COMMUNIST VIOLATIONS OF THE VIETNAM AND LAOS SETTLEMENT AGREEMENTS

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP80T01719R000100160003-4
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: S
• Document Page Count: 18
• Document Creation Date: December 15, 2016
• Document Release Date: April 6, 2004
• Sequence Number: 3
• Publication Date: April 13, 1973
• Content Type: PERRPT

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Secret
Eighth Report
COMMUNIST VIOLATIONS OF
THE VIETNAM AND LAOS SETTLEMENT AGREEMENTS
(This report covers the week from
'6 April through 12 April 1973)
This memorandum has been prepared jointly by the
Central Intelligence Agency and the Department of Defense
DIA review(s) completed.
Secret
27
13 April 1973
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13 April 1973
Eighth Report
COMMUNIST VIOLATIONS OF
THE VIETNAM AND LAOS SETTLEMENT AGREEMENTS*
(This report covers the week from
6 April through 12 April 1973)
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The Key Points
A high level of North Vietnamese logistic ac-
tivity continued throughout the week. Once
again, NVA logistic movements were particularly
heavy in Quang Tri Province.
The number of combat incidents initiated by
the Communists remained at a moderate level in
South Vietnam, but rose significantly in Laos.
This report has been prepared jointly by the
Central Intelligence Agency and the Department
of Defense.
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The Details
NOTE: This is the eighth in a series of reports de-
tailing recently received evidence of (a) Communist
efforts to infiltrate new manpower and military ma-
teriel toward and into South Vietnam, and (b) Commu-
nist-instigated combat activity in violation of the
Vietnam and Laos settlement agreements.
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In other
air defense developments, an additional North Viet-
namese SA-2 site has been established near Khe Sanh
during the past week. There are now a total of 10
SA-2 sites in the Khe Sanh area which have been con-
structed since the beginning of this year. Four of
these were observed to be occupied as of 9 April.
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B. Movement of Military Equipment and Supplies by
the North Vietnamese in Violation of the
Agreements
7. Heavy Communist. logistic movements con-
tinued during the week in northern South Vietnam and
throughout most of the Laos Panhandle. NVA vehicle
activity in Quang Tri Province was even heavier than
in the preceding several weeks, as the North Viet-
namese continued to move supplies into forward areas.
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tThe most significant observa-
tions o .NVA truck traffic in southern Laos were in
the areas adjacent to Quang Tri Province and the A
Shau Valley, but sizeable traffic flows were also
noted in the Chavane area. Traffic moving south-
ward through the Passes out of North Vietnam was
slightly above the average weekly level in March.
Heavy logistic activity was also observed during
the week in the southern North Vietnam Panhandle.
8. The following instances of Communist lo-
gistic activity were observed inside South Vietnam
during the reporting period. Activity observed in
South Vietnam probably reflects supplies which have
recently entered the country. (The map on the fol-
lowing page shows the roads and route numbers which
appear below.)
(a) NVA vehicle activity was observed
each day on Route 9 in northern
Quang Tri Province, as follows:
(1) On 6 April, 29 cargo trucks were
observed moving on the route be-
tween Dong Ha and the Laos/South
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V t,
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South Vietnam
and
North Vietnam Panhandle
- -- --- Province boundary
irk 00 Military region
International Commission
of Control and Supervi sion
region boundary
~--^- Railroad
Road
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0 A 50 75 Kilometers
Names and boundary representation
ere not necessarily authoritative
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Vietnam border (7 eastbound, 15
westbound, 7 parked).
(2) On 7 April, 59 cargo vehicles
were noted on Route 9 in the
immediate vicinity of the Sanh
(24 eastbound, 19 westbound, 16
parked).
(3) On 8 April, 85 cargo trucks were
moving on the segment between
Dong Ha and Khe Sanh (19 east-
bound, 31 westbound, 35 parked).
(4) On 9 April, 98 cargo vehicles
were noted between Dong Ha and
the border (43 eastbound, 39
westbound, 16 parked).
(5) On 10 April, 63 cargo trucks
were observed on the segment
west of Dong Ha (20 westbound,
14 eastbound, 29 parked).
(b) On 6 April, in the A Shau Valley re-
gion, 15 cargo trucks were observed
on Route 548 southeast of Khe Sanh
(9 southbound, 6 parked). There were
also 11 trucks noted on this route on
8 April (7 southbound, 4 northbound).
(c) On 7 April, 21 cargo vehicles were ob-
served on Route 6089 southeast of Khe
Sanh (11 northbound, 6 southbound, 4
parked).
(d) On 8 and 9 April, 16 cargo vehicles
were detected moving on Route 616
southeast of Khe Sanh. Two of the
vehicles were southbound, 3 were north-
bound, and 11 were parked. Also on
Route 616 in the same area, 11 cargo
trucks and 31 57-mm AAA pieces were
observed on 10 April parked along
the road.
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(e) On 8 April, on Route 1 in northeastern
Quang Tri. Province, 16 cargo vehicles
and 41 buses were observed parked along
the road north of Quang Tri City. In
the same area, 9 cargo trucks (4 north-
bound, 1 southbound, 4 parked)were ob-
served on 10 April, with 4 buses parked
along the road.
(f) On 9 April, 16 cargo trucks, 5 tanks,
1 APC and 6 field artillery pieces
were seen parked along Route 547 south-
west of Hue.
(g) On 9 April, 21 cargo vehicles were
seen on Route 922 traveling on the
segment immediately inside the South
Vietnam/Laos border. Sixteen of the
vehicles were moving south, six of
them towing light artillery pieces.
(h) In the period 6 through 12 April, 130
southbound cargo vehicles were ob-
served on Route 1033 in the western
DMZ.
(i) On 10 April, nine southbound cargo
vehicles were observed on Route 1000
in the eastern DMZ.
9. During the reporting period the following
indications of North Vietnamese logistic activity in
southern Laos and northeastern Cambodia were noted.
Historical precedent would suggest that much of the
activity in the area probably involved supplies des-
tined for South Vietnam.
(a) The following activity was observed
on Route 99 in the central portion of
the Laos Panhandle during the re-
porting period:
(1) On 6 April, 50 cargo trucks were
observed parked between Muong
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Nong and the intersection of
Route 96.
(2) On 7 April, 186 cargo vehicles
were detected on the segment
between Muong Nong and the Route
96 intersection (33 northbound,
50 southbound, 103 parked).
(3) On 8 April, 24 cargo trucks were
traveling the route in the vi-
cinity of Muong Nong (12 north-
bound, 6 southbound, 6 parked).
(4) On 9 April, 48 cargo trucks were
on the highway between Muong
Nong and the Route 96 intersec-
tion (25 northbound, 15 south-
bound, 8 parked).
(5) On 10 April, 21 cargo trucks (9
south, 2 north, 10 parked) and
1 bulldozer were observed moving
north on Route 99 just south of
Muong Nong. In addition, one
APC was observed parked along
the road in the same area.
(b) On 6 April, 20 NVA cargo trucks were
bound, 11 eastbound, 8 parked). On
7 April, 43 cargo vehicles were ob-
served in the same area (34 eastbound,
9 parked).
observed on Route 9222A near the Laos/
South Vietnam border. Six of the
vehicles were traveling south and
were towing three 37-mm AAA weapons.
On 6 April, 28 cargo trucks were ob-
served on Route 966 east of Chavane,
near the South Vietnam border (9 west-
(d) On 6 April, on Route 9 west of the
Laos/South Vietnam border, 9 cargo
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trucks were seen parked. Ten west-
bound trucks and 1 eastbound were
seen in the same area on 7 April, and
5 eastbound and 1 parked on 8 April.
(e) On 6 April, 18 cargo trucks were ob-
served on Route 9211 southeast of.
Saravane, 11 moving south, 4 north,
and 3 parked. On 8 April, 25 more
trucks were observed (17 moving south,
6 north, and 2 parked).
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(g) On 8 and 9 April, southwest of the
Ban Karai Pass, 27 cargo vehicles
were detected on Route 912 (10 north-
bound, 17 parked). During the period
6 through 12 April, 322 vehicles
were detected moving south and 323
traveling north through the Ban Karai
Pass.
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C. Combat Activity Initiated _ by Communist Forces
In South Vietnam Since the Ceasefire
11. In South Vietnam, the total number of Com-
munist-initiated ceasefire violations reported by
the South Vietnamese Armed Forces since 28 January
and for the last week (6-12 April) are shown below:
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Military. Tota
l Since
Ceasefire Las
t Week (
6-12 Apr)
Region L
evel of
Action L
evel of
Action
Majo
r
Minor Maj
or
Minor
MR 1 72
1
2,546 3
4
91
MR 2 18
0
1,129
7
91
MR 3 25
2
1,610 2
4
121
MR 4 37
3
3,472 2
3
349
Totals 1,52
6
8,757 8
8(121)1/
652(597)1/
1/ Denotes totals of previous week.
12. Some of these violations may have been in-
itiated by GVN forces rather than Communist forces,
and it is impossible in all cases to determine the
actual instigator. The table above and the chart
on the following page, however, do show fairly ac-
curately the trend in the amount of combat that has
occurred in South Vietnam since the ceasefire. The
fact that a combat incident occurred at a particular
time and place is generally reported accurately by
the South Vietnamese, even though the question of
who started it may not always be treated in objective
fashion. In some cases, the Joint Military Commission
(GVN/PRG) also reports violations of the ceasefire.
13. The following is a chronological listing
of only the most significant "major" Communist vi-
olations of the ceasefire in South Vietnam that were
reported by the South Vietnamese Armed Forces during
the past week.
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CEASE-FIRE VIOLATIONS IN SOUTH VIETNAM AS REPORTED BY RVNAF
(28 JANUARY 1973 TO THE PRESENT)
4UU
300
200
JAN-FEB
APR
All
I i 0%,~ 0%ko^ 4 0A N4 V op t
J R I L I N Oft Wft 0% 6 No
MAR
41 7F I I 74K
MAY
400 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31
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T " I
MILITARY REGION 1
MILITARY REGION 2
(a) On 3 April, 15 miles southwest of
Pleiku City, elements of an ARVN
ranger border defense battalion re-
ceived an enemy ground attack.
(b) On 4 April, four miles south of Bong
Son, elements of an ARVN ranger bat-
talion received a ground attack by
an enemy force.
(c) On 8 April, an ARVN position 10 miles
southwest of Kontum City was subjected
to a ground attack.
(d) On 9 April, four miles south of Bong
Son, ARVN elements were subjected to
an enemy ground attack.
MILITARY REGION 3
(a) Nothing of significance to report.
MILITARY REGION 4
(a)
On 4 April, 15 miles northeast of
Doc, elements of an ARVN infantry
talion received a ground attack by
enemy force.
Chain
bat-
an
(b)
On 5 April, 11 miles northeast of Chau
Doc, elements of an ARVN infantry bat-
talion received a ground attack by an
enemy force.
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(c) On 8 April, three miles northwest
of Vi Thanh, a VNAF helicopter was
struck by enemy ground fire. The
aircraft was forced to crash land
and sustained heavy damage.
D. Combat Activity Initiated by Communist Forces
in Laos During the Week from 6 through 13 April
14. North Vietnamese Army forces launched heavy,
sustained attacks during the week against Royal Lao
Government units defending the Route 4 corridor south-
east of the Plain of Jars in Laos Military Region II,
forcing several Government units to begin withdrawing
from the area. One NVA infantry regiment and sup-
porting artillery and sapper units have been identified
near Route 4 north of the village of Tha Vieng. There
continues to be strong evidence that this NVA force
is determined to eliminate the RLG presence in the
area, thereby securing southeastern Xieng Khouang
Province as Communist-held territory. A general
lull in military activity prevailed throughout South
Laos during the week.
15. Following is a brief account of significant
combat incidents which occurred between 6 and 13 April,
and which were clearly initiated by Communist forces
in violation of the Laos ceasefire agreement:
(a) On 6 April, no significant military
activity occurred throughout Laos.
(b) On 7 April, activity again was light
throughout Laos, although there was
an attack by an estimated two NVA
companies against a Government de-
fensive position south of Thakhek in
MR III.
(c) On 8 April, Communist forces launched
coordinated attacks against six RLG
positions near Route 4 southeast of
the Plain of Jars. Defenders were
driven from three of the positions.
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Elsewhere in Laos, activity remained
light and scattered.
(d) On 9 April, Government troops were
driven from another position south-
east of the Plain.
(e) On 10 April, Communist forces con-
tinued the ground shelling attacks
against Government elements along
Route 4.
(f) On 11 April, Communist pressure in-
tensified southeast of the PDJ. Over
1,000 rounds of artillery and mortar
fire fell on Government positions
along Route 4 north of Tha Vieng
village, and several Government units
began withdrawing southward.
(g) On 12 April, the NVA introduced tanks
into the fighting along Route 4. Fire
from two such vehicles near Tha Vieng
prevented medical evacuation of
friendly wounded, as the dislodged
Government elements continued to
withdraw slowly southward. The rest
of the country remained generally
quiet.
(h) On 13 April, three government posi-
tions 16 to 18 km. northwest of Bouam
Long were lost following an attack by
an enemy force of unknown size sup-
ported by recoilles rifle fire.
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