NER Washington forum; Vietnam War: Field General's view

During the last two months. The Oregon forces in Iraq. Have demonstrated. They are a real fighting unit. They have. Met on the battlefield. The voice you just heard was that of a United States Marine Corps General Lewis Walt immediate past commander of all marine forces in Vietnam. Our guest this week on the NPR Washington forum a weekly program concerned with the significant issues before us as a nation. This week a field of generals look at the war in Southeast Asia. This program was produced by and for national educational radio through the facilities of W am you FM American University Radio in Washington D.C. I'm an E.R. public affairs director Bill Greenwood. General Lewis Walt is the highest ranking military leader to return to the states from duty in Vietnam this year. He was the supreme commander of Marine Corps forces in Southeast Asia and frequently saw

frontline assignments following a recent appearance at the National Press Club in Washington. General Walt permitted unrestricted questioning about his activities in Vietnam. The moderator for the question and answer session was David Lee Roth of U.S. News and World Report magazine. You know a lot of proscription priests are critics of the South Vietnamese. Arbonne. Say that they lack the will to fight effectively and to carry out needed social reforms. Also that it might do well to eliminate corruption would you comment. On the rock in the square. First of all let's understand appeased the South Vietnamese army forces have been fighting this war for 18 years and I thank God today at guts enough and determination of willpower enough to hold on as long as I am. So we got all that out. During the last two months. The Oregon forces in our corps.

Have demonstrated they are a real fighting unit. They have. Met on the battlefield. And soundly defeated. Six. The enemy's been forced because. Now the fourth battalion. Run out about 200 200 to 300 men. In each one of these battle. They are going forces. Kill over a hundred about a man and captured between 50 and 70 of their weapons. During these battles took place as a result. Of them having the intelligent temper make him. In the evening late meeting. The battalions of the armed forces moved out to where the enemy but I look at it. Surrounded him in the dark and attack him at daybreak in order to gain a victory. Some of you may not understand how different comedy is

to. Run an operation of this type against the enemy because. This. I mean because I understand the account the Tigers have orders that they know will not stay in one position longer than 48 hours. They also will stay in your berth in small groups. Except when they mouth for an attack. Then one day my heart attack or you know a village or some location. They do it rapidly and you've got to have positive intelligent and hidden within a few hours. If you're going to have them at all. The armed forces of. Our Marines in the DMZ. Did an outstanding job. Also we have three battalions of the open air bar two because they are going up a tree. They move through the DMZ. To the demarcation line and I remember. That we were 200 hours of the morning under-covered are.

All private gardens move took up positions. Some line of attack. On the line of attack line of departure. Successfully surprised the enemy and hit him from the rear. Airborne McDyess reticular were successful they didn't reinforce but got him from the rear and the first thing to get root mortars and recall those rifles in capital. And then they went ahead to destroy 273 have that reinforced the diet body count. Nice all. Right. I have had greatest cops aren't soldiers. Are getting better every day. They lack leadership training. They lacked an opportunity to get either one of these. They looked an awful lot of leaders in this war. It's been a common. Back to the Viet Cong the girl and the main force to kill off the leaders by Sassa nation or some other means. So leadership has been a problem but they're gaining out. And the

Spirit and they are having divisions in our court today of the highest I've ever seen and they're looking for a car. And they're out after a entanglement and they do a damn good job. The other pair you might see para military forces the regional forces and the. Popular forces are also improving. Particularly And with popular forces which is a little have a paramilitary force they live in I have been to a village where they're stationed and they're supposed to be the security force. We've. Hooked up a Marine squad to. 73 you have the proper force but don't and we call them a combined action. But then. These are become very effective our Marine squad has copied our sure how to drill our ambush and patrol. And as a result there are no term proficiency has it. Just a great deal and it has given us a good

report with the people in the village also and to give an idea of the morale of these proper fourth but do it in this particular activity. Not a single man from any of these but do want to be become connected will have deserted his organization and this is over a period of a. Year and a half now. So I think this. Indicates a morale in the organizations are good. There are instances I will admit there are instances where I've been forces regional forces popular forces. Are. Have less undesirable people don't. But there are none of those does not hold it is not going to be corrected in the near future. My counterpart there General now my senior adviser. Is doing everything possible to. Beat me into training camp for a month and get their feet back on the ground and get good leaders. To MCO schools and off to school. So the. Deficiency is being corrected

and I'm confident that in the future. The time comes. That we can pull out of that country our country going to have a strong armed force. General it's been much discussion in the United States Senate and elsewhere in this country on the theory of an enclave defense a passive defense behind a recognized line with no moving outside it would you comment on your feelings about it. I think I think a total misunderstanding on this enclave defense business. It started when when I first went over to Vietnam my mission was a defensive mission to defend the air base of the man up there on a mission I had also every operation if we were not allowed even to get outside the perimeter of the airfield. We finally talked him into. A governess go out on patrol and stood up patrolling as a part of defense. And then we gradually got out into off active operations. But the

players defense is a misnomer. We do have combat bases from which we spread out which we worked out ever since I've been over there. Some are patrolled 20 and 25 miles but it just has spread out and become a capital area of operations. It has also been an area in which we have concentrated on our past location ever. And today it immediately or to you your attitude that we have a more secure area than we. We are continuing to expand and I hope the day will come when I'll be connected everywhere are connected then we're going to have protection of our own people when I can and when that becomes the real. So do you think commando type raids on not Viet Nam supply lines what would they be worth the risk of Chinese Communist intervention. This description here is. Involves a lot more than.

The military. Aspect and I would be one. To say that I couldn't I couldn't answer that question because it is. I'm sure there are many political aspects psychological aspects and would not. Would have been more bearing on a military. Base beyond. The area of my caucus and the present time I've concentrated pretty much on the tactical situation I Corps. And haven't worried about. Any more coming in from foreign oil. So there's been much talk about using the use of B.S. B-52 bombers. It's been compared to swatting flies with say cameras like if you think the B-52s are. Before the B-52 bombers have been extremely effective and I Corps we have a year of them. They've used them for 18 months now ever since the Harvest

Moon operation. And they've been. Most effective. I say this and. As a result of having gone in and search the areas where the B-52 strikes have hit some time we've done an and and found bodies in pieces about it all over the area where they have to propagation. We have one is just right they destroyed all the Gaian with one one bombing raid. We either asked him to. Disrupted the supply line and destroyed the supply bases with the prisoners. Talk to defectors have great fear of the B-52 bomber right because they don't hear of bombs coming there on top of what they have a chance to get a hide from them. So I would say there is no single weapon that's going to win this war. I Corinna place else but I think the B-52 has contributed certainly its share in the progress

that we've made Natcore and I'd certainly hate to see it and we see us not continue to use it because it is a very effective weapon. During the battles here 61 80 81 south needed 1 north that you read about. They're pretty rugged battle by the way. The B-52 did a great job in covering the rear area seat the supply areas of this three hundred twenty fifty feet in which we were fighting. And as a result I'm sure they disrupted the supply system. Fact we got evidence of it from our corporals and also from the observers. Baby it took courage to really nap. Core support of the troops and Marines have to go to the most fantastic job in the support of never ever ever seen. We got to work and I mean it went on seven hundred fifty

years and no children over the knuckles emplacement out it took that. Place months they had been reduced to a stone and then we get on top the emplacement on them for dirt on top of that they have them to your right. Heavy mortars out of these emplacements against our appeal the case our. Thinking that we could knock them out and they have a very rapid tactic with infantry. And then when we were trying to reinforce our forces a case on against a ground attack with a plan to get that airfield. Then they would be setting up their own no heavy emplacements and that we were just not going to have to come into the airfield it was a great big no ambush on it Im going through idea. Unfortunately we knocked off the ridges just a day before they planned to make it back from Greece on a planned attack on the 28. We knocked a half on the twenty sixth and Twenty seventh they took very severe casualties in that in that

fire the real rocket fight they fought every inch of the way. But these. Inside Vietnam. Tactical the B-52. Have been a tremendous assistance and a very influential factor. In destroying particularly the North Vietnamese army forces and the main force. John what do you believe that a military would do you believe that a clear cut victory is at all possible and if you think it is how long you think it would take. Our next first question yes absolutely positively no question we have military veterans and I Corps when I write I say I can't speak about the rest of Vietnam but I don't know. We've had a we've had a series of military victories in the I guess the NBA forces and main forces and as long as they want to sound those types of forces in the conventional formations they're

going to get knocked out. Particularly in the type of weather that they sent a man during during these last oh six weeks. They sent massed troop formations into that terrain as I said in my statement. Terrain of a favorable to rust on the road in a cloudless sky. And I we had to do it together airplanes up there spot these troops and they were gunfire and and tactical and artillery. And. There is no way there isn't any reason why we can't get a military victory. Against these forces. That they're sending down from the Vietnam we get it. I mean they haven't got a chance. They've got too many disadvantages as they have the disadvantage first communications they have a disadvantage second of mobility. In these areas. I'm familiar with over there we had great advantages in the mobility we worked up and down the coast using Navy vessels to support

us the naval gunfire and also to move our stock troops up and down the coast. We had great mobility whether I have a compass we have good mobility of our fixed wing aircraft and allowed us to react more quickly to their plans if they were unable to ship. They didn't have the flexibility to ship their plans and once they were committed they were committed all of the way and just cost them a lot. You know they move slowly and they plan our campaign so far. That they have they have to watch committed go through with them or call them off. They don't have the flexibility we have. So. Many other part of this war I was talking about Augusta realize yes we're we can take care that it's going to take time. You're really writing of something it was just hard to to accomplish in a short period of time. The very nature of that fighting causes to be difficult drawn out type of fight and this is what's going to take a long time. But there's no question but what we're going to we're going to do it. We've destroyed dumbfounds

of rule and they can't be replaced. That really is a little man. He's got to have friends and friends and family around he's got to know the terrain in order to be effective in his organization or in his area and then be a soldier can come into South Vietnam be a gorilla Kim Possible first place he's not like the South may have made the second place I don't know the terrain. And thirdly she's not going to getting help from anybody down there. They do come in on the 8th and now MBNA do come into the populated areas in small groups squat sometimes but to enter even companies and they support to grow in their action down there and they're doing this you know to attempt to strengthen it. This also there's not there's not a gash that information I get from from the president and from the two defectors. Still to come on our side they are trying desperately to believe that this group imposition and maintain control of the people. A military victory is certainly possible in South Vietnam and we keep on.

We're gonna get it. I was going to take that depends on how many trips we get and how many enemies we're going to keep sending forces down from the Vietnam to keep us busy up around the border. Closer to intact. I'd be reluctant to try to put any time limit on it. I do think of. A mountain top Vietnam is concerned we're going to have people some otherwise committed up there for a long time saying we haven't Korea. Because the future sapi of normalising mature. Probably years and younger this is where they have a very real possibility of real potential. Get these kids in school get them educated so you got a foundation I wish to build a real solid democracy in that country and then you're going to have an hour out there in Southeast Asia if you really depend on. General would it be a militarily desirable to mine. I farm Harbor.

Anything can be done to stop the flow of. Military supplies. Military arms into South Vietnam igniters don't be helpful from a military point of view I I understand. Surely if there are other many other factors political psychological is tied up in this question I don't care to comment on those. I would like to say that during the test period the temp standdown we had we witnessed again. The build up of the enemy forces and the build up of the enemy capability and arms and munitions in the DMZ area so that after the Tet Sandown Tet holidays he was able to launch. A heavy attack out of that area against our outpost and. He had a tremendous amount of mortars and artillery during that period for the first time and no

question in my mind that these lives were built up during this to Sandown period. How would you feel Sara by placing a bury on a manmade area below the DMZ to do any good. I've. Heard a lot about this barrier and so I don't I don't have any details on what they plan. At the present time. About two months ago I guess when I got together and decided we would. Try to clear some white area up between the two posts up there dealing Continental distance about seven mile. Rush area narrative after the brush and trees were about 20 feet high and you go out there on a patrol. You couldn't see more than 20 or 30 yards at the most any time. Any of us through this area that the enemy of infiltrating battalions wanted to reward or just trail but he was infiltrating battalions through their own nest we had

11 men and now we couldn't detect him. But taking bulldozers and clearing out strips 600 meters wide it is nothing like yeah these are 200 meters workhouse which on the meter right skip between ou don't know Zappos then where of course we're able to look down at him cash trap and cover that entire strip of fire with fire if necessary and prevented him filtration through all this. This is certainly a practical step forward if nothing new it's something all of us learned in our basic training a few clear fields of fire and fields of visibility when you're trying to find an area this is not a defensive line a step they're going to have to be other mobile forces in front of this line to go into ambushes and patrols of course. Got any time you set up a fixed objective for this enemy to work against like a company bullish and he'll work again but he'll go around it or under the law if you have an opportunity to fix the deck if you will do it go do you very clever at it. He's a real professional at that attacking pick positions. And your plans are in great

detail when he does it. But as long as you finish him with him over the fence. Or you've got ambitious and I'm listening to a different place every day and every night. And he's got his diaper train read work and. You don't know where he is but you don't know where you are you've gotten even even steven deal to start with and I found that the mobile to graps been very effective. And actually if you had to clear up a noun I Corps and to protect only. From what you see and you believe it's a scene in red you believe the Pentagon is giving the public an accurate and complete account of the war. I didn't write any SEC Russian and complete account of the war as you know it. Now slick I know that's a question because I haven't seen and read everything that's come out.

I think I think I know my headquarters are certainly. Given a full account of everything we've done up there and everything that's happened and some of the somewhat restricted information of course. I can. I cannot judge. To what has been given the people here I. Minister. In getting back to reading the newspaper again and see what's going on out there. You know they've been comments at the Marine training focuses on the securing of beaches not on the Sistine Warwick such as in Viet Nam. Do you think Marine Corps training has changed in that direction. No and I don't think apply to only Marine Corps training I think of the basic training of all armed forces to verify and I think it's been proved to be very fine out there. There is

a new new angle in this war out there that our young men haven't been taught about I guess when they went out there most of them some are now but it is something where you have to have on the job training to do and that is the dealing with these people. You know staff occasion program. And I am American you don't care what uniform he's got on this 18 19 year old out there. The 20 they are running the show. The cinemas are running the show or are doing the fighting up and. Up in the front right on the DMZ. I did before I left I went out to a village where we had one of these little platoons of talk about America go up a squad of Marines with a proper fork but. I haven't been up good for nearly nine months. And very few of my officers have been there either. So the concept of those people had of America came from no men in that squad of morning

14 Marines plus one Navy corpsman. As I walked through the village somebody told him that I was leaving the country and they lined up along the street. Seven hundred of. The others lined up and I share count with all of them and they had flags and so forth and they gave me a real send off. The only people that they knew. As I stated earlier. The enemy that they had of America. Came from that corporal. And those PFC and privates in that Marine right. Right and maybe Cormac. And they must give a damn good image of the American people because of the feeling of war. A confidence and it may be very proud to be an American made me write to to see that the young man can do a job like that. The flexibility of our American fighting man. Has been certainly been demonstrated in South Vietnam. He can go up and fight the enemy at night. And come back time after time come back and during the

afternoon after he slept and rest a little bit afternoon. He'll help the same people of people look just like the one to you if I can help them build a school or a church or a road or you know help build a playground for the children. And he. Just remarkable the way you gifts young man has adjusted himself. And as a result of this gentleman I'd like to see if anything good can come out of the war. Something good going to come out of this one minute when these young men come back and you've already seen a lot. When we come back we're going to be a damn sight better American. May work and I went over there. They see you right on the ground. The difference between communism and we have a lot and it's nobody going to tell them that the commonest way of life is a good way of life. I'll guarantee it. God you've been listening to the discussion of the war in Vietnam as viewed by

one of the highest ranking field commanders United States Marine Corps General Lewis Walt. General Walt is the immediate past commander of all marine forces operating in Southeast Asia. This program was produced by and for the national educational radio network through the facilities of W am you FM American University Radio in Washington DC and with the cooperation of the National Press Club also located in the nation's capital. I'm Bill Greenwood inviting you to listen again next week for another edition of the NDR Washington forum a weekly program on which the nation's leaders and top officials discuss events with which they are familiar. Events of significance to all of us as citizens of the United States join us again next week for the NDR Washington forum heard over this any

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