## Page 1

176-10036-10129

2025 RELEASE UNDER THE PRESIDENT JOHN F. KENNEDY ASSASSINATION RECORDS ACT OF 1992

JFK ASSASSINATION SYSTEM

IDENTIFICATION FORM

AGENCY : NARA

RECORD NUMBER : 176-10036-10129

RECORD SERIES : National Security Files

AGENCY FILE NUMBER :

ORIGINATOR : CIA

FROM :

TO :

TITLE : CIA Information Telegram

DATE: 9/17/1963

PAGES : 3

SUBJECTS :

DOCUMENT TYPE :

CLASSIFICATION :

RESTRICTIONS :

CURRENT STATUS :

DATE OF LAST REVIEW : 9/10/2000

OPENING CRITERIA :

• .

COMMENTS : National Security Files, Box 200: Vietnam,9/17/1963-9/21/63. Box 2

---

## Page 2

i12

r Bundy

NARDS

TO

WASHINGTON HONOLULU

FROM : SAIGON 0966, 17 SEPTEMBER 1963

1. AFTER MAKING AND BREAKING FOUR APPOINTMENTS WITH CAS

OFFICER, GEN TRAN TU OAI SENT MESSAGE ON 5 SEPT VIA LE TRUNG

THANH THAT HE CONSIDERED IT BEST IN PRESENT CLIMATE THAT CAS

OFFICER NOT COME TO GEN OAI'S HQS OWING HEAVY SURVEILLANCE.

TRANSPARENCY THIS EXCUSE INDICATED BY ASSURANCES THAT GEN OAI

THOUGHT IT PERFECTLY IN ORDER TO CONTINUE VISIT HIS HQS SO-

CALLED CLANDESTINE ENCLOSURE, GATE TO WHICH NOT MORE THAN FIFTY

FEET FROM MAIN GATE. ONE SURVEILLANCE WOULD COVER BOTH.

2. IN HOUR CONVERSATION THANH AND CAS OFFICER WENT OVER

VARIOUS SUBJECTS, FIRST BEING ARTICLE ON CAS IN VIETNAM TIMES,

AND CAS OFFICER ASKED THANH TO GIVE GEN OAI FULL ACCOUNT OF CON-

VERSATION. CAS OFFICER POINTED OUT THAT LIKE MOST EXPOSES THIS

WAS MISHMASH OF FACT AND FANCY, THAT TO EXTENT IT WAS ACCURATE

THE WRITER DISCUSSED JOINT PROJECTS WHICH HAD BEEN APPROVED BY

U.S. AND GVN, IN MOST CASED BY COUNSELLOR NHU HIMSELF. IT WOULD

THEREFORE BE HEIGHT OF ILLOGIC FOR U.S. TO SPEND LARGE SUMS AND

EFFORTS ON BEHALF GOVERNMENT WHICH WE SIMULTANEOUSLY ATTEMPTING

OVERTHROW. CAS OFFICER TOLD THANH TO TELL OAI THAT IN SUCH

CIRCUMSTANCES CAS HAD NO CHOICE BUT REVIEW ALL PROJECTS.

3. THANH BROUGHT VARIOUS MESSAGES ON WHICH OAI ASKED FOR

CAS OFFICER'S OPINION. FIRST WAS QUERY WHETHER: CAS OFFICER

AGREED WITH GEN OAI THAT PRES KENNEDY ERRED IN STATING GVN OUT

OF TOUCH WITH PEOPLE AND ALSO THAT BUDDHISTS BEING REPRESSED.

CAS OFFICER SAID HE DISAGREED WITH OAI ON BOTH COUNTS AND CONCURRED

SECRET

---

## Page 3

SECRET

COMPLETELY WITH PRES KENNEDY, CITING IN BOTH CASES EARLIER AND

FAIRLY DETAILED CONVERSATIONS WITH OAI, WHO HAD SPOKEN STRONGLY

AGAINST GN FOR HANDLING OF BUDDHISTS AND ALSO DENOUNCED DIEM

AND NHU BY NAME FOR MOUTHING THEORIES WHICH WERE MEANINGLESS TO

POPULATION, WHO OAI SAID HAD LOST 150,000 KILLED IN PAST TEN

YEARS. IT DISAPPOINTING TO SEE SUCH CRAVEN, OBVIOUSLY PARTY-LINE

CHANGE OF HEART ON PART OF SENIOR AND INTELLIGENT OFFICER, AND

NOT SURPRISING HE EMBARRASSED DELIVER SUCH OPINIONS PERSONALLY.

STATION HAS HAD NO FURTHER CONTACT WITH GEN OAI'S OFFICER SINCE

5 SEPTEMBER.

4. APART FROM FOREGOING, STATION IS TAKING GOOD LOOK AT

GEN OAI'S OPS FOR ANOTHER REASON, NAMELY POSSIBLE DOUBLE PAYMENT

BY MACV. AND STATION FOR SOME OF SAME PROJECTS. MACV IS CURRENTLY

BUDGETING ABOUT 140,000,000 PIASTERS ANNUALLY FOR THIS OP, SUM

WHICH VASTLY SURPASSES OUR HELP. UNFORTUNATELY MACV SIMPLY

HANDS OUT MONEY AND REQUIRES NO ACCOUNTINGS WHATEVER.. GEN DAI'S

HAS ALWAYS PROVIDED DETAILED ACCOUNTINGS TO STATION PER OUR

SPECIFICATIONS, BUT THEY COULD OBVIOUSLY BE MEANINGLESS SINCE

OPS SUBSIDIZED BY MACV CANNOT BE CHECKED. REQUEST HQS

RESERVE JUDGMENT UNTIL STATION AND MACV HAVE HAD CHANCE TO PIN

DOWN. NEXT STEPS INCLUDE CONSULTATION WITH MACV (NOTE: THIS

HANDLED WITH MAJOR JAMES RICHARDSON, WHO HAS FULL CAS CLEARANCE),

FOLLOWED BY JOINT MEETING WITH GEN OAI'S HQS AND REQUEST FOR

EXPLANATIONS WHERE NECESSARY. REGARDLESS OF WHETHER DUPLICATION

CAN BE PROVED, STATION AND MACV HAVE TENTATIVELY AND INFORMALLY

CONCLUDED THAT BEST GENERAL GROUND RULES WILL BE FOR MACV TO

2

SECRET

---

## Page 4

HEY

SUPPORT GEN OAI'S ACTIVITIES DIRECTED AT SVN TARGETS (EXCEPT

BLACK RADIO), CAS TO SUPPORT ONLY PROJECTS TARGETED AT. DRV.

ALTHOUGH THIS SOLUTION MAY BE TOO PAT BECAUSE OF POSSIBLE

INJUNCTIONS RE USING DOD MONEY AGAINST CIVILIAN TARGET, AT LEAST

THIS PROBLEM HAS NOT ARISEN YET. EFFECT OF THIS TYPE ARRANGEMENT

WILL BE FOR STATION TO CONCENTRATE ON LEAFLETS AND BLACK RADIOS

(WHETHER TARGETED AT NORTH OR SOUTH), MACV ON ALL ELSE. STATION

WILL ADVISE SOONEST, PROBABLY WITHIN WEEK.

END

OF MESSAGE

SECRET

---