August 21, 1959
INDOCHINA: London – If the situation in Laos worsens and requires the intervention of the United Nations, Britain may accuse North Vietnam of indirectly attacking it. It is believed that the Soviet Union, in its capacity as co-leader with Britain of the Geneva summit, will be semiofficially informed of Britain’s decision, according to a reliable source. It appears that the British government will use a wealth of evidence in its possession regarding the indirect attack by North Vietnam on Laos. In the Laotian capital of Vientiane, it is reported that paratroopers have been dropped into the south of the Sam Neua province to repel attacks by communist guerrillas against an important garrison in the heart of the jungle. Today more paratroopers are to be dropped at this location. The same source added that the province was quiet, apart from sporadic fighting between patrols, but that North Vietnamese armed forces were continuing to mass along the borders. North Vietnamese President Ho Chi Minh met with Red Chinese leaders in Peking yesterday. Well-informed British sources say that the question of Laos is certain to be discussed in the next talks between US President Dwight D. Eisenhower and British Prime Minister Harold Macmillan.
