176 10036 10098

176-10036-10098 2025 RELEASE UNDER THE PRESIDENT JOHN F. KENNEDY ASSASSINATION RECORDS ACT OF 1992

JFK ASSASSINATION SYSTEM IDENTIFICATION FORM

AGENCY: NARA RECORD NUMBER : 176-10036-10098 RECORD SERIES: National Security Files AGENCY FILE NUMBER :

ORIGINATOR: CIA FROM : TO: TITLE: Central Intelligence Agency Information Report DATE: 5/18/1963 PAGES : 3 SUBJECTS: DOCUMENT TYPE : CLASSIFICATION : RESTRICTIONS : CURRENT STATUS : DATE OF LAST REVIEW : 9/10/2000 OPENING CRITERIA : COMMENTS: National Security Files, Box 197: Vietnam, 4/63-5/63. Box 2

NLK-81-327 TELEGRAM INFORMATION REPORT TELEGRAM

  1. Vietnam

CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE AGENCY

This material contains Information affecting the National Defense of the United States within the meaning of the Espionage Laws, Title 18, U.S.C.Secs. 793 and 794, the transmission or revelation of which in any manner to an unauthorized person is prohibited by law.

CONFIDENTIAL CLASSIFICATION - DISSEMINATION CONTROLS (When Filled in) NO FOREIGN DISSEM

COUNTRY SOUTH VIETNAM REPORT NO. TDCS-3/547,672 SUBJECT PLANS FOR A COUP D'ETAT IN CENTRAL DATE DISTR. 18 MAY 1963 VIETNAM BY THE REFORMED VNQDD

PRECEDENCE ROUTINE

DATE OF INFO. EARLY MAY 1963 REFERENCES IN 141761 PLACE & DATE ACO. VIETNAM, SAIGON (13 MAY. 1963)

FIELD REPORT NO. FVS 8959 THIS IS UNEVALUATED INFORMATION. SOURCE GRADINGS ARE DEFINITIVE. APPRAISAL OF CONTENT IS TENTATIVE. SOURCE A VIETNAMESE NEWSPAPERMAN (C) WITH EXTENSIVE CONTACTS IN PRESS AND POLITICAL CIRCLES.

APPRAISAL: IT IS PROBABLY TRUE THAT THE VNQDD IS BEING REFORMED ITS CAPABILITIES IN CENTRAL VIETNAM CANNOT BE JUDGED.

  1. SHORTLY AFTER THE 8 MAY 1963 INCIDENT IN HUE, NGUYEN VAN LUC RECEIVED A PLAN FOR A COUP D'ETAT IN CENTRAL VIETNAM FROM THE CENTRAL COMMITTEE OF THE CENTRAL VIETNAM THOẠT XAC PHONG TRAO (TXPT). (SOURCE COMMENT.. TXPT DOES NOT TRANSLATE MEANINGFULLY INTO ENGLISH. THOAT HAS THE CONNOTATION OF GOING OUT IN MIND AND SPIRIT: XAC MEANS BODY, I.E., PHYSICALLY; PHONG TRAO MEANS MOVEMENT THUS, THE MOVEMENT OF MIND, SPIRIT, AND BODY MIGHT BE ONE TRANSLATION; A BETTER ONE WOULD BE VNQDD.) THE TXPT HAS BEEN DEVELOPING SINCE VIETNAM QUOC DAN DANG (VNQDD) VIETNAMESE NATIONALIST PARTY) 1958 FROM THE PARTICULARLY THOSE ELEMENTS IN CENTRAL VIETNAM,

CONFIDENTIAL CLASSIFICATION - DISSEMINATION CONTROLS NO FOREIGN DISSEM

STATE/INR DIA ARMY/ACSI NAVY AIR JCB SECDEF NGA NIC AID USIA OCI ONE OCR GAR STATE/DIR GROUP I Excluded fram suiematit downgrading and declassification 081 00 EXO

TELEGRAM INFORMATION REPORT TELEGRAM

MIKA OBSOLETE PREVIOUS EDITIONS.

SANITIZED MK.01.197.6.10.2

CLASSIFICATION-DISSEMINATION CONTROLS. CONFIDENTIAL 10 FOREIGN DISSEM IN TDCS-3/547,672 41761 PAGE 2

THE VNQDD STRONGHOLD. THE TXPT, ALTHOUGH COMPOSED ENTIRELY OF FORMER VNQDD MEMBERS, WAS ESTABLISHED ESSENTIALLY AS A BUDDHIST ASSOCIATION AND HAS BEEN LEGALLY ENGAGED IN CIVIC AND SOCIAL ACTIVITIES SINCE ITS FORMATION. CLANDESTINE POLITICAL ORGANIZATION HAS PROCEEDED FOR THE PURPOSE OF DEVELOPING NEW, YOUNGER LEADERS, AND OF DENYING THE OLDER PASSIVE TENETS OF BUDDHISM AS WELL AS THE OLDER LEADERS OF THE VNQDD, THE ULTIMATE INTENT BEING A REVITALIZED REVOLUTIONARY SPIRIT. (FIELD COMMENT. LUC IS THE FATHER AND ACCOMPLICE OF NGUYEN VAN CU, ONE OF THE TWO PILOTS WHO BOMBED THE PRISIOONTIAL PALACE ON 27 FEBRUARY 1962.)

  1. THE TXPT CENTRAL COMMITTEE REMINDED LUC THAT THE ORGAN1- ZATION WAS IN A POSITION TO HANDLE A COUP ACTION IN CENTRAL VIETNAM EFFECTIVELY, POINTING OUT THAT THOSE MILITARY UNITS NOT CONTROLLED COULD BE NEUTRALIZED AND THAT THE AIR BASE AT DA NANG COULD BE CONTROLLED THROUGH THE AIR FORCE. THE COMMITTEE STATED THAT, AFTER THE ANTI-BUDDHIST ACTIONS OF THE GOVERNMENT, THE PEOPLE WERE READY FOR AN UPRISING. BY TAKING NGO DINH CAN AND ARCHBISHOP NGO DINH THUC INTO CUSTODY AND BY GAINING MILITARY CONTROL OVER THUA THIEN AND QUANG NAM PROVINCES, SUCCESS COULD BE ASSURED IN CENTRAL VIETNAM. THIS WOULD PLACE THE TXPT IN A POSITION OF USING PRESIDENT DIEM'S TACTICS OF NEGOTIATIONS AGAINST HIM, I.E., HAVING GAINED CONTROL OVER CENTRAL VIIETNAM THEY WOULD OFFER TO NEGOTIATE WITH DIEM

CONFIDENTIAL CLASSIFICATION-DISSEMINATION CONTROLS ND FOREIGN DISSEM

CLASSIFICATION-DISSEMINATION CONTROLS CONFIDENTIAL IN FOREIGN DISSEM TDCS-3/547,672 41761 3 PAGE

AND AT THE SAME TIME, THEY WOULD BE MOUNTING A COUP AGAINST THE REGIME IN SAIGON, WHICH WOULD TAKE PLACE NO LATER THAN THREE DAYS AFTER THE ONE IN CENTRAL VIETNAM.

  1. LUC SENT A TRUSTED FOLLOWER, ONE VIET TO SAIGON TO DISCUSS THE PLAN WITH AN OPPOSITIONIST SYMPATHIZER AND GET HIS VIEWPOINT. VIET WAS ADVISED TO TELL LUC THAT ANY SUCH ACTION WAS PRECIPITATE AND DANGEROUS. ALTHOUGH IT WAS PROBABLY TRUE THAT THE FORMER VNQDD MEMBERS IN CENTRAL VIETNAM HAD THE POWER CLAIMED, A COUP THERE, WITHOUT SIMULTANEOUS ACTION IN SAIGON, WOULD LEAVE A VACUUM WHICH THE VIET CONG (VC) COULD IMMEDIATELY USE TO THEIR OWN ADVANTAGE. VC REACTION PROBABLY WOULD TAKE THE FORM OF GAINING CONTROL OF ALL AREAS NOT EFFECTIVELY CONTROLLED BY THE COUP GROUP, WITH THE ULTIMATE POSSIBILITY OF PARTITIONING CENTRAL VIETNAM, OF BEING IN A POSITION TO FORM A REVOLUTIONARY GOVERNMENT, AND FINALLY, OF BEING ABLE TO CALL FOR NEGOTIATIONS. THEMSELVES. ACCORDING TO VIET, THIS FOLLOWED LUC'S THINKING, PARTICULARLY BECAUSE HIS FOLLOWERS WERE NOT IN A POSITION TO ACT IN THE SOUTHERN PART OF THE COUNTRY. VIET THOUGHT THAT LUC WOULD INSTRUCT THE TXPT CENTRAL COMMITTEE IN. CENTRAL VIETNAM TO TAKE NO ACTION AT THIS TIME, AND THAT LUC'S ADVICE WOULD BE ACCEPTED.

  2. FIELD DISSEM. STATE ARMY NAVY AIR USMACV USOM MAAG USIS CINCPAC PACFLT PACAF ARPAC 9TH FIELD STATION AND AIR DIVISION. CONFIDENTIAL END OF MESSAGE CLASSIFICATION-DISSEMINATION CONTROLS NO FOREIGN DISSEM