</s>176-10036-10094 2025 RELEASE UNDER THE PRESIDENT JOHN F. KENNEDY ASSASSINATION RECORDS ACT OF 1992 JFK ASSASSINTATION SYSTEM IDENTIFICATION FORM AGENCY : NARA RECORD NUMBER : 176-1006-1009A RECORD SERIES : National Security Files AGENCY FILE NUMBER: AGENCY FILE NUMBER #: ORIGINATOR : CIA FROM : TO : TITLE : Ngo Dinh Nhu's Statement on Withdrawal of DATE : 4/20/1963 PAGES : SUBJECTS : DOCUMENT TYPE : CLASSIFICATION : RESTRICTIONS : CURRENT STATUS : DATE OF LAST REVIEW : 9/10/2000 OPENING CRITERIA : COMMENTS : National Securty Files, Box 197: Vietnam, 4/63-5/63. Box 2

Summary  
This document is a declassified U.S. Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) telegram dated April 20, 1963, reporting on statements and directives related to American foreign aid in South Vietnam. It details Ngo Dinh Nhu’s remarks at an interministerial committee meeting on April 5, 1963, regarding the revision of U.S. aid policies. Nhu emphasized the need for South Vietnam to transition toward self-sufficiency by reducing reliance on American assistance, categorizing aid into three priority groups: essential (means of production), transitional (eventually phased out), and immediate termination. The document also notes instructions from Nhu to provincial chiefs to encourage domestic weapon production and a VNAF commander’s claim that Nhu instructed officials to prepare for the withdrawal of U.S. aid, citing examples like the cutoff of gasoline supplies to Thailand. Field officers within the Vietnamese Air Force expressed concern over potential regime collapse without American support.  

Key People  
- Ngo Dinh Nhu: South Vietnamese political figure and key advisor to President Diem, who made statements on foreign aid policy.  
- Pham Duc Tien: Chief of Civic Action in Phuoc Tuy Province, attended a strategic hamlets conference where Nhu criticized U.S. advisors.  
- Colonel Huynh Huu Hien: VNAF commander who reported Nhu’s alleged instructions regarding U.S. aid withdrawal.  
- Major Dang Dinh Linh, Major Do Cung, Captain Ha Duong Doan: VNAF officers who discussed the impact of U.S. aid reduction on military operations.  

Key Locations  
- South Vietnam (specifically Saigon and Phuoc Tuy Province)  
- Thailand (referenced as an example of U.S. aid pressure on a foreign government)  

Key Events  
- April 5, 1963: Interministerial Committee meeting where Ngo Dinh Nhu outlined priorities for American aid reduction.  
- Late March–early April 1963: Ministry of Interior issued directives to provincial chiefs for domestic weapon production.  
- April 18, 1963: VNAF officers’ meeting where Colonel Huynh Huu Hien discussed alleged Nhu instructions on U.S. aid withdrawal.  

Key Organizations  
- Central Intelligence Agency (CIA): Originator of the telegram and intelligence reporting.  
- Ministry of National Defense (South Vietnam): Source of official statements on foreign aid policy.  
- Vietnamese Air Force (VNAF): Discussed potential operational impacts of U.S. aid reduction.  
- Government of Vietnam (GVN): Subject of Nhu’s alleged directives regarding U.S. aid withdrawal.

JFK Declassified Files

176-10036-10094.pdf

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