visit.
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NOTES
Chile: General Prats' resignation as Minister
of Defense and army commander in chief has increased
tension in Santiago and is bound to worry those
within the government who value the role he has
played in preventing a military coup.
The other members of the cabinet have
also resigned. Allende accepted Prats' resignation,
but reportedly refused to accept the others. More
changes in the cabinet seem likely soon, however.
Laos: At the joint meeting of the cabinet and
senior Lao military commanders yesterday, the right-
ists objected again to various aspects of the draft
agreement negotiatied by Prime Minister Souvanna.
Souvanna branded some of their demands unrealistic
and unobtainable, but reluctantly agreed to make an-
other attempt to achieve an agreement more satis-
factory to them. The inconclusive outcome of the
meeting, which had earlier been billed by Souvanna
as a showdown with his rightist -critics, means still
further delay in reaching a final settlement.
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Top Secret
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