THE PRESIDENT'S DAILY BRIEF 19 NOVEMBER 1973

• Document Type: FOIA
• Collection: President's Daily Brief 1969-1977
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): 0005993989
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: T
• Document Page Count: 13
• Document Creation Date: August 14, 2016
• Document Release Date: August 24, 2016
• Publication Date: November 19, 1973

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The President's Daily Brief
19 November 1973
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' declassified only on approval of
the Director of Central Intelligence
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THE PRESIDENT'S DAILY BRIEF
19 November 1973
PRINCIPAL DEVELOPMENTS
? Following the cease-fire, old animosities are flar-
ing up again as Arab leaders prepare to attend or
avoid a summit conference to begin on November 26.
The prisoner-of-war exchange is more than
half finished. (Page 1)
Libya's President Qadhafi is openly campaigning
against the six-point accord between Egypt and Is-
rael. (Page 4)
After a day of sporadic demonstrations Athens was
quiet overnight. The armed forces remain a key
factor in the Greek political scene, and, if the
situation should worsen, a return to a military
regime cannot be excluded. (Page 6)
Demonstrators have been voicing grievances in the
Thai hinterland for the past month and central of-
ficials are worried. So far, they intend only to
step gingerly and proceed with political reforms.
(Page 8)
Representatives of 23 Latin American and Caribbean
states have drawn up a broad agenda for a meeting
with Secretary Kissinger early next year. (Page 9)
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ARAB STATES - ISRAEL
Several important leaders may not attend the
Arab summit meeting to be held in Algiers on Novem-
ber 26. Acting Jordanian Foreign Minister Mufti
claims that the Iraqis and Libyans will not go. He
told a US diplomat that he hopes Saudi Arabia's King
Faysal also will not attend. In that case, he said,
King Husayn could stay home too.
The Iraqi News Agency reported yesterday that
11 of the 18 Arab League member governments have so
far agreed to participate in the summit. Libya,
Iraq, and Saudi Arabia were not among the 11. The
Iraqis and Libyans are opposed to Egypt's agreement
to negotiate with Israel. The other prospective
absentees probably wish to avoid for now a forum
where the issue may come to a head.
King Husayn of Jordan, meanwhile, arrived in
Tehran yesterday. According to press reports, he
intends to discuss with the Shah the possibility
of convening, perhaps early next month, a summit
conference of Islamic states.
Over the weekend a Beirut paper reported that
Egyptian President Sadat will meet "very soon" with
Soviet party chief Brezhnev to discuss matters of
"extreme importance." No date or meeting place was
given, but Sadat is reported by the Iraqi press to
be ready to fly to Belgrade this week for a meeting
with Libya's Qadhafi.
Numerous Arab and black African officials ar-
rived in Addis Ababa over the weekend to attend a
special session of the Ministerial Council of the
Organization of African Unity starting today. The
session was called at the urging of the Algerians,
primarily to discuss the Middle East crisis and
to get the OAU on record as backing the Arab cause.
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The Israeli cabinet yesterday approved Prime
Minister Meir's proposal to establish a special
five-man judicial commission of inquiry to probe
the armed forces' preparedness for and conduct of
the war. It is unlikely that the inquiry will be
completed before the Israeli general elections
scheduled for December 31.
The Egyptian-Israeli prisoner-of-war exchange
continued smoothly over the weekend, with over half
the prisoners held by each side reportedly having
been returned. The evacuation of wounded from Suez
city, meanwhile, was completed yesterday, according
to a Red Cross spokesman. Egyptian and Israeli nego-
tiators are to meet informally today to discuss, among
other things, the disengagement of forces and the re-
supply of Suez city, according to a UN spokesman in
Cairo.
Egypt, meanwhile, has protested to the UN Israel's
efforts to construct a causeway across the Suez Canal
at the northern end of the Great Bitter Lake, charging
that such activity constitutes a very serious violation
of the cease-fire and a major engineering change of
the canal.
Yesterday's announcement by the Arab oil producers
that the production cutback planned for December will
not affect exports to eight of the nine EC countries
should at least temporarily reduce public criticism in
Europe of the pro-Arab position recently adopted by
the EC. The announcement stated that the Arab action
was "in appreciation" of the EC's stance on the Middle
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East, as expressed in the statement adopted by the nine
EC foreign ministers on November 6. The latest Arab
action on oil, however, does not include any changes
in the previously announced 25-percent cutback in pro-
duction or in the total ban on exports to the Nether-
lands or the US. Thus, while the Europeans can take
some satisfaction, the oil squeeze will continue.
The Arab move will have the effect of emphasizing
differences between Europe and the US on Middle East
issues. These differences could be made even sharper
if the exemption gained by the EC encourages it to
tilt still more toward the Arabs in hopes of inducing
a further relaxation of the restrictions on the flow
of Arab oil to Europe.
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LIBYA
President Qadhafi--angered by Cairo's acceptance
of the cease-fire and President Sadat's apparent
willingness to go to the negotiating table--is now
openly campaigning against the six-point accord be-
tween Egypt and Israel.
Breaking a long silence in an interview early
last week, Qadhafi protested great-power efforts to
halt the Arab-Israeli conflict, which he claimed
could never be resolved by negotiations. His re-
marks reflect a deepening rift with Sadat and an
unwillingness to cooperate in future peace talks.
Qadhafi's behavior throughout the recent crisis
has been determined by his belief that the war was
ill-timed, and waged solely for the territorial gains
of Egypt and Syria rather than for the complete res-
toration of historic Palestine to the Arabs. The
events of the last six weeks, particularly Egypt's
acceptance of the six-point accord, have confirmed
Qadhafi's long-held suspicion that Egypt is prepared
to accept the boundaries of Israel as they existed
before the 1967 war. Such recognition of Israel,
however indirect, and the prospect of great-power
sponsorship of a settlement are anathema to Qadhafi.
Although at present Qadhafi appears anxious to
avoid an open rupture with Egypt, he is working to
undermine support for Sadat's position on negotia-
tions He and other members of the Revolutionary
Command Council have been in frequent contact with
other Arab leaders with the apparent aim of isolating
Sadat before peace talks begin.
Despite Qadhafi's lack of credibility in most
Arab capitals, he may be receiving a hearing from
many of those who have long regarded Egypt as a too
powerful and self-interested neighbor and from those
radical elements in all.Arab countries who share
Libya's goal of ejecting all "European" Jews from
Palestine. Even among Arab moderates, Libya's ap--
peals may well play on traditional fears of Egyptian
hegemony, especially now that Cairo has renewed its
indebtedness to Moscow. The Libyans may also amplify
Syrian and Palestinian misgivings that Egypt will
abandon their territorial claims once serious nego-
tiations are under way.
(continued)
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Initially, a major purpose of Libya's diplomatic
initiatives had been to drum up support for an Arab
summit conference at which Sadat would be forced to
explain his ?intentions to the conclave and in turn
would be held answerable to those who take a hard
line toward a settlement with the Israelis. Now,
Qadhafi refuses to attend a summit meeting set for
Algiers on November 26, apparently because he no
longer believes he can use it to hurt Sadat.
Qadhafi began a four-day visit to Yugoslavia
yesterday, the first such trip he has made since
taking power in 1969. His decision to travel at
this critical point in Middle East politics may be
designed to show his contempt for peace efforts now
under way.
Press reports from Baghdad predict
President Sadat will fly to Belgrade to
acceptance of the cease-fire to Qadhafi.
that Egypt's
explain his
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GREECE
The government, fearing new demonstrations,
placed military forces on full alert yesterday as a
"precautionary measure." After a quiet Saturday
night, army and police forces skirmished yesterday
with small groups of demonstrators in Athens through-
out the day. The French news agency reports that
this morning, pamphlets calling for a workers' up-
rising against the government were thrown into Athens
streets.
The toll of the weekend disturbances included
nine dead, 350 injured, and more than 1,200 arrested.
In a radiobroadcast on Saturday, President
Papadopoulos blamed the demonstrations on politi-
cians and "anarchic elements" trying to frustrate
his efforts to return Greece to political "normality."
He said his previous policy of "self-restraint" had
been misunderstood, and he urged those politicians
who had backed the demonstrators to reconsider.
Papadopoulos' plea was addressed to politicians
such as former prime minister Kanellopoulos, who had
issued a statement hailing the demonstrators as
"showing the way to democracy." So far, none of the
politicians supporting the demonstrators has been
arrested. Feeling against the politicians is re-
portedly running high in the government, and Papa-
dopoulos' former military colleagues, who in recent
months had been largely alienated by his policies,
now appear to be supporting him.
It is not yet clear who was directing the anti-
regime activity inside the _Polytechnic Institute,
the center of the demonstrations until it was cleared
by the army on Saturday morning. Followers of exiled
leftist Andreas Papandreou were much in evidence as
agitators and participants, however.
The timing of the demonstrations was unfortunate
for the government's efforts to "politicalize" the
regime. The politicians had been largely adopting
a wait-and-see attitude toward Prime Minister Marke-
zinis' invitation to participate in elections; many
were tempted to take part if the Prime Minister
carried through on his pledge of "impeccable" elec-
tion procedures. Because of the disturbances,
Markezinis has indefinitely postponed announcement
of further "politicalization" measures.
(continued)
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Many politicians may now interpret the weekend's
events as "proof" that nothing has changed and the
authoritarian character of the government remains.
At the same time, the politicians must share some
blame for the events because of their encouragement
of the students.
Nevertheless, Papadopoulos has reaffirmed his
intention to continue with the political normaliza-
tion program, toward which some army officers have
been cool. The US Embassy believes the weekend's
events demonstrate that the army remains a key factor
in the Greek political scene, and that if the situa-
tion should worsen, a return to a military regime
cannot be excluded.
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THAILAND
Thai protesters throughout the country are con-
tinuing to voice their grievandee in the wake of last
'month's upheaval in Bangkok. According to the US
Embassy, demonstratOrS in Thailand's hinterland have
been agitating against provincial officials, school
administrators, and the high price of rice. In
Bangkok, students have'assembled before the embassy
of Nationalist China, presumably to protest the con-
tinued presence in Taiwan of former strongman Praphat.
Thus far local authorities have had little
trouble coping with the demonstrations, but central
government officials are worried. Prime Minister
Sanya, Army commander in Chief General Krit, and the
director of the National Police appeared on televi-
sion last week to appeal for calm. Krit reportedly
has recommended to Sanya that measures planned to
grant amnesty to the October rioters include a call
for an end to demonstrations.
Although Krit has complained privately about
Continued student agitation, press attacks on the
armed forces,.and,public harassment Of uniformed
personnel, he apparently remains Committed to a re-
turn to civilian government. Last 's television
appeal included a pledge by Kilt to keep the army
out of politics. At the moment, he is working closely
with the King and the Prime Minister on a plan to re-
place the military-dominated National Assembly with
a new civilian body.
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WESTERN HEMISPHERE
Representatives of 23 Latin American and Carib-
bean nations met in Bogota from November 14-16 to
discuss the course of US - Latin American relations.
They have drawn up a broad agenda for a meeting with
Secretary Kissinger early next year in Mexico. The
conference, attended by 16 foreign ministers, ful-
filled the desires of its principal organizers--the
foreign ministers of Mexico and Colombia--to avoid
major contentious issues and to contribute to a con-
structive dialogue with the Secretary.
Among the topics the Latins want to discuss
with the US are: greater cooperation in the hemi-
sphere for development; the international monetary
system; the role of multinational corporations; the
transfer of technology; and the revitalization of
the inter-American system. Panama won support for
a resolution that calls on the US to conclude a
Canal treaty that will satisfy Panama's "just as-
pirations," but efforts by other countries to intro-
duce controversial issues were defeated.
Delegates were said to be divided in their
views about Cuba--the only Latin American country
not invited to Bogota. The possibility of reinte-
grating the Castro government into regional organi-
zations will be raised with Secretary Kissinger,
and a majority of the participants probably will
seek a definition of US policy toward Havana.
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