Office of the Historian

Abbreviations and Terms

    • A, airgram
    • ABC, American Broadcasting Company
    • ACEC/S or ACE/S, Secretariat of the U.S. Advisory Commission on Educational Exchange and the Advisory Committee on the Arts, Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, Department of State
    • ACLU, American Civil Liberties Union
    • ADP, automatic data processing
    • AF, Bureau of African Affairs, Department of State
    • AF/P, Public Affairs Adviser, Bureau of African Affairs, Department of State
    • AFE, Office of Eastern and Southern African Affairs, Bureau of African Affairs, Department of State
    • AFL-CIO, American Federation of Labor-Congress of Industrial Organizations
    • AFN, Office of Northern African Affairs, Bureau of African Affairs, Department of State; also, American Forces Network
    • AFP, Agence France Presse (French Press Agency); also Alliance for Progress
    • AFW, Office of West African Affairs, Bureau of African Affairs, Department of State
    • AGVA, American Guild of Variety Artists
    • AID or USAID, Agency for International Development
    • Amb., ambassador
    • ANTA, American National Theatre and Academy
    • AP, Associated Press
    • ARA or ARA/LA, Bureau of Inter-American Affairs, Department of State/Bureau for Latin America, Agency for International Development
    • ASPAU, African Scholarship Program of American Universities
    • BBC, British Broadcasting Corporation
    • BIE, Bureau of International Exhibitions
    • BPAO, Branch Public Affairs Officer
    • CA, circular airgram; also Bureau of Consular Affairs, Department of State
    • CAO, cultural affairs officer
    • CARE, Cooperative for American Relief Everywhere
    • CAT, Civil Air Transport
    • CBS, Columbia Broadcasting System
    • CEJ, Charles E. Johnson
    • CENTO, Central Treaty Organization
    • Ch., chair
    • ChiCom, Chinese Communist
    • Chieu Hoi, Government of Vietnam Viet Cong repatriation program
    • CIA, Central Intelligence Agency
    • CINCPAC or USCINCPAC, Commander-in-Chief, Pacific
    • CINE, Committee on International Nontheatrical Events
    • COB, close of business
    • Col., colonel
    • COM, chief of mission
    • Cong., Congress
    • CORE, Congress of Racial Equality
    • COSEC, coordinating secretariat of International Student Conference
    • COSERV, National Council for Community Services to International Visitors
    • CPAO, chief public affairs officer
    • CPP, Country Plan Program
    • CRP, China Reporting Program, United States Information Service
    • CU, Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, Department of State
    • cy., copy
    • D, Democrat; also Office of the Deputy Secretary of State
    • DAC, Development Assistance Committee
    • DAG, Development Assistance Group
    • DAR, Daughters of the American Revolution
    • DCM, deputy chief of mission
    • Dept., Department
    • DFL, Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor party
    • Distrib., distribution
    • DLF, Development Loan Fund
    • DM, D Mark; Deutschemark
    • DOD, Department of Defense
    • DPAO, deputy public affairs officer
    • DRE, Directorio Revolucionario Estudiantil (Student Revolutionary Directorate), Cuba
    • DRV, Democratic Republic of Vietnam
    • DW or DMW, Donald M. Wilson
    • ECAFE, Economic Commission for Asia and the Far East
    • ECHO, passive communications satellite experiment
    • EDT, Eastern Daylight Time
    • EE, East European; Office of Eastern European Affairs, Bureau of European Affairs, Department of State
    • EEC, European Economic Community
    • Emb., Embassy
    • Embtel, Embassy telegram
    • E.O., Executive Order
    • ERM, Edward R. Murrow
    • EUR, Bureau of European Affairs, Department of State
    • EUR/CE, Office of Central European Affairs, Bureau of European Affairs, Department of State
    • EUR/SES, Soviet and East European Exchanges Staff, Bureau of European Affairs, Department of State
    • EUR/SOV, Office of Soviet Union Affairs, Bureau of European Affairs, Department of State
    • Ex-Im, also Eximbank, Export-Import Bank
    • FAO, United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization
    • FAR, Forces Armées du Royaume (Royal Armed Forces), Laos
    • FBI, Federal Bureau of Investigation
    • FBIS, Foreign Broadcast Information Service
    • FBO, Office of Foreign Buildings, Department of State
    • FCC, Federal Communications Commission
    • FDR, Franklin Delano Roosevelt
    • FE, Bureau of Far Eastern Affairs, Department of State
    • FE/P, Office of Public Affairs, Bureau of Far Eastern Affairs, Department of State
    • FE/SEA, Office of Southeast Asian Affairs, Bureau of Far Eastern Affairs, Department of State
    • Fed., federal
    • FFP, Food for Peace (Public Law 480)
    • FM, frequency modulation
    • FMM, French Military Mission
    • ForMin, foreign minister
    • FRG, Federal Republic of Germany
    • FSIO, Foreign Service Information Officer
    • FSO, Foreign Service Officer
    • FSR, Foreign Service Reserve
    • FY, fiscal year
    • FYI, for your information
    • G, Office of the Deputy Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs
    • GAO, General Accounting Office
    • GATT, General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade
    • GDR, German Democratic Republic
    • Gen., general
    • GOI, Government of India
    • GOM, Government of Malaysia
    • GS, Glenn Smith; also General Schedule
    • GVN, Government of Vietnam
    • H, Bureau of Congressional Relations, Department of State
    • HAR, Hewson A. Ryan
    • HEW, Department of Health, Education, and Welfare
    • I or USIA/I, Office of the Director, United States Information Agency
    • I/R or USIA/I/R, Office of the Director, Public Information, United States Information Agency
    • IAA or USIA/IAA, Office of the Assistant Director, Africa, United States Information Agency
    • IAE or USIA/IAE, Office of the Assistant Director, Europe, United States Information Agency
    • IAF or USIA/IAF, Office of the Assistant Director, Far East, United States Information Agency
    • IAL or USIA/IAL, Office of the Assistant Director, Latin America, United States Information Agency
    • IAN or USIA/IAN, Office of the Assistant Director, Near East and South Asia, United States Information Agency
    • IAS or USIA/IAS, Office of the Assistant Director, Soviet Union and Eastern Europe, United States Information Agency
    • IBS or USIA/IBS, Office of the Director, Broadcasting, United States Information Agency
    • ICA, International Cooperation Administration
    • ICC, International Control Commission
    • ICS or USIA/ICS, Office of the Director, Information Center Service, United States Information Agency
    • IGC or USIA/IGC, Office of the General Counsel, United States Information Agency
    • IGY, International Geophysical Year
    • IMF, International Monetary Fund
    • IMG, Informational Media Guaranty
    • IMS or USIA/IMS, Office of the Director, Motion Picture Service, United States Information Agency
    • Info-Guide, policy statement on U.S. attitudes toward a given situation, usually classified and transmitted by telegram or pouch
    • INR, Bureau of Intelligence and Research, Department of State
    • IOA or USIA/IOA, Office of the Assistant Director, Administration and Management, United States Information Agency
    • IOA/B or USIA/IOA/B, Office of the Assistant Director, Administration and Management, Budget, United States Information Agency
    • IOC or USIA/IOC, Office of Private Cooperation, United States Information Agency
    • IOP or USIA/IOP, Office of Plans (later Office of Policy), United States Information Agency
    • IPS or USIA/IPS, Office of the Director, Press and Publications Service, United States Information Agency
    • IRR or USIA/IRR, Research and Reference Service, United States Information Agency
    • IRS, Office of the Director of Information Research Service, United States Information Agency
    • ISC, International Student Conference
    • ISMUN, International Student Movement for the United Nations
    • ITV or USIA/ITV, Office of the Director, Television Service, United States Information Agency
    • IUS, International Union of Students
    • IUSY, International Union of Socialist Youth
    • JCS, Joint Chiefs of Staff
    • KL, Kong Le
    • kw, kilowatt
    • L, Office of the Legal Adviser, Department of State
    • LDB, Lucius D. Battle
    • LSB, Leslie S. Brady
    • M, Office of the Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs
    • MAAG, Military Assistance Advisory Group
    • MACV, Military Assistance Command, Vietnam
    • MAP, Military Assistance Program
    • McG, George McGovern
    • McGB, Mc George Bundy
    • MBS, Mutual Broadcasting System
    • Meo (Hmong), mountain tribes in Laos
    • mm, millimeter
    • MSP, Mutual Security Program
    • mtg., meeting
    • NAACP, National Association for the Advancement of Colored People
    • NAFSA, National Association of Foreign Student Advisers
    • NARBA, North American Regional Broadcasting Agreement
    • NASA, National Aeronautics and Space Administration
    • NATO, North Atlantic Treaty Organization
    • NBC, National Broadcasting Company
    • NCFE, National Committee for a Free Europe
    • NEA, Bureau of Near Eastern and South Asian Affairs, Department of State; also National Endowment for the Arts
    • NLF, National Liberation Front
    • NODIS, no distribution
    • NSAM, National Security Action Memorandum
    • NSC, National Security Council
    • NSF, National Science Foundation
    • OAS, Organization of American States
    • OBE, overtaken by events
    • OCB, Operations Coordination Board
    • OECD, Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development
    • OEE, Office of Educational Exchange, Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, Department of State
    • OEEC, Organization for European Economic Cooperation
    • OEP, Office of Emergency Planning, White House
    • OITF, Office of International Trade Fairs, Department of Commerce
    • OSD, Office of the Secretary of Defense
    • P, Bureau of Public Affairs, Department of State
    • P/PG, Policy Plans and Guidance Staff, Bureau of Public Affairs, Department of State
    • P/SI, Special Information Staff, Bureau of Public Affairs, Department of State
    • PAO, public affairs officer
    • Pax Romana, international federation of Catholic university students and graduates
    • PCG, Planning Coordination Group
    • PDJ, Plaine des Jarres (Plain of Jars), Laos
    • P.L., public Law; also Pathet Lao
    • P.L.-480; Public Law 480, Food for Peace
    • POLAD, political advisor
    • Polaris, submarine
    • Potomac Cable, unclassified Info-Guide transmitted over Wireless File
    • Pres., President
    • PSB, Psychological Strategy Board
    • Q & A, question and answer
    • R, Republican
    • R & D, research and development; also research and design
    • ref., reference
    • reftel, reference telegram
    • Res., resolution
    • Rev., reverend
    • RFA, Radio Free Asia
    • RFE/RL, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty
    • RG, Record Group
    • RH, Reed Harris
    • RIAS, Rundfunk in Amerikanischen Sektor (U.S. Radio in the U.S. Sector of Berlin)
    • RLG, Royal Laotian Government
    • RLN, Radio Liberty Network
    • RMR or RM/R, Records and Reference Branch, Department of State
    • rpt., repeat
    • rptd, repeated
    • ROK or ROKG, Republic of Korea/Republic of Korea Government
    • RSC, Regional Service Center, USIA
    • S, Office of the Secretary of State; also Senate
    • S/AL, Office of the Ambassador at Large, Department of State
    • S/P, Policy Planning Council, Department of State
    • S/S, Executive Secretariat, Department of State
    • S/S-RO, Reports and Operations Staff, Executive Secretariat, Department of State
    • S-5, U.S. military civil affairs or civil affairs officers
    • SE, southeast
    • SEATO, South East Asian Treaty Organization
    • Sec., secretary
    • SECAF, Secretary of the Air Force
    • SECNAV, Secretary of the Navy
    • sess., session
    • SFRC, Senate Foreign Relations Committee
    • SIE, Special International Exhibits
    • SNIE, Special National Intelligence Estimate
    • SOP, standard operating procedure
    • SORAFOM, Société de radiodiffusion de la France d’outre-mer (radio and television stations operating in French overseas departments and territories)
    • SOV, Office of Soviet Union Affairs, Bureau of European Affairs, Department of State
    • SovBloc, Soviet Bloc
    • SP or SPA, Office of Southwest Pacific Affairs, Bureau of Far Eastern Affairs, Department of State
    • SR, President’s Special Representative, Department of State
    • Stat., statute
    • STRAC, Strategic Army Corps
    • TASS, Telegrafnoye Agentsvo Sovetskogo Soiuza (Telegraph Agency of the Soviet Union)
    • TCS, Thomas C. Sorensen
    • TRP, Taiwan Reporting Program, United States Information Service
    • TV, television
    • TVA, Tennessee Valley Authority
    • U, Office of the Under Secretary of State
    • U-2, high altitude reconnaissance aircraft
    • UAR, United Arab Republic
    • UK, United Kingdom
    • UN, United Nations
    • UNESCO, United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization
    • UNGA, United Nations General Assembly
    • UNICEF, United Nations Children’s Emergency Fund
    • UPI, United Press International
    • US, United States
    • USA, United States of America; also United States Army
    • USAF, United States Air Force
    • USARYIS, United States Army Ryukyus Islands
    • USCAR, United States Civil Administration of the Ryukyus
    • USINFO, series indicator for messages from the United States Information Service
    • USN, United States Navy
    • USUN, U.S. Mission to the United Nations
    • USIA, United States Information Agency
    • USIS, United States Information Service
    • USITO, outgoing telegram from the United States Information Agency to the field
    • USMC, United States Marine Corps
    • USOM, United States Operations Mission
    • USSR, Union of Soviet Socialist Republics
    • U.S.T., United States Treaties and Other International Agreements
    • VC, Viet Cong
    • VIP, very important person
    • VIS, Vietnamese Information Service
    • VOA, Voice of America
    • WAH, W. Averell Harriman
    • WAY, World Assembly of Youth
    • WE, Western European
    • WFCYWG, World Federation of Catholic Young Women and Girls
    • WFDY, World Federation of Democratic Youth
    • WH, White House
    • WR, weekly report
    • WUS, World University Service
    • Z, Zulu (Greenwich Mean Time)
    • Zone D, Viet Cong jungle base area near Saigon