463. Telegram From the Department of State to the Embassy in Vietnam1
1339. Transcript Secretary’s press conference2 being relayed in wireless file. The following represents our reflections on today’s traffic, and we pass them on only for purposes of consultation.
Our inclination now is to avoid further statements until situation becomes more clear. We are particularly attempting avoid contributing to personality clash between USG and Khanh, although we realize he may indeed be committed to anti-American campaign. We also hope that if Khanh eventually goes, it appears as much as possible to be the result of decision of his colleagues and not ours.
We wonder whether it is wise to put too much pressure on Suu and Huong in effort to secure early reversal of Armed Forces Council’s action in disbanding HNC or publicly to repudiate offending generals. It seems to us it is important attempt isolate Khanh, perhaps by working on Young Turks and other generals. Realize this may take time, but we are not sure that Huong and Suu are up to taking on military establishment by themselves.
We agree completely that rash action of military must be reversed, but we would imagine that such reversal will have to be result of apparent compromise, perhaps by getting Young Turks to agree that changes in membership of Council might be undertaken by Suu.
Your assessment in Embtel 19153 of potential candidates for Commander-in-Chief agrees with ours.
- Source: Department of State, Central Files, POL 27 VIET S. Secret; Priority; Exdis. Drafted by Forrestal, cleared with William Bundy and McNaughton, and initialed by Rusk. Repeated to CIA, the Department of Defense, the White House, and CINCPAC.↩
- For the transcript of Rusk’s press conference, held at 11 a.m., see Department of State Bulletin, January 11, 1965, pp. 34–39. The Secretary stressed the need for Vietnamese unity.↩
- Document 460↩