Office of the Historian

181. Editorial Note

The National Security Council at its 452d meeting, July 21, adopted changes to NSC 5809, “U.S. Policy in Mainland Southeast Asia,” which the President approved on July 25 as NSC 6012, same title. The complete text of the paper and related documentation will appear in a forthcoming volume of Foreign Relations. A text is also in Department of Defense, United States-Vietnam Relations, 1945–1967, Book 10, pages 1281–1297. The section on South Vietnam follows:

“Viet Nam

  • “62. Assist Free Viet Nam to develop a strong, stable and constitutional government to enable Free Viet Nam to assert an increasingly attractive contrast to conditions in the present Communist zone. In this regard encourage and assist public relations and public information programs of the Government of Viet Nam directed both internally to the Free Vietnamese and externally to North Viet Nam.
  • “63. Work toward the weakening of the Communists in North and South Viet Nam in order to bring about the eventual peaceful reunification of a free and independent Viet Nam under anti-Communist leadership.
  • “64. Support the position of the Government of Free Viet Nam that all-Viet Nam elections may take place only after it is satisfied that genuinely free elections can be held throughout both zones of Viet Nam.
  • “65. Assist Free Viet Nam to build up indigenous armed forces, including independent logistical and administrative services, which will be capable of assuring internal security and of providing limited initial resistence to attack by the Viet Minh.
  • “66. Encourage Vietnamese military planning for defense against external aggression along lines consistent with U.S. planning concepts based upon approved U.S. policy, and discreetly manifest in other ways U.S. interest in assisting Free Viet Nam, in accordance with the SEATO Treaty, to defend itself against external aggression.
  • “67. Encourage and support an improvement in relations between Viet Nam and Cambodia.” (Department of State, S/P–NSC Files: Lot 62 D 1, NSC 6012)

The supplementary statement of policy on “The Special Situation in North Viet Nam,” remained in substance identical to that in NSC 5809.