What did the declassified documents reveal?

From the United States Central Intelligence Agency, this is a declassified record concerning recent indications of Communist intentions in South Vietnam. This intelligence memorandum, dated April ninth, nineteen sixty-five, provides an assessment of Communist statements and military buildups during a critical period of the Vietnam War. This document is available at documents two dot the black vault dot com. This Top Secret intelligence memorandum, catalogued as T-S eighteen five-eight three-four, was submitted by the Director of Central Intelligence and concurred in by the United States Intelligence Board. It was approved for release on April ninth, two thousand four, under declassification authority exemption group two. The memorandum, subject: Recent Indications of Communist Intentions in South Vietnam, states: One. During the past three weeks, Communist powers have issued a number of statements threatening increased participation in the Vietnam conflict. In late March, the Viet Cong political arm, the National Liberation Front of South Vietnam (N-L-F-S-V), declared that quote, if the U-S imperialists continue to send their troops and the troops of their satellites into South Vietnam and to expand the war to the North and to Laos, the N-L-F-S-V will call upon the world peoples to send troops and youths to come and side with the South Vietnamese people, unquote. It went on to threaten to call upon the South Vietnamese who have been in the North quote, for the past ten years to return to take up weapons to exterminate the enemy and save their country, unquote. Two. The Chinese Communists responded on March twenty-fifth pledging to send quote, all necessary material aid, unquote and declaring readiness quote, to send our own men whenever the South Vietnamese people want them, unquote. On March twenty-ninth, Peiping for the first time directly linked the South Vietnam situation to Chinese security, stating that following U-S quote, aggressions, unquote against North Vietnam, quote, the next step will be aggression against China, unquote, and that China's security can only be assured by driving the U-S out of South Vietnam. Through various spokesmen, Peiping has several times repeated the pledges of help to the Viet Cong. Three. On March twenty-sixth, North Korea also responded by officially offering to send volunteers if requested. It has attempted to heighten the effect by publicizing the numbers of citizens it claims are volunteering for Vietnamese service. Four. Hanoi has been a little more restrained than Peiping, although it has given full publicity to the N-L-F-S-V statements. Although not specifically threatening to send North Vietnamese troops, Hanoi has supported the Front's threat to call upon quote, regrouped, unquote Southerners to return to fight with the Viet Cong. Hanoi has also run a recent propaganda campaign to publicize the readiness of the Southerners to return and to mobilize the northern population quote, to be ready to fight…

Why was this case declassified?

This material entered the public record through the U.S. declassification and Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) process. The originating source document is linked on this page so the citation chain is auditable.

From The United States Central Intelligence Agency, This Is A Declassified

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From the United States Central Intelligence Agency, this is a declassified record concerning recent indications of Communist intentions in South Vietnam. This intelligence memorandum, dated April ninth, nineteen sixty-five, provides an assessment of Communist statements and military buildups during a critical period of the Vietnam War.

Date: AUG 28 · 2026
Release: Declassified · U.S. public record (FOIA)
Source document: View the primary source document

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What was From The United States Central Intelligence Agency, This Is A Declassified about?: From the United States Central Intelligence Agency, this is a declassified record concerning recent indications of Communist intentions in South Vietnam. This intelligence memorandum, dated April ninth, nineteen sixty-five, provides an assessment of Communist statements and military buildups during a critical period of the Vietnam War.
Why was this case declassified?: This material entered the public record through the U.S. declassification and Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) process. Storyflo narrates it directly from the public release.

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