CONFIDENTIAL
6.
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THE ORIGINAL HAS BEEN CLOSED UNTIL
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EXEMPTION No.3............
The refugees pay for their passages in gold which they purchase
Much of with United States dollars quite openly in Ho Chi Minh City. this gold is shipped into Vietnam in the Soviet Embassy's diplomatic bag and is distributed to the vendors through a clandestine operation
The Vietnamese which involves Russians resident in the South. Government hands the gold which it has received from the refugees over to the Soviet Union as a contribution towards the cost of Soviet military supplies. The Soviets promptly recycle the gold through Ho Chi Minh City again. The losers are the refugees who must pay a hefty price for their gold; the ultimate winner is the Soviet Union which obtains significant quantities of hard currency.
7. The Ambassador had a talk with Congresswoman Elizabeth Holtzman during her visit to Vietnam last week. As you may know, Miss Holtzman had been on a tour of South East Asia in her capacity as Chairman of a
She Congressional Committee dealing with immigration and refugees. told the Ambassador that she had seen Phan Hien, Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs, and had made it quite clear that she considered there was "substantial government involvement" in the system by which those leaving
She had mentioned a figure of the country made payments in gold.
$30 million as a conservative estimate of the amount received by Vietnamese authorities. Phan Hien had admitted that there was corruption by low-grade officials in the South, but continued to deny any government involvement. Miss Holtzman had also mentioned to Phan Hien the possibility of a large refugee ship heading for Honolulu in the near future. She had said that American people already viewed the new
the arrival of such a ship exodus of refugees in a very bad light: would be a very serious matter indeed and would affect American public
Phan Hien had made no reply. and political opinion profoundly.
cc:
PJ Weston Esq, Washington
Your ever,
Baha 2
S N Evans
CONFIDENTIAL
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