' • UNCLASSIFIED Y s-z RELEASED IN FULL TELCON Ken Fried HAK 4 Z9 75 - 10 31 p m K Hello Hello Mr Secretary Ken Fried here I just -- just as I was coming over to pick up the phone we moved a bulletin saying that President Minh has announced an unconditional surrender to the VC F K Is it true F Well it's from Saigon where we 1ve still got our reporters 11 We are here to hand over to you the power in order to avoid bloodshed 11 That's ·a direct quote Minh said in a radio speech addressing himself to the VC ordered the Saigon Army to stop firing and remain in place Is that the way it was supposed to- go K Well you know we didn't have that clear No that was not my expectation Well by Monday that's the way it was supposed to go Yes By next Monday F K Yes No by this No we didn't have that detailed of a scenario By Monday This is all background By Sunday ilight Monday morning it was clear to me that this is the way the Communists were forcing it to go F So there was no understandm g_but you expected it K No no expected late last week that there would be some fortn of negotiations F · As was indicated So this does catch you·a little bit by surprise K F K No Sunday night -- not because of an understanding -• but simply because of the way things were developing mostly was Okay What I wanted to talk to you abouthnore future stuff As I say this thing just moved on the wire five minutes ago I was interested in what I thought was kind of an ambivalent approach you took to dealing with DeBerry's question I think the first question here in the news conference I had assumed we would come out with some kind of srong statement about trying to redevelop American stl' ength of policy in the area and I wondered if I could some kind of focus on what you expect · No we expect to do that but I just didn't think this was the occasion for a great policy procouncement You mean for Asia UNITED STATES D EPARTMENT OF STATE REVIEW AUTHORITY ROBERT H MILLER nATli' C AQli' Tn c uvn 1nn- 1 - nn101Q'7Q UNCLASSifIED UNCLASSIFIED I - 2 - F Yes K No we will deve_lop a strong policy F Is this going to begin immediately at countries like Thailand and the philippines •• K Thailand I think is in a special situation but the Philippines and certainly Indonesia F K ' F How about China What kind of role are they going to play We'll maintain our relationship I don' hear much enthusiasm there No I think we have to develop What the press generally does with China is to assume that something spectatcular has to go on at any one minute K F That makes £or headlines K I know but i£ you analyze the problem simply from maintaining the existing relationships we· are g tting the leverage we want F When do you _say your're going to try to develop this strong policy Without any apparent agreement by Congress to maintain any military presence in the area of any major part how will this work H9w will it develop in Avia on this K F · I beg your pardon the Well I get the Congress is still _____ when talking to sorne of these people about any kind of major American presence £or a lack of a better word in South Asia and Asia generally And • K I've been up till 3 30 in the·morning why don't we discuss that some other time F Okay I've been up too So we're both tired Okay I don't want to keep you up in longer and I know you've got more important things to do K That isn't the point F I'm still in'my office Good I'll talk to you again Thank you UNCLASSIFIED