SURVEY OF COMMUNIST MILITARY DEVELOPMENTS IN INDOCHINA

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP86T00608R000600080002-7
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: S
• Document Page Count: 14
• Document Creation Date: December 15, 2016
• Document Release Date: October 1, 2003
• Sequence Number: 2
• Publication Date: January 23, 1975
• Content Type: REPORT

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 MICROFILMED
Survey of Communist
Military Developments in Indochina
25
DIA review(s) completed.
Secret /2
2 5X.
anusry 23, lwl~j
Copy No. 47
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SURVEY OF COMMUNIST
MILITARY DEVELOPMENTS IN INDOCHINA*
(This report covers the period
January 9-22, 1975)
The Key Points
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? Detected supply shipments have been heavy during the past few weeks,
in contrast to the relatively light activity reported during December.
? Government control in South Vietnam dropped more sharply in
November than during any other month in 1974, according to Hamlet
Evaluation System (HES) results.
? A recent CIA/DIA review of Communist and GVN combat forces in South
Vietnam indicates that the strength of each side has declined during the
past six months. A detailed report on Communist and South Vietnamese
combat strengths is at Annex B.
* This report has been prepared jointly by the Central Intelligence Agency and
the Department of Defense.
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This report summarizes evidence received during the reporting period of
(1) Communist efforts to infiltrate new manpower and military supplies toward
and into South Vietnam, (II) significant combat activity, and (IIl) other
developments affecting Communist military capabilities in Indochina.
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 MR=
11. Combat Activity in South Vietnam
12. The overall level of combat activity in South Vietnam remained at a
moderate level.
13. In MR 1, Government forces inflicted heavy casualties on the Communists
as ARVN 1st Division elements recaptured Bong Mountain. Farther south, ARVN
forces conducting clearing operations in southeastern Quang Nam Province reported
killing some 150 Communists on January 19 and 20. Activity increased in MR 2
as ARVN forces conducted major operations north of Konturn and in the An Lao
Valley. In the operation north of Kontum, government units met stiff resistance
in their attempts to push toward Vo Dinh, a major Communist supply area. In
coastal Binh Dinh Province, ARVN 22d Division forces continued operations
designed to deny the An Lao Valley supply corridor to the Communists and
reported more than 500 Communists killed in this action. On January 10,
Communist sappers successfully penetrated the principle petroleum storage facility
in Pleiku Province, destroying 35,000 barrels of gasoline, diesel fuel, and JP-4.
14. In other activity in MR 2, VNAF air strikes also apparently caused
considerable damage during the reporting period. On January 13, South Vietnamese
pilots attacked a 400-truck convoy moving through the tai-border area into Pleiku
Province. The strikes reportedly destroyed more than 200 vehicles, along with eight
37-mm antiaircraft guns. Four days later VNAF aircraft again struck a large
Communist convoy in the same general area, reportedly destroying about half of
the 150 trucks sighted.
15. In MR 3, ARVN forces successfully defended and then broke the seige
of Hoai Duc, a key district town in Binh Tuy Province. In the battle for that
town, two Communist regiments suffered heavy casualties and were forced to
withdraw. Sapper and terrorist attacks increased in the environs of Saigon. On
January 10, Communist sappers attacked the main electric generating plant for
the Saigon area, causing light damage and disrupting power to the city for a short
time. Elsewhere, activity consisted of almost daily attacks by fires against Tay
Ninh and its surrounding area and sporadic rocket attacks on the Bien Hoa Airbase.
In MR 4, Communist-initiated incidents remained at a relatively high level but
were scattered throughout the region. The most significant combat occurred in
Kien Tuong Province as elements of the ARVN 9th Division conducted operations
aimed at halting the Communist 5th Division's move into the Delta.
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Ill. Other Developments Affecting Communist Military
Capabilities in Indochina
November HES Results
18. Government control in South Vietnam, according to Hamlet Evaluation
System (DIES) results, dropped more sharply in November than any other month
in 1974. All four military regions registered a decline in government control, led
by MR 4 with 6 percentage points. During November, the number of people living
in areas rated "A" or "B" declined by more than 500,000 - a decrease of nearly
3 percentage points from October's score of about 79%. Most of the people,
however, did not come under direct Communist control, but are now considered
in contested areas.
19. Countrywide, only three provinces - Quang Tin, Binh Thuan, and Long
Khanh - showed increases of more than 2 percentage points, whereas 18 provinces
reported losses of similar magnitude. Nine of these were in MR 4, five of which --
Keen Tuong, Vinh Long, Vinh Binh, Dinh Tuong, and Bac Lieu - sustained declines
of at least 10 percentage points, as the Communists began to step up attacks against
civilian installations and population centers in the Delta.
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