IV. Further U.S. Efforts To Strengthen the Government of South Vietnam, March-April 1962
128. Telegram From Secretary of State Rusk to the Department of State
Source: Kennedy Library, National Security Files, Vietnam, Country Series 3/1/62-3/12/62. Secret; Priority; Eyes Only; Limit Distribution.
129. Telegram From the Department of State to Secretary of State Rusk at Geneva
Source: Kennedy Library, National Security Files, Vietnam Country Series 3/23/62-3/26/62. Secret; Eyes Only. Drafted by Johnson, cleared with Pezzullo, and approved by Ball.
130. Telegram From the Department of State to the Embassy in Vietnam
Source: Department of State, Central Files, 751G.00/3-2462. Secret. Drafted by Wood; cleared with Czyzak, Rice, Pezzullo, and Heinz (DOD) and approved by Johnson. Also sent to Ottawa and New Delhi and repeated to London, Moscow, and CINCPAC for Polad.
131. Telegram From the Department of State to Secretary of State Rusk at Geneva
Source: Department of State, Conference Files: Lot 65 D 533, CF 2059. Secret. Drafted by Johnson, cleared with Rice and Pezzullo, and approved by Ball.
132. Memorandum From the Joint Chiefs of Staffʼs Special Assistant for Counterinsurgency and Special Activities (Krulak) to the Deputy Secretary of Defense (Gilpatric)
Source: Washington National Records Center, RG 330, OSD Files: FRC 77-131, Republic of Vietnam, 1961-1963. Secret. At the top of the first page is written: “Check idea of ops. deps. with Lansdale.”
133. Telegram From the Embassy in Vietnam to the Department of State
Source: Department of State, Central Files, 951K.6211/3-2762. Secret; Priority. Repeated to CINCPAC for Polad and to Tokyo for Harriman.
134. Memorandum From the Naval Aide of the Presidentʼs Military Representative (Bagley) to the Presidentʼs Military Representative (Taylor)
Source: National Defense University, Taylor Papers, T-133-69. Secret.
135. Memorandum From the Presidentʼs Military Aide (Clifton) to the National Security Adviser (Bundy)
Source: Kennedy Library, National Security Files, Staff Memoranda-Chester Clifton, 3/61-6/62. Secret. Also sent to Bromley Smith.
136. Memorandum From the Vice Presidentʼs Military Aide (Burris) to Vice President Johnson
Source: Johnson Library, Vice Presidential Security Files, Memos from Colonel Burris, Jan. 1961-June 1962. Secret. A notation on the source text reads: “VP has seen.”
137. Letter From President Diem to President Kennedy
Source: Department of State, Central Files, 751K.00/3-3162. Official use Only. This letter was also sent to the Pope and 92 heads of state in non-communist countries. The Australian Mission to the United Nations had agreed to circulate the letter to all member delegations, but on April 26 Madame Chuang, the Vietnamese Ambassador to the United Nations, undertook the distribution herself.
138. Memorandum From the Director of the Vietnam Task Force (Cottrell) to the Assistant Secretary of State for Far Eastern Affairs (Harriman)
Source: Department of State, Central Files, 751K.5/4-362. Secret. No drafting information is given on the source text, but it is signed “Cot.”
139. Memorandum From the Director of the Bureau of Intelligence and Research (Hilsman) to the Assistant Secretary of State for Far Eastern Affairs (Harriman)
Source: Kennedy Library, Hilsman Papers, Countries, Vietnam. Secret; Noforn.
140. Memorandum From the Director of the Policy Planning Staff (Rostow) to the Assistant Secretary of State for Far Eastern Affairs (Harriman)
Source: Department of State, Vietnam Working Group Files: Lot 66 D 193, 2-B.4 GVN. Secret. A handwritten note on the source text reads: “Cot—Please consider. I agree with the principle. WAH”
141. Memorandum From the Ambassador to India (Galbraith) to the President
Source: Washington National Records Center, RG 330, OSD Files: FRC 77-131, Republic of Vietnam, 1961-1962. Secret. Also printed in Galbraith, Ambassadorʼs Journal, pp. 297-299. Transmitted to President Kennedy under cover of a letter of April 5 from Galbraith (ibid., pp. 296-297) that dealt, for the most part, with subjects other than Vietnam. Galbraith was in the United States, March 27-April 8, to testify before the House Foreign Affairs Committee on India. Forrestal sent this memorandum 131 to McNamara for DODʼs comments on April 7.
142. Memorandum From the Ambassador at Large (Bowles) to the President
Source: Kennedy Library, Schlesinger Papers, Bowles. Secret. The memorandum totals 54 pages and includes a table of contents at the beginning. Bowles transmitted the paper to the President under cover of a memorandum of April 4 in which he indicated that it was the second of two papers growing out of his recent trip, that he was limiting the number of copies due to the controversy sure to be generated by the conclusions, and that he would like to discuss the proposals with the President after he had read it. (Ibid., National Security File, Meetings & Memos, Staff Memos, Chester Bowles) He also sent copies to Bundy and Forrestal in the White House and Walt Rostow in the Department of State. The President had sent Bowles on a mission to the Middle East, Africa, South Asia, and the Far East, February 8-March 19; while in the Far East, Bowles chaired the Baguio Chiefs of Mission Conference, March 10-11.
143. Memorandum From the Naval Aide to the Presidentʼs Military Representative (Bagley) to the Presidentʼs Military Representative (Taylor)
Source: National Defense University, Taylor Papers, T-132-69.
144. Telegram From the Department of State to the Embassy in Vietnam
Source: Department of State, Central Files, 751K.5/4-462. Confidential, Priority Drafted by Wayne James (DOD/ISA) and cleared with Heinz, Cottrell, and Stoneman Also sent to CINCPAC for Polad and repeated to COMUSMACV and USOM in Saigon.
145. Telegram From the Department of State to the Embassy in Vietnam
Source: Department of State, Central Files, 751K.00/4-462. Secret; Priority. Also sent to CINCPAC for Polad. Drafted by Harriman and Cottrell, and cleared with Johnson.
146. Memorandum From the Assistant Secretary of State for Far Eastern Affairs (Harriman) to the Director of the Policy Planning Council (Rostow)
Source: Harriman Papers, Vietnam, 1962. Secret. A typed note at the bottom indicates that Harriman dictated but did not read the memorandum.
147. Memorandum From the Naval Aide to the Presidentʼs Military Representative (Bagley) to the Presidentʼs Military Representative (Taylor)
Source: National Defense University, Taylor Papers, T-132-69. Secret.
148. Memorandum of a Conversation Between the President and the Assistant Secretary of State for Far Eastern Affairs (Harriman), White House, Washington, April 6, 1962, 4:55 p.m.
Source: Kennedy Library, National Security Files, Vietnam Country Series, 1/62-5/62. Top Secret. Prepared by Forrestal. The meeting was held at the White House. The time of the meeting is from the Presidentʼs log. (Ibid., Presidentʼs Appointment Books)
149. Memorandum From the Director of the Vietnam Task Force (Cottrell) to the Assistant Secretary of State for Far Eastern Affairs (Harriman)
Source: Department of State, Vietnam Working Group Files: Lot 67 D 54, Poll 7. Secret. No drafting information is given on the source text but it is signed “Cot.”
150. Telegram From the Embassy in Vietnam to the Department of State
Source: Department of State, Central Files, 951K.6211/4-1762. Secret Priority. Repeated to CINCPAC for Polad.
151. Memorandum From the Naval Aide to the Presidentʼs Military Representative (Bagley) to the Presidentʼs Military Representative (Taylor)
Source: National Defense University, Taylor Papers, T-030-69. Top Secret. At the top of the document, Taylor wrote: “See me.”
152. Telegram From the Embassy in Vietnam to the Department of State
Source: Department of State, Central Files, 751K.S/4-1062. Confidential; Priority. Repeated to CINCPAC for Polad.
153. Memorandum by the Director of the Office of Vietnam Affairs, Agency for International Development (Stoneman)
Source: Department of State, Vietnam Working Group Files: Lot 66 D 193, 8. GVN, 1962, Information & Civic Action. Confidential. Stoneman prepared the memorandum on April 18.
154. Telegram From the Embassy in Vietnam to the Department of State
Source: Department of State, Central Files, 751K.5/4-1162. Confidential. Repeated to CINCPAC for Polad.
155. Circular Telegram From the Department of State
Source: Department of State, Central Files, 751K.00/4-1162. Official Use Only. Sent to Embassies in 15 Asian countries and to Canberra, Wellington, Paris, London, and Ottawa. Drafted by Chapman; cleared with Cottrell, Manell, Usher, and Link; and approved by Rice.
156. Memorandum From the Acting Assistant Secretary of Defense for International Security Affairs (Williams) to the Secretary of Defense (McNamara)
Source: Washington National Records Center, RG 330, OASD/ISA Files. FRC 65 A 3501, Vietnam 1962,-2. Secret. At the bottom of the page is the following handwritten note: “For record-SecDef has talked to Amb Galbraith and feels no reply needed. Mr. Forrestal informed this date none would be sent. April 17.” The memorandum, but not the attachment, is also printed in United States-Vietnam Relations, 1945-1967, Book 12, p. 466. A less detailed memorandum from Lemnitzer to McNamara, April 13, which makes some of the same points as the attachment, is ibid., pp. 464-465.
157. Telegram From the Commander in Chief, Pacific (Felt) to the Joint Chiefs of Staff
Source: Kennedy Library, National Security Files, Vietnam Country Series. Top Secret. Repeated to COMUSMACV and four other military commands.
- The date on the source text is March 20, which is incorrect. Telegram 1243 from Saigon, March 29, substantiates the information regarding the attacks referred to in the second paragraph. (Department of State, Central Files, 751K.00/3-2962) Presumably the correct date is March 30.↩