WORLD OPINION BELIEVED WEIGHING ON VIET CONG

Press, Volume CIV, Issue 30839, 26 August 1965, Page 13

WORLD OPINION BELIEVED WEIGHING ON VIET CONG

(N.Z PA -Reuter —Copyright) ! WASHINGTON, August 25. . Top United States officials are expressing cautious optimism over prospects for a peaceful settlement in Vietnam. The belief is building up h Washington that the Commu nists are coming under in creasing international pres sure to go to the conference table. The Viet Cong’s apparen inability to score any dramatii military triumph during thi now-dwindling monsoon sea son. coupled with last week end’s marine victory at Chi

Lai and reported heavy guerrilla losses, encourage hopes that a break may be coming. On the political side, American willingness for any sort of talks, and the Communist refusal to negotiate unconditionally, are seen here as influencing international opinion, particularly among non-aligned nations. President Johnson underlined the United States stand 1 when he said yesterday that he was ready to negotiate peace in Vietnam “at the drop ' of a hat.” ' He may enlarge on this at a press conference today—his first since July 28 when he : announced the big build-up in ' United States strength in South Vietnam. The President came under fire last night from the Re-

publicans, who accused him in a “white paper” of playing polities with Vietnam, failing to speak frankly to the Arneri-

can people and inviting mis calculations by the Communists.

The 32-page document said President Johnson and the late President Kennedy encouraged the Communists to believe that the United States would back down in Vietnam and South-east Asia generally.

While supporting the present commitment to South Vietnam and the action against the Viet Cong and the North, the statement implied that the whole campaign could have been avoided if the Administration had followed the “strong” lead given by President Eisenhower in 1961.