Vietnam and the United Nations, Part 6
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September 6, 1967 The Honorable Henry M. Jackson The United States Senate Senate Office BuUding Washington, D. C. near Senator Jackson: ay I enclose. for your information. rny exchange of letter 8 with Senator Stennis: Sincerely yours, HES:cc Harold E. Stassen Enclosures September 6, 1967 The Honorable Strom Thurmond The United States Senate Senate Office Building Washington. D. C. Dear Senator Thurmond: ay I enclose, for your information. my exchange of letter. with Senator Stennis. Sincerely yours, HES:cc Harold E. Sta.sen Enclosures September 6, 1967 The Honorable Jack MiUer The United States Senate Senate Office Building Washington, D. C. Deal" Senator MWer: y I enclose, for your information. my exchange of letters with Senator Stennis. Sincerely yours, HES:cc Harold E. Stusen Enclosures September 6. 1967 The Honorable Stuart Symington The United States Senate Senate Office Building Washington, D. C. Dear Senator Symington: May I enclo.e. for your information. my exchange of letters with Senator Stennis. Sincerely yours, HES:cc Harold E. Stassen Enclosures September 6. 1967 The Honorable argaret Chase Smith The United States Senate Senate Office Building Washington. D. C. Dear Senator Smith! May 1 enclose. for your information. my exchange of letters with Senator Stennis. Sincerely yours. HES:cc Harold E. Stassen Enclosures September 6. 1967 Mr. Jack Bell Associated Press Senate Pre •• Gallery Washington. D. C. Dear Jack: Herewith copies of the {ollow-up ith Senator Stennis. ith personal best wishes. Sincerely yours, HES:cc Harold E. Stassen Enclosures September 5, J967 r. Jack Bell Associated Pre.s Senate Preas Gallery The Capitol Washington, D. C. near Jack: As a follow-up for your information, enclosed find a copy of the reply of Senator Stennis. ith personal best wish•• , as ever Sincerely youra, HES:cc Harold E. Stas.en Enclosure ...... C.; /- September 8. 1967 Honorable J. William Fulbright Chairman Committee on Foreign Relatione United States Senate Senate Office Building Washington, D. C. Dear Senator: Thank you for your thoughtful note of August 31st. Responding to your question, as an integral part of the policy and program recommended, it is very important that a United States military presence be maintained in Vietnam. This can be done, however, with a minimum of cost .. when related to the recommended program. It will be comparable more to the Korean presence and the NATO presence in nature. In the longer term, it should be changed to a United Nations pre sence, when the modernizing and strengthening of the United Nationa and the establishment of two Vietnams for membership in this period of hiatory has heen accomplished. The events of each passing week emphasize 80 much the importance of a changing of policy and progl'am. that I am moved to ask whether you would consider providing an occasion when 1 could present this policy and program thoroughly to your Committee or to a Sub-Committee thereof. I would hope that out of my extensive relevant experience 1 could make a convincing case and that you and your Committee might then become the e.rucial element in the constructive movement of United States polley from its present tragic course. With my respects and my continued high regard, Sincerely yours. ' " , J. W. FULBRIGHT, ARK •• CHAIRMAN JOHN SPARKMAN. ALA. BOURKE B. HICKEN~OOPER, .; MIKE MANSFIELD. MONT. GEORGE D. AIKEN, VT. WAYNE MORSE. OREG. FRANK CARLSON. KANS. ALBERT GORE. TENN. JOHN J. WILLIAMS. DEL. FRANK J. LAUSCHE. OHIO KARL I!. MUNDT. S . OAK. F RANK CHURCH. IDAHO CLIFFORD P. CASE, N.J. STUART SYMINGTON, MO. JOHN SHERMAN COOPER, KY. THOMAS J. DODD. CONN. COMMITTEE ON FOREIGN RELATIONS JOSEPH S. CLARK. PA. CLAIBORNE PELl.. R .I. EUGENE J. MCCARTHY, MINN. CARL MARCY, CHIEF OF STAFF August 31, 1967 ARTHUR M . KUHL, CHIEF CLERK The Honorable Harold E. Stassen 1020 The Fidelity Building Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19109 Dear Harold: I was sorry I missed you when you called at my office. I read your letter to Stennis, and it has much merit. Certainly your policy is far superior to what we are following. My only question is the necessity of our maintaining a military presence in Vietnam for the indefinite future. In any case, your policy is a very great step forward from our present disastrous course. With all good wishes, I am SincerelyA- yours, J. w. ft~ht JWF:kj .. September ll. 1967 General Lucius D. Cla.y One William Street New York, New York 10004 Dear Lucius: T ha nk you for your thoughtful nd forth!' ight letter. I would like to talk this Vietnam situ.,.tion over with you personally d.t your convenience. In the meantime. rna y I write this clarifica.tion and further explanation of my views. On the Vietnam policy and program, the following fa ctors are very important in my view. South Vietnam ha s fourteen thousa. nd square miles of dens e jungle. These jungles connect up directly with jungle areas of Cambodia, Laos. and Ncrth Vietnam a long approxi mately two hundred miles of jungle border. In Admira l Ha lsey's command we had extensive experience with this same type of jungle in World War II. 'There are approxim.:t.tely twenty million North Vietna mese i.i.nd Viet Congo Approximately 250,000 North Vietnamese young men reach military age each year. Thus I hoI th .var of a ttrition by the United States, Genera l Westmoreland st -ted he was now under orders t o conduct, is not sound and cannot be successful. The United Sta tes c :.t n prevent a. Communist t ~ keover of S outh Vietnam; but the United St tea c ..l. nnot obtain a. n ffirm~ tive milita ry s olution of Vietna m. The objective of the United St tes in Vietnam can be ... on by a thoroughly revised stra tegy and program. Page ti l. Genera l Lucius D. Cla y The revised strategy a nd program $hould direct tha t a powerful United States military presence should be main tained, with priority on the security of Sc1igon and the major rice bowls. and with a delibera te policy of a minimum of United States ca sualties. Recognizing these military pressures and limitations . the priority should be placed on the political and economic solutions. Here the key fact is tha.t the Vietnamese people. emerging from long French Colonialism, want full status in the world. This can only be accorded now by h ving two Vietnams in the United Nations, with full status for each, in this period of history. These two Vietnams c n compete for their respective systems. and in time the guerilla attra ction of the young men will fade, as occurred in the Philippines under General Eisenhower's wise policy of United States milita ry restra int; and as:occurred in Mala ya under the British similar policy of military restraint and political initiative. The United Nations modernization and strengthening which I propose is not easy to accompli .:l h. but in my judg .. ment it ca n be. and urgently needs to be. brougb'i a bout by sust ined effective United States initic1tive. With personal respects a nd best wishes as ever, Sincerely your d , Harold E. Stassen HES/cbh • LUCIUS D. CLAY General , Reti red U. S. Army i n! ~I-/2' # oX\. .6 // (, ._ if \•. .J One William Street New York, New York 10004 September 14, 1967 Dear Harold: Thank you for your letter. If you get to New York now and then, please tet me know a little in advance so tnat we could lunch wl;e:Jt el . It is always a pleasure Jo visit with you. Sincerely yours, (; J\"A-~~ '--- The Honorable Harold E. Stassen 1020 Fidelity-Philadelphia Trust Building Philadelphia 9, Pennsylvania RICHARD B. RUSSELL, GA. , CHAIRMAN JOHN STENNIS, MISS. MARGARET CHASE SMI NE STUART SYMINGTON, MO. STROM THURMOND, S.C. HENRY M. JACKSON, WA$H. JACK MILLER, IOWA SAM J. ERVIN, JR. , N.C. JOHN G. TOWER. TEX. HOWARD W. CANNON, NEV. JAMES B. PEARSON, KANS. ROBERT C. BYRD. W. VA. PETER H. DOMINICK. COLO. STEPHEN M. YOUNG. OHIO DANIEL K. INOUYE, HAWAII THOMAS J. MC INTYRE, N.H. COMMITTEE ON ARMED SERVICES DANIEL B. BREWSTER, MD. HARRY F. BYRD, JR., VA. WILLIAM H. DARDEN, CHIEF OF STAFF CHARLES B. K1RBOW, CHIEF CLERK September 13, 1967 Honorable Harold E. Stas s en 1020 Fidelity-Philadelphia Trust Building Philadelphia 9, Pennsylvania Dear Mr. Stassen: This will acknowledge your letter of September 6th in which you renew your request that you be provided an opportunity to appear before the Subcommittee to present your views on the war in Vietnam. I have previously advised you of the Subcommittee's present position on the witnesses to be called. In addition, at this time the Subcommittee has no concrete plans to hold any further hearings on this matter in the near future. As you know, we have already issued the summary report on this matter. Thanks again for your interest in this important matter, and for your offer to appear. Chairman, Preparedness Investigating Subcommittee J . W. FULBRIGHT, ARK., CHAIRMAN JOHN SPARKMAN, ALA. BOURKE B. HICKENLOOPER. IOWA MIK.E MANSFIELD, MONT. GEORGE D. AIKEN, VT. WAYNE MORSE, OREG. FRANK CARLSON, KANS . ALBERT GORE, TENN. JOHN J. WILLIAMS, DEL. FRANK J. LAUSCHE, OHIO KARL E. MUNDT, S. OAK. FRANK CHURCH, IDAHO CLIFFORD P. CASE, N .J . STUART SYMINGTON. MO. JOHN SHERMAN COOPER, KY. THOMAS J. DODD. CONN. COMMITTEE ON FOREIGN RE~TIONS JOSEPH S. CLARK, PA. CLAIBORNE PELL, R.I. EUGENE J. MCCARTHY, MINN. CARL MARCY, CHIEF OF STAFF ARTHUR M. KUHL, CHIEF CLERK September 16, 1967 The Honorable Harold Stassen 1020 Fidelity-Philadelphia Trust Building Philadelphia 9, Pennsylvania Dear Harold: I have just returned to my office to find your letter of the 8th.