[230046Z.OH 06/09/96] UNCLASSIFIED PAGE: 0001 INQUIRE--DOC17D ITEM NO=00540902 ENVELOPE CDSN = LGX050 MCN = 92114/00730 TOR = 921140044 PTTUZYUW RUEKJCS3990 1140046-UU W --RUEALGX ZNR UUUUU HEADER P 230046Z APR 92 FM JOINT STAFF WASHINGTON DC INFO RUEAIGX/SAFE P 212030Z APR 92 ZYB FM CDR JTF-FA HONOLULU HI TO RUHQHQA/USCINCPAC HONOLULU HI//J3/J30-M// INFO RUEKJCS/JOINT STAFF WASHINGTON DC//J5/PW-MIA/J3-JOD// RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHINGTON DC//OASD- ISA/PW-M IA// RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHINGTON DC//EAP/VLC// RUEKJCS/DIA WASHINGTON DC//PW-MIA// RUMTFS/AMEMBASSY VIENTIANE RUEHBT/CJTFFA DET ONE BANGKOK TH RUHVAAA/CDR USACILHI HICKAM AFB HI//TAPC-PED-H// BT CONTROLS UNCLAS //N03460// SECTION 01 OF 02 STATE PASS TO USMISSION PHNOM PENH /*********** THIS IS A COMBINED MESSAGE ************/ BODY MSGID/SYS.RRM/CDR JTF-FA// AMPN/SUBJ: SUMMARY REPORT OF INTERVIEW OF PAVN COLONEL NGUYEN MINH Y (MR. Y)// RMKS/1. FOLLOWING RECEIVED FROM JTF-FA, DET 2 AND IS RETRANSMITTED FOR YOUR INFORMATION. 2. BACKGROUND: SOCIALIST REPUBLIC OF VIETNAM (SRV) FOREIGN MINISTER NGUYEN MANH CAM MET WITH UNITED STATES (U.S.) ASSISTANT SECRETARY OF STATE SOLOMON IN HANOI ON 4 MARCH 1992. FOREIGN MINISTER CAM AGREED THAT THE VNOSMP COULD ARRANGE FOR SPECIALISTS FROM THE VNOSMP AND DETACHMENT 2 TO MEET WITH A QUOTE MR. Y UNQUOTE WHO SOME SOURCES HAD DESCRIBED AS ONE OF VIETNAM'S PREMIER AUTHORITIES ON WARTIME RECORDS CONCERNING U.S POWS AND MIAS DET 2'S RESEARCH SPECIALIST, MR. [XXXX] [XXXX], PRESSED FOR THE INTERVIEW AT THE EARLIEST POSSIBLE DATE. IT IS OUR UNDERSTANDING THAT MR. Y WAS ABROAD DURING LATE MARCH AND EARLY APRIL 92, AND RETURNED TO HANOI LATE ON 16 APRIL 92. ON 16 APR SRCOL TRAN VAN BIEN (VNOSMP'S SENIOR MINISTRY OF DEFENSE REPRESENTATIVE AND SENIOR RESEARCH SPECIALIST) INFORMED DET 2'S RESEARCH OFFICER (RO) THAT MR Y WOULD BE AVAILABLE FOR INTERVIEW ONLY DURING 0800-0930 HOURS, SATURDAY 18 APR. RO NOTED THAT SINCE SRCOL BIEN AND RO WERE SCHEDULED TO TRAVEL TO HCM CITY SATURDAY AFTERNOON ON A PRIORITY TASK, WE WOULD NOT HAVE ANY FLEXIBILITY TO EXTEND OUR INTERVIEW OF MR. Y ON SATURDAY MORNING SHOULD WE NEED MORE THAN 1 5 HOURS SR UNCLASSIFIED PAGE:OOO2 COL BIEN PROMISED T0 SEE WHAT COULD BE DONE TO RESCHEDULE THE INTERVIEW. SRCOL BIEN TELEPHONED RO EARLY ON 17 APR FROM MR. Y'S OFFICE, INFORMED RO THAT MR. Y HAD AGREED TO MEET WITH US DURING THE AFTERNOON OF 17 APR, TURNED THE PHONE OVER TO MR. Y TO DIRECTLY CONFIRM THE ARRANGEMENTS. DURING THIS PHONE CONVERSATION, SRCOL BIEN AND MR. Y NOTED THAT MR. Y HAD ONLY LIMITED KNOWLEDGE OF SOME TOPICS RO HAD PREVIOUSLY OUTLINED FOR DISCUSSION; THEREFORE, THEY HAD INVITED TWO KNOWLEDGEABLE VMOSMP SPECIALISTS, LTC PHAM TEO AND MR. DDUONG NGOC, TO PARTICIPATE IN THE INTERVIEW. THE INTERVIEW WAS CONDUCTED AT A CONFERENCE ROOM IN THE GOVERNMENT GUEST HOUSE (LE THACH GUEST HOUSE) FROM 1430-1730 HOURS, 17 APRIL 1992. PARTICIPANTS WERE MR. [XXXX] [XXXX]. [XXXX](DET 2 JTF-FA/DIA RESEARCHER/HISTORIAN); PEOPLES ARMY OF VIETNAM (PAVN) COLONEL NGUYEN MINH Y (MR. Y; DEPUTY DIRECTOR, CIVILIAN PROSELYTING DEPARTMENT, GENERAL POLITICAL DIRECTORATE, PAVN); PAVN SENIOR COLONEL TRAM VAN BIEN (VNOSMP); PAVN LIEUTENANT COLONEL PHAM TEO (VNOSMP RECORDS AND REMAINS SPECIALIST); AND MR. DUONG VAN NGOC (MINISTRY OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS REPRESENTATIVE ON THE VNOSMP). THIS REPORT IS BASED ON FIELD ANALYSIS ALONE AND IS NOT INTENDED TO PROVIDE FINAL ANALYTICAL CONCLUSIONS. 3. SUMMARY OF INTERVIEW. PAVN COL NGUYEN MINH Y (NGUYEN MINH Y) WORKED AS AN INTERPETER FOR PAVN ELEMENTS RESPONSIBLE FOR U.S POWS. IN THE HANOI POSITION AS AN INTERPRETER DURING THE WAR GAVE HIM ONLY GENERAL KNOWLEDGE OF PAVN'S SYSTEN FOR REPORTING AND PERSEVERING IMFORMATION ABOUT U.S. POWS AND MIAS; HOWEVER, HE DISCUSSED THE TOPIC FREELY WITH RO HE SUMMARIZED THE HISTORY OF THE PAVN'S SYSTEM FOR HAMDLING U.S. POWS IN NORTHERN VIETNAM AND THE RELATIONSHIP OF PAVN'S ENEMY PROSELYSING DEPARTMENT TO PAVN ORGANIZATIONS RESPONSIBLE FOR U.S. POWS IN MAJOR PAVN FORWARD COMMANDS (B.1, B.2, B.3, AND B.4 FRONTS, AND MILITARY REGION 4). HE AND LTC PHAM TEO WERE MEMBER OF PAVN GROUP 875 AND SUMMARIZED THE HISTORY OF GROUP 876 AND ITS RESPONSIBILITIES RELATIVE TO U.S. POWS AND MIAS. AS THE NUMBER OF U.S. POWS HELD IN NORTH VIETNAM INCREASED, PAVN FOUND IT NECESSARY TO CREATE A SEPARATE DEPARTMENT TO TAKE RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE HANDLING OF THE U.S. POWS -- THUS PAVN FORMED GROUP 575 (AKA BRIGADE 575/LU DOAN 57S), UNDER THE GENERAL POLITICAL DIRECTORATE. COL Y AND HIS COLLEAGUES DID NOT RECALL THE DATE GROUP 875 WAS CREATED; HOWEVER, IT HAD THE STATUS OF A DEPARTMENT (CUC) AND, AS SUCH, WAS EQUAL TO AND SEPARATE FROM THE EMEMY PROSELYTIMG DEPARTMENT. GROUP 875 WAS RESPONSIBLE FOR MAINTAINING RECORDS RELATED TO U.S. POWS AND MIAS. GROUP 875 WAS DISBANDED IN 1973, AFTER OPERATION HOMECOMING. THE GROUPS FILES SOME OF ITS PERSONNEL WERE TRANSFERRED TO THE NEWLY FORMED DEPARTMENT OF MILITARY JUSTICE (CUC QUAN PHAP). THE FILES WERE MAINTAIMED AT AN OFFICE OF GROUP 875 AND, LATER, THE DEPARTMENT OF MILITARY JUSTICE LOCATED AT NO.3 DUONG THANH STREET, IN HANOI. COL Y AND HIS COLLEAGUES SAID INSECTS INFESTED AND DESTROYED THOSE RECORDS ON U. S. POWS AND MIAS IN 1979, FORCIMG PAVN TO BURN THE RECORDS. COL Y AND HIS COLLEAGUES AND RO CANDIDLY DISCUSSED THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE LARGE VOLUME OF DOG TAG REPORTS WE HAVE BEEN RECEIVING SINCE 1975 AND THE CENTRAL RECOKDS ACCUMULATED AND UNCLASSIFIED PAGE:0003 PRESERVED BY THE ENEMY PROSELYTING DEPARTMENT AND GROUP 875. COL Y AND HIS COLLEAGUES ACKNOWLEDGED THAT SOME PRIVATE CITIZENS IN VIETNAM ATTEMPT TO USE U.S. DOG TAGS AN,D OTHER ARTIFACTS TO EXPLOIT U.S. EFFORTS TO RECOVER REMAINS. THEY WERE RELUCTANT TO BELIEVE THAT CENTRAL OFFICIALS MIGHT PLAY A ROLE IN THIS ACTIVITY. COL Y INSISTED THAT SUCH ACTIVITY NOT ONLY WOULD-BE ILLEGAL AND CONTRARY TO THE HUMANITARIAN PRINCIPLES TO WHICH PAVN'S LEADERS SUBSCRIBED; BUT, IN HIS JUDGEMENT, WOULD BE QUOTE STUPID UNQUOTE. HE ASSURED TO THAT IS HE (COL Y) SHOULD DISCOVER THAT ANY SRV OFFICIAL IS USING REMAINS OR PERSONAL EFFECTS OF U.S. MIAS TO EXPLOIT THE POW/MIA ISSUE, HE WILL ENSURE APPROPRIATE ACTION IS TAKEN TO PROSECUTE THE PERSON(S) IN THE VIETNAMESE COURTS. COL Y SAID THAT TO HIS KNOWLEDGE, OTHER THAN THE INSTANCE ALREADY MADE PUBLIC (CASE 1016, [XXXX] NO MEMBERS OF THE KGB OR GRU WERE EVER ALLOWED TO HAVE DIRECT CONTACT WITH U.S. POWS IN VIETNAM. COL Y CONFIRMED THE HAD PERSONAL KNOWLEDGE THAT TWO CUBAN ENGLISH LANGUAGE INSTRUCTORS HAD ACCESS TO A SMALL NUMBER OF U.S. POWS DURING A PERIOD OF SEVERAL MONTHS--LESS THAN ONE YEAR. HE EMPHASIZED THESE CONTACTS WERE ASSOCIATED WITH AN ENGLISH LANGUAGE TRAINING PROGRAM TAUGHT BY THE TWO CUBANS. HE SAID THEY WERE NOT INTERROGATORS. HE RECALLED ONLY THEIR VIETNAMESE NICK NAMES, VIET AND NAM. HE DID NOT RECALL THE DATES OF THIS SHORT-LIVED LANGUAGE TRAINING PROGRAM. HE SAID THAT WHILE ONE OR MORE EARLY RELEASES MIGHT HAVE TRAVELED TO THE U.S. VIA RUSSIA AND WESTERN EUROPE--WITH FULL PUBLICITY IN THE INTERNATIONAL PRESS--VIETNAM NEVER TRANSFERRED ANY POWS TO THE SOVIET UNION, THE PRC, OR ANY OTHER COUNTRY. COL Y SAID VIETNAM RELEASED ALL U.S. POWS IT WAS HOLDING AT THE TIME OF OPERATION HOMECOMING IN 1973. RO EXPLAINED THE IMPORTANCE OF WARTIME RECORDS AS A MEANS TO DOCUMENT THE FATE OF U.S. SERVICEMEN WHO ARE STILL UNACCOUNTED FOR; EXPRESSED HOPE THAT SOME OF PAVN'S WARTIME FILE STILL SURVIVE; AND URGED COL Y AND HIS COLLEAGUES TO EXPLORE POSSIBLE SOURCES OF SUCH RECORDS. /****** BEGINNING OF SECTION 002 ******/ 4. F.0 WILL PREPARE DETAILED REPORT OF THE INTERVIEW WITH COL Y AND HIS COLLEAGUES AFTER TO RETURNS FROM TRIP TO SOUTH VIETNAM TO SEARCH FOR SOURCES WHO MIGHT BE ABLE TO HELP JOINT U.S./CAMBODIAN TEAMS LOCATE GRAVES OF AMERICANS WHO DIED IN THE CAMBODIAN BORDER AREA. ESTIMATED DATE OF RETURN IS O/A 2R APRIL 1992.// ADMIN BT #3991 NNNN UNCLASSIFIED