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USNMR S APE FOR BURNS USELMLO UNNUMBERED FROM BERLIN SIXTH

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p 	JOI T STATE/USIA MESSAGE 
FOLLO I ~G IS RFVIE OF WESI a~RLlN PRESS COMMENT.ARY ON OURT AST, ·ASIAN SITUATION. 
PRESS COMMENTARY ON AMERICAN RESPONSE ·GENERALLY APPROVING, 
IN CONTEXT OF SPECULATIVE AND ANATYTICAL COMMENTS ON M·£ANING
OSD 
RECENT EVENTS.
ARMY 	. l 
N\VY DER TAGESSPIEGEL <IND~) CHARACTERIZED ·SECOND ATTACK ON u.s. ' 
AIR 
VESSELS ' AS wPOLITICAL CHALLENGE WHICH REQUIRED A HARD: RESPONSE~· ATTACK ON PORTS AND SUPPLY DEPOTS,_ PAPER SAID, WAS. 
MR RE ALIATION UNDER INTERNATIONAL LAW AND IS LEGITIMATE." 
U.S. IS ONLY WESTERN POWER CAPABLE OF MANTAINING PRESENT ARMISTICE LINES, PAPER SAID, .BUT .PR£SENT. ST"ATUS OF WAR , 
CASTS D'OUBT ON POSSIBILITY OF WINNING. Or.t OTHER HAND, 'i TAGESSP'!EGEL CONTINUED• EXTENSION;1 0F· WAR TO NORTH VIETNAM INVOLVES RISKS, WHICH TEND TO GIVE COMMUNIST STRATEGISTS 
LATITUD£. AS LONG AS VIETNAM STRUGGEL UNDECIDED. RED CHINA .WILL REGARD U.S. CAUTION AS WEAKNESS, PAER EUAD. IF THIS 
A TI UDE PREVAILS IN SOUTHEAST ASlA, PAPER WARNED, EROSION 
OF SOUTHEAST ASIAN STATES "CAN HARDLY BE PREVENTED •." CHINESE 
ACE I~. HOLE IS RUc:SIAN INVOLVEMENT IN . STRUGGLE AND ABANDONMENT 
OF DETENTE POLICY 
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POLICY FEELS RUSSIA MIGH US U S. INVOLVEMENT IN SOUTHEASR . 
ASIA TO GAIN DIPLOMATIC ADVANTAGES IN EUROPE. 
TAGESSPIEGEL . CONCLUDED T~AT JOHNSO~ . HAS SCORED POLITICAL · ~ 
SUCCESS BY SHOWING u.s~ "WILL NOT SHRlNK FROM HARSH MEASURES." 
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REPRODUCTION FROM THIS COPY IS ___t~JN~C~l~lA:.=...S:::..:SI==F:....::I=E=-D___PROHIBITED UNLESS "UNCLASSIFIED" 
UNCLASSIFIED 
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-2.-161, AUGUST 6-FROM: BER'E.IN ... 
'TELEGRAF CPRO~SPD> DESCRIBED .SITUATION AS "EXTREMELY ALARMING.• 
PAPER HAD NO DOUBT THAT U.S•. WILL MAKE EVERY EFFORT TO AVOID 
WORLD CONFLicr·. BUT MOTIVES OF THE COMMUNISTS ARE "GREAT 
RIDDLE". AFTER TWO CHALLENGES IN THREE DAYS, TELEGRAF THOUGHT• 
U.S. HAD NO CHOICE,. LEST IT LOSE CREDIBILITY IN WORLD: 
"THIS WOULD HAV£ HAD UN~RESEEABLE CONSEQUENCES FOR BERLIN." 

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PAPER FE.ELS IF THESE . INCIDENTS WERE PART OF STRATEGY TO 
ENGAGE U.S. MILITARILY IN SOUTHEAST ASIA, .WOULD PEACE IS 
END ANGERED EVEN MORE, BECAUSE JOHNSON WOULD NOT HAVE ,
FULL CONTROL OF SITUATION. 
TELEGRAF. NOTED DE GAULLE•S SILENCE IN LAST FEW DAYS, IN 
CONTR AST TO CUBA CRIS S9 ND CALLS RECENT EVENTS "DRASTIC 
ILLUSTRATION"' OF HIS PROPOSA TO NEUTRALIZE WHOLE AREA· 

?APER FEELS THAT FUR. HER SIL NCE F80M DE GAULLE WOULD 
BE INTERJ;>RETED BY THE. AGGRESSORS A"S ENCOURAGEMENT • 
BERLINER . r.JORGENPOST <IND. SPRINGER» . ' SAID PRESIDENT DISPROvED 
CHINESE ..PAPER TIGER· THEORY ABour.. u.s. AMERICAN REPRISALS 
"AFFIRM,THAT THE U.S. WILL NOT ALLOW SOUTH VIETNAM TO BE 
OVERRUN ... WASHINGTON HAS DEMONSTR~TED THAT· THE U.S•· Wit:L 
NOT ALLOW ITSELF TO BE PUSHED AROUND.· · PAPER FOUND IT 
..GRATIFY.ING" THAT PRESIDENT•S DECI.SION ENJOYS .BIPARTISAN 
SUPPORT. . · . 
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BILDZEITUNG <IND., SPRINGER> SAID •tHERE WAS ONLY ONE THING 
WHICH PRESIDENT JOHNSON COULD DO,"~iAND ADMONISHED ·DIPLOMATS ro SEE TO IT THAT CONFLICT DOES NOT DPREAD. 
,DER ABEND C'INDEP> SAID JOHNSON HAD: •No . OTHER .CHOICE." TMAN TO 
RESPOND AS HE DID. DOMESTICALLY, PAPER SAID, JOHNSON CANNOT 

·APPEAR AS "SOFT" WHEN RUNING AGAINST "RADICAL OPPONENT•. IN OREIGN POLICY AREA, PAER 'SAID u.s. ALREADY LOST PRESTIGE IN SOUTHEAST ASIA, AND THESE~ PROVOCATIONS WERE PART OF " 
CHINESE-INSPIRED S RATEGY OF •MOCKING u.s. MILITARY POWER ' TO MAKE u.s. LOSE FACE. PAPER REGARDED JOHNSON•s DECISIO~ AS -wELt..:.coNSIDERED MIXTURE OF FLEXIBILITY AND FIRMNESS •. 
"PRESIDENT HAS ST~OD TEST I N A CRISIS•, DER ABEND CONCL~DED. 
B z <I D ) THOUGHT THAT "SELDOM HAS MIJ..IT ARY · 
RETALIATION BEEN CONSIDERED. JUSTIFIED, AND CARRIED OUT 1 WITH 
GREATER RESPONSIBILITY.~. JOHNSON HAS SHOWN..CRITICS THAT DETE~TE POLICY ·Musr NOT BE MISTAKEN FOR WEAKNESS. 
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UNCI.ASS IFIED
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UNCIASS IFIED 
-3-161, AUGUST 6. J:1ROM: BERLIN. 
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SPANDAUER VOLKSBLATT CPRO-SPD> SAID DANGER POINT FOR U.S. 
ASIAN POLICY HAS BEEN REACHED AND .CONFLICT THREATENS TO EXPAND. 

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. HILE COMMUNIST MOTIVES UNCLEAR, .PAPER FEELS THE AMERICAN REACTION IS ALMOST AS HARD TO UNDERSTAND. PAPER CITES 
"STRANGE FEELING THAT THE AMERICAN ELECTION CAMPAIGN MIGHT 
AVE I FLUENCED THE INTENSITY OF JOHNSON•S RESPONSE.• 
INVERSELY, PEIPING MIGHT HAVE BEEN TRYING TO ' GIVE GOLDWATER 
A CHA CE, PAPER FEELS, FOR •A WEAKLY-REACTING JOHNSON MIGHT 

HAVE I CREASED GOLDWATER•S CHANCES OF succEss.· CHINA 
OULD ELCOME GOLDWATER VIC ORY, PAPER THINKS, "BECAUSE 

HINKS AS LI TL OF COE STENCE AS THE CHINESE THEMSELVES.• 
DER DURIER CPR ·CDU> WAS l CORRESPONDENT MANTHEY, FELT . 
THAT GOLD TER IS US lG PE DENT· INTO MORE VIGOROUS 
COURSE .I SOUTHEAST ASlA· P P CALLED THIS IRONICAL,

FOR JOHNSON COULD WELL PROFIT· FROM THIS IN. NOVEMBER. A CONFLICT IS BRE ING IN EAST-ASIA, PAPER CONTINUES, WHICH WILL NOT REACH A CLIMAX FOR. 3 0 TO 40 YEARS, AND AMERICAN PRESENCE 
·I THE AREA ILL PERHAPS SERVE FREE WORLD BETTER THAN ' 
$1..JOOEN VICTORY IN SOUTH VIET NAM. 

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PAPAPER1 SAID TENSION IN WASHINGTON NOT NEARLY AS HIGH AS 
A TIME OF. CUBA CRISIS, FOR SIMPL~ REASON CHINA HAS NO 
ATO~Ic : EAPONS, AND MOSCO I IS.NOT' EXPECTED TO TAKE ITS 
TREAT 'WITH CHINA SERIOUSLY. MISS'. MANTHEY'S REPORT CLAIMS 

u.s. PUBLIC ~IS BEING PREPARED FOR POSSIBILITY·OF ONE MORE 
BECOMING INV.OLVED. IN ASIAN . CONFLICT• 

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EAST BERLIN.!PRESS · BEING "TREATED IN SEPARATE~.MESSAGE. 1~ 
CALHOUN 

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