47. Memorandum From the Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Far Eastern Affairs (Sebald) to the Acting Secretary of State1
SUBJECT
- Status of information on Viet Minh truce violations
Viet Minh violations of the Geneva Accords fall into the two fields of the introduction of arms and of restraining persons from freely moving to the South. The latter has now been largely remedied with comparatively few complaints registered. The introduction of arms, as charged by the French, has been declared by the ICC to no longer be taking place.
The following is an extract from IAC paper D–93/2,2 regarding violations through the introduction of arms:
“Reliable intelligence reports received through French sources clearly indicate that a considerable amount of Chinese war material has been moved into North Viet-Nam from Communist China since the Armistice. Virtually all of this movement occurred via the uninspected points of Cao Bang and Dong Dang on the Sino-Viet-Nam border. Illicit receipt of war material reached a peak in later July and August and continued at a reduced rate at least through mid-October. Shipments of non-prohibited material, such as gasoline and quartermaster supplies, are continuing at a relatively high level. Since the entry into force of the Agreement, the Viet Minh are known to have received illegally more than 150 pieces of field and anti-aircraft artillery, more than 500 mortars, 9,000 automatic weapons, and 500 recoilless weapons, in addition to substantial quantities of ammunition of all types and more than 400 military vehicles.
“It is difficult for the ICC to detect or investigate violations of this article, primarily because ICC teams have not been permitted to travel freely in the area around the Chinese border where supplies are received. The fixed team at Lang Son reported on 30 September 1954 that reconnaissance of roads was impossible due to restrictions placed on all movements by local Viet Minh authorities. Moreover these teams are too small to cover fully the lengthy and largely inaccessible border zone.
“The best available U.S. intelligence (based largely on usually reliable French sources) indicates that the Viet Minh army has continued since the Armistice to increase its firepower as well as its combat [Page 96] efficiency and size. The fact that the Viet Minh is reinforcing its armed forces tends to confirm the reports that a large amount of war material, quite clearly over and above the allowable categories, has entered illegally into the Viet Minh zones despite the system of inspection established under the cease-fire Agreement, and in direct violation of Article 17 of that Agreement.”