eisenhower letter to ngo dinh diem

President John F. Kennedy was more disposed,than previously understood, to support actions that might change the leadership in South Vietnam. For you, for President Eisenhower, and for the American people, the choice in Vietnam was whether to 'sink or swim with Ngo Dinh Diem.' A Strong Anti-Communist Leader in South Vietnam At Geneva, Ho Chi Minh agreed to stop fighting in part because he was sure he'd win an election in South Vietnam. If President Diem refused to jettison Nhu, then Diem would have to go as well. An American draft-dodger explains his actions (1967) 336-346. That post included a selection of essential documents, including the CIA briefing where the agencys director, John McCone, informed the president of the initial approaches by South Vietnamese plotters to CIA officers. Nhu was killed along with his brother onNovember 2, 1963. Diem made conflicting claims that the Buddhists were being stirred up by communist cadres and that the crisis was entirely solved. President Eisenhower's Letter to Ngo Dinh Diem, President of the A CIA report on Viet Cong weaknesses and vulnerabilities (July 1965) As . [8] This quote appears in the Church Committees interim report on Alleged Assassination Plots Involving Foreign Leaders (p. 221), as well as the note card we present here, compiled by committee staffer Rhett Dawson on June 29, 1975. Washington, DC, November 1, 2020 President John F. Kennedy was more disposed to support the removal of South Vietnamese President Ngo Dinh Diem in late 1963 than previously appeared to be the case, according to a recently released White House tape and transcript. The agreement called for an election to reunify the two zones in 1956. Nhu thought it would take involvement by the United States to seek an end to the present crisis. The War Powers Act curtails the presidents authority to wage war (November 1973) We strive for accuracy and fairness. McNamara and Taylors report on South Vietnam (October 1963) The Saigon government was headed by President Ngo Dinh Diem, an autocratic, nepotistic ruler who valued power more than either his relations with the Vietnamese people or progress in fighting the communists. LBJ Library: Bromley K. Smith Papers, b. Viet Minh call to arms against the Japanese (March 1945) JFK Library: John Newman Papers, Notebook, August 24-31, 1963.. A US report on the Buddhist crisis in South Vietnam (July 1963) All articles are regularly reviewed and updated by the HISTORY.com team. The United States' changing connection with Vietnam is demonstrated by the letters from Presidents Dwight Eisenhower and John F. Kennedy to President Ngo Dinh Diem, as Anderson's chapter "The United States and Vietnam" in-depth examines. Harkins, a long-time friend of Lodges from their upbringing in Massachusetts and shared time in the U.S. Army, expressed regret for his remarks and said he would inform Don that his comments did not reflect official U.S. Government policy. Diem's handwritten proclamation to the Army on the day of the coup, November 1, 1963 (Document 26). Hoa Tng Nh (Trng Ph Th) General Vo Nguyen Giap on why the US will lose in Vietnam (1966) The discussion that followed is remarkable for the unanimity that had developed among nearly all of Kennedys advisors against Diem. Eisenhower made it clear to Diem that U.S. aid to his government during. Ng nh Dim: Ti thit min Nam (HNT & TTN), Vng President Eisenhower complimented President Ngo Dinh Diem on the remarkable achievements of the Republic of Viet-Nam under the leadership of President Ngo Dinh Diem since he took office in July 1954. New documents and extracts will be added regularly. President Ngo Dinh Diem of South Vietnam Addressed a Joint Meeting of The inauguration speech of Duong Van Minh (April 1975) According to Lodges report of the two-hour discussion, many of the points he raised were nearly verbatim with those he discussed with Kennedy on August 15 including the importance of U.S. public opinion, the role of Madame Nhu, and the recent unrest in Saigon. Diem agreed to the needed reforms stipulated as a precondition for receiving aid, but he never actually followed through on his promises. In 2003 we posted an electronic briefing book with one of the first-released Kennedy tape recordings of a key White House deliberation on the final go-ahead for the coup. The Presidents Intelligence Checklist for August 24, 1963 concluded that Nhu is believed to be behind the recent antagonism against the Buddhists and the imposition of martial law in Saigon. If you do reduplicate the document, indicate the source. On the evening of September 7, Ngo Dinh Nhu called a meeting of all senior South Vietnamese military commanders in the Saigon area. 198, f.: Vietnam, 7/21-7/31/63.. Primary Source. CIA Saigon Station Chief John Richardson met with Ngo Dinh Nhu for a conversation that focused primarily on the evolving Buddhist crisis. Eisenhowers letter of support to Ngo Dinh Diem (October 1954) Changing the day will navigate the page to that given day in history. We have been exploring ways and means to permit our aid to Viet-Nam to be more effective and to make a greater contribution to the welfare and stability of the government of Viet-Nam. @table of contents. JFKPapers: NSF: Country File: b. These materials reveal that Lodge already held nuanced views on the situation in South Vietnam and had already met with South Vietnamese representatives in the U.S., who happened to be the parents of Ngo Dinh Nhus wife. This present E-book opens (Document 1) with the record of a July 19, 1963, encounter between CIA Station Chief John Richardson and Diems brother, Ngo Dinh Nhu, who ran many of South Vietnams special services and was increasingly seen as the power behind the presidency. Nhu ordered that ARVN soldiers be instructed to open fire on any foreigners involved in provocative acts., American officials differed on who might follow Diem and Nhu in leading Saigon. National Defense University: Maxwell D. Taylor Papers, Vietnam, Chapter XXIII, T-172-68. and to remember the thousands of The implication is that Mike [Forrestal] is.. The Henry G. Sanders Web Site -- Vietnam The Sourcebook is a collection of public domain and 735-736. Ambassador Frederick Nolting that he would make no such move against the Buddhists, Harriman and Ball were no longer sure of Diems intentions. Once American policymakers became aware that the coup plotters considered assassination a potential part of their plan they proceeded very carefully. I have been unable to find the claimed McCone quote in any contemporary record. Internet History Sourcebooks: Modern History - Fordham University File : Ngo Dinh Diem at Washington - ARC 542189.jpg President Eisenhower authorized CIA agents to undermine Mohammad Mossadegh's political power to Select one: A. apply the domino theory to the Middle East. The implications of the agreement concerning Viet-Nam have caused grave concern regarding ND c c lm Th Tng (HNT & TTN) Phan Boi Chau on Vietnams awakening (1914) The citizens of America saw this, not as an opportunity, but as a danger to their precious country. This shows that Nhu, even when calm, as Richardson observes, obsessed with Buddhists spreading propaganda and hiding communist agents among their monks at some of the most important pagodas. purposes and personal use. aid will be met by performance on the part of the Government of Viet-Nam in undertaking The tapes of the White House meetings on August 26, 27, and 28, along with written records of those meetings made by NSC notetaker Bromley K. Smith and State Department official Roger A. Hilsman are available in the earlier postings, along with one record by General Victor H. Krulak. The visits all confirmed what INR had said in its Problem of Nhu memorandum (Document 17). The implications of the agreement concerning Vietnam have caused grave concern regarding the future of the country temporarily . Dear Mr. President: I have been following with great interest the course of developments in Viet-Nam, particularly since the conclusion of the conference at Geneva. The purpose of this offer is to assist The South Vietnamese demands for American support became more insistent in the second half of August, 1963, and the posting presented the National Security Council (NSC) and State Department records of a series of White House meetings and other U.S. deliberations over a coup in Saigon. Among the findings from the present posting or from our several Diem E-books taken together are the following: Vietnam perplexed American leaders from Franklin D. Roosevelt on. this page, Nhu commented that the South Vietnamese military officers, many of whom were Buddhist themselves, started off in sympathy with the Buddhists following the uprising that occurred in Hue on May 8. Vice PresidentJohnson,Ngo Dinh Diem,and Ambassador Frederick Nolting in South Vietnam's Presidential Palace in 1961(Wikipedia). Diem agreed but believes he should have enough troops of his own to carry out his own defense. Letters from Eisenhower and Kennedy to Ngo Dinh Diem Eisenhower, Dwight D. Eisenhower to Ngo Dinh Diem. Eisenhower to Ngo Dinh Diem, President of the Council of Ministers of Vietnam, Kennedy was personally aware of the pro-Diem views of Frederick E. Nolting, Lodges predecessor as ambassador, strengthening the impression that he included Nolting in White House deliberationsand personally engaged him in colloquy about Saigon eventspartly to build a case that all sides in this debate had been heard. I am, accordingly, instructing the American Ambassador to Viet-Nam to examine Other records published today, including NSC notes of White House meetings and CIA field reports from South Vietnam, allow for a broader look at the coup period and the roles of on-the-ground officials such as the CIA's Lucien Conein and Ambassador Frederick Nolting. TT Kennedy responds to a question on Vietnam (February 1962) Kennedy's views on removing Diem become more explicit in a tape recording of his meeting with newly-appointed Ambassador to Saigon Henry Cabot Lodge, Jr., in mid-August 1963, just before Lodge set out for Saigon. Nhu spoke out in response to signals that the U.S. planned to cut foreign aid, dismissing the speculation by saying that South Vietnam had sufficient reserves to operate for twenty years. Annapolis: Naval Institute Press, 2008, pp. The US recognises self-governing Vietnam (February 1950), Final declaration of the Geneva Conference on Indochina (July 1954) The Diem Coup After 50 Years John F. Kennedy and South Vietnam, 1963 Diem's anti-communism attracted the Americans. While Colby emphasized that Saigon had stabilized, Kennedy asked numerous questions about the likelihood of success should the disaffected generals move forward with a coup attempt. Here we present Roger Hilsmans record of that meeting from State Department files (Document 24). President Eisenhower: Letter to Ngo Dinh Diem, October 23, 1954 - Sites [7] CIA, Saigon cable 1447, October 5, 1963, cited in Thomas L. Ahern, CIA and the House of Ngo: Covert Action in South Vietnam, 1954-1963. Suite 701, Gelman Library with great interest the course of developments in Viet-Nam, particularly 4, f.: Vietnam 9/119/20/63 [II]. National Security Archive: George McT. Kennedys associates concluded early on that Ngo Dinh Nhu had to go. Just as Kennedy ended the August round of coup talks, State Department official Paul Kattenburg, who had known Diem for a decade, had his own experience (Document 14). Eisenhower's Letter of Support to Ngo Dinh Diem, October 23, 1954 Dear Mr. President: I have been following with great interest the course of developments in Viet-Nam, particularly since the conclusion of the conference at Geneva. ISBN: 978-0-7006-1690-9, Vietnam: The History of an Unwinnable War, 1945-1975 Rights: Public Domain, Free of Known Copyright Restrictions. Kattenburg reported he was hardly able to speak more than once or twice in what was primarily a one-sided monologue by Diem who said he was ready to die even while vigorously defending the policies of his government over the previous months. Director of the Bureau of Intelligence and Research Thomas L. Hughes made notes of White House conversations with National Security Council staff member Michael Forrestal and Assistant Secretary of State for Far Eastern Affairs Roger Hilsman during August 24-28, 1963, which he referred to as coup planning week. Vietnam took up most of the discussions, including criticism of Nhus explanation for the series of events that led to the pagoda raids which Forrestal said was what he wanted us to hear. They agreed that the Diem government could not survive another 12 months. Nhu suggested that he was not a central figure in the actions undertaken against the Buddhists, although he was in support of them. Harriman again said that the U.S. would lose South Vietnam if the coup fails, which was necessary because the political situation was bound to disintegrate further under Diem. Letters to Diem - wwhsenglish.pbworks.com United States Ambassador Donald R. Heath delivered this letter from President Eisenhower to Ngo Dinh Diem, President of the Council of Ministers of Vietnam (Viet-Nam), on October 23, 1954. Eisenhower believed "losing" South Vietnam to communism would be a strategic, economic, and humanitarian disaster. He actually reached Saigon two days after their conversation (August 23, Washington date). by a long and exhausting war and faced with enemies without and by their [4] Accounts of the CIA meetings with General Khiem on September 16 (CIA Saigon cable 0940) and 26 (Saigon cable 1222) appear in FRUS, IV, pp. a leaflet calling for the people to rise up against the oppressor Diem; A letter to the Vietnamese Army telling them that Diem is just carrying on French colonialism; a 41-page document alleging Diem crimes against the people; and a leaflet that said "For the past eight years our land . While Lodge was still in transit to Vietnam, Diem declared martial law and his military forces raided the Buddhist pagodas that were believed to be sheltering those behind the latest anti-government protests. Kennedy did a lot of agreeing, letting Lodge talk, but the two concurred the press in Saigon posed a problem, JFK expressed the sense that something would have to be done about Diem, but he didnt want to be driven to that by the press, and he was not yet certain who, other than Diem, the U.S. could support in Saigon. glad that the United States is able to assist in this humanitarian effort. New Light in a Dark Corner: Evidence on the Diem Coup in South Vietnam Le Duan: The path of revolution in the South (1956) The Government of the United States expects that this aid will be met by performance on the part of the Government of Viet-Nam in undertaking needed reforms. Washingtons last opportunity to back out of the Saigon coup occurred on October 29, when President Kennedy gathered his advisers to go over the ground one more time. In this letter, President Eisenhower offered South Vietnamese President Diem financial support and encouraged him to make "needed reforms" to broaden his government and make it more representative. C. protect Western oil interests. I am, accordingly, instructing the American Ambassador to Viet-Nam to examine with you in your capacity as Chief of Government, bow an intelligent program of American aid given directly to your Government can serve to assist Viet-Nam in its present hour of trial, provided that your Government is prepared to give assurances as to the standards of performance it would be able to maintain in the event such aid were supplied. Retrieved From http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/vietnam/psources/ps_eisenhower.html / (Original Work published oct. 23 1954). 735-736. Since then, however, some officers turned against the movement once the political aims of some Buddhist leaders became more apparent, blaming the Diem government for being ineffective in dealing with the problem. The IHSP is a project independent of Fordham University. guestbook to Your recent requests for aid to assist in the formidable project of the movement of several hundred thousand loyal Vietnamese citizens away from areas which are passing under a de facto rule and political ideology which they abhor, are being fulfilled. From that point on, the U.S. embassy and Saigon station became even more active as observers of South Vietnamese coup preparations. Eisenhower wrote to South Vietnamese President Ngo Dinh Diem and promised direct assistance to his government. But it was too late. In 2009 the Kennedy Library made a release of the tapes that actually covered the White House conversations of late August. Sign up now to learn about This Day in History straight from your inbox.
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