COMMUNIST VIOLATIONS OF THE VIETNAM AND LAOS SETTLEMENT AGREEMENTS AND RELATED DEVELOPMENTS

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP80T01719R000100180010-4
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: S
• Document Page Count: 14
• Document Creation Date: December 22, 2016
• Document Release Date: August 13, 2012
• Sequence Number: 10
• Publication Date: December 5, 1973
• Content Type: PERRPT

Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2012/08/13: CIA-RDP80T01719R000100180010-4
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Secret
Forty-first Report
COMMUNIST VIOLATIONS OF THE VIETNAM AND LAOS
SETTLEMENT AGREEMENTS AND RELATED DEVELOPMENTS
(This report covers the period from
28 November through 4 December 1973
This report has been prepared jointly by the
Central Intelligence Agency and the Department of Defense. .
Secret
5 December 1973
Copy N.. 2 5
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5 December 1973
Forty-First Report
COMMUNIST VIOLATIONS OF THE VIETNAM AND LAOS
SETTLEMENT AGREEMENTS AND RELATED DEVELOPMENTS*
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(This report covers the week
from 28 November through 4 December 1973)
The Key Points
? Communist military activity in South Vietnam was
highlighted by heavy action in Quang Due Province and an
attack by fire against the country's largest petroleum storage
complex.
* This report has been prepared jointly by the Central Intelligence
Agency and the Department of Defense.
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Preface
This report is the forty-first in a series summarizing evidence received
during the reporting period of (I) Communist efforts to infiltrate new
manpower and military materiel toward and into South Vietnam,
(II) Communist-initiated combat activity in violation of the Vietnam and
Laos settlement agreements, and (III) other developments affecting
Communist military capabilities in Indochina.
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Movement of Military Equipment and Supplies
Southern Laos
7. Heavy dry season truck traffic has apparently resumed along the
recently upgraded Ho Chi Minh Trail in southern Laos. Between
27 November and 2 December, about 600 cargo trucks, some 90 carrying
pontoon bridge sections, were observed in groups of 30 to 100 vehicles
moving south along the central portions of the new dual-lane road system.
In addition, another 240 trucks were observed parked along the same route
during the period. Northbound traffic was exceptionally light on all days
but 2 December, when about 200 empty trucks were observed heading
north toward Muong Nong. In addition to cargo trucks, several possible
artillery pieces were seen in tow with the convoys.
8. The actual number of trucks moving south or parked probably
is considerably less than the 840 aggregated
2
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? route system probably reflects the Passage of large groups of vehicles that
had entered the system undetected A large
number of the vehicles are probably associated with the movement of
engineering and support equipment to secure and maintain the route
structure during the coming months.
the North Vietnamese have probably launched their annual dry season
logistical push through southern Laos, apparently at a pace exceeding last
year's initial effort.
South Vietnam
10. The level of logistic activity in northern South Vietnam last week
was low. Heavy rains continue to impede traffic in Quang Tri and Thua
Thien Provinces.
sections of road in Thua Thien Province
were still impassable because of mud.
Moreover, a large portion of Route 9 in western Quang Tri Province is
closed to vehicular traffic as a result of weather, and some other routes,
which were reported as open, could sustain only limited traffic.
II. Communist-Initiated Combat Activity in South Vietnam
and Laos
South Vietnam
11. In South Vietnam the total number of Communist-initiated
cease-fire violations reported by the South Vietnamese Armed Forces since
27 January, since 15 June, and for the last week (28 November - 4 Decem-
ber) are shown below:
4
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Total Since Total Since
Military 27 January 15 June Last Week
Region Cease-Fire Cease-Fire (28 Nov - 4 Dec)
Major
Minor
Major
Minor
Major
Minor
Total
4,114
26,471
1,745
12,516
85(82)1
614(633)
MR 1
1,489
5,393
464
2,034
16
77
MR 2
674
4,425
410
2,571
20
122
MR 3
621
4,675
219
2,099
15
107
MR 4
1,330
11,978
652
5,812
34
308
1. Figures in parentheses denote totals of the previous week.
12. Some of these violations may have been initiated by South
Vietnamese forces rather than Communist forces, and it is impossible in
all cases to determine the actual instigator. The tabulation above and the
charts following the Annex, however, show fairly accurately the trend in
the amount of combat that has occurred in South Vietnam since the
cease-fire. 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 objectively.
13. Significant
Communist forces
attacked government positions south of Bu Prang and at
Dak Song in what appears to be a well-coordinated operation. The
command post of the 53rd ARVN Regiment at Kien Duc, 18 miles south
of Bu Prang, was struck by a Communist force of unknown size supported
by tanks and artillery. The ammunition dump at the camp was blown up,
and North Vietnamese troops overran the town on the morning of
5 December. Although details are sketchy, when
the attack began on the 4th, ARVN defenders repulsed three assaults before
being forced to withdraw. The government survivors of the attack on Kien
Duc reportedly have withdrawn eastward to Nhon Co, and approximately
1,000 civilian refugees were moved yesterday from Kien Duc to Gia Nghia,
the provincial capital. The number of friendly and enemy casualties is not
known at this time. In addition, elements of the 53rd Regiment, advancing
north toward Bu Prang, reported heavy Communist infantry attacks
supported by tanks. A fire-support base south of these elements was overrun,
and two 105-mm howitzers were lost. More than 80 tactical air sorties have
been flown in support of government troops, and the South Vietnamese
report that six Communist tanks have been destroyed. The successful attack
at Kien Duc cuts off ARVN forces north of the town from land resupply.
combat activity occurred on 4 December when
5
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Their position will become increasingly untenable should ARVN prove
unable to retake the town quickly. Map 515529 shows the current
distribution of Communist and South Vietnamese combat forces, by military
region.
14. To the south, an enemy attack by fire occurred on 2 December
at the Nha Be petroleum storage area six miles southeast of Saigon. The
Shell storage complex was almost totally destroyed. Preliminary estimates
of the number of barrels of petroleum destroyed range as high as one-half
million, most of which was allocated to the civilian sector. Nha Be, which
also includes an Esso and Caltex depot, is the main receiving point for
petroleum imported into South Vietnam and is the transshipment point
for petroleum sent to Phnom Penh via the Mekong River. This attack may
portend further Communist efforts to reduce South Vietnam's petroleum
reserves and to disrupt distribution at a time when US oil companies are
being forced to reduce deliveries. While the loss is serious, the American
Embassy in Saigon estimates that it will not affect the long-range viability
of either ARVN military operations or the civilian economy. Rationing for
the civilian sector, however, is certain.
Laos
15. There was no significant military activity in Laos last week.
III. Other Developments Affecting Communist Military
Capabilities in Indochina
Increased SA-7 Firings in South Vietnam
16. Since early November, an increase in VC/NVA firings of
SA-7 missiles within South Vietnam has been noted. During the first three
weeks of the month, more than a dozen such missiles were reported by
the South Vietnamese to have been launched against South Vietnamese Air
Force (VNAF) aircraft, the first such activity in South Vietnam since
mid-August. Although SA-7s are widely distributed among VC/NVA units
throughout South Vietnam, some 70% of the recent firings have been in
the Bu Prang area of Quang Due Province, the scene of heavy fighting and
VNAF activity since early November. The remaining firings have been in
Dinh Tuong Province in MR 4. Increased SA-7 firings can be expected
whenever VNAF significantly increases its activity.
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IAIISL-IrlKE VIOLA HUNS IN SUU111
VIETNAM AS REPORTED BY RVNAF
(28 JANUARY THROUGH 31 JULY 1913)
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CEASE-FIRE VIOLATIONS IN SOUTH
VIETNAM AS REPORTED BY RVNAF
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