0 - The Black Vault

THE 8DM CORPORATION
I
. provide conditions conduciv, to the futuri_ .pendet political
iJevzlopment of Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia.
The signatories to the Armistice w, delegates of the
Generals in Command of the combat forces.
The DRV slL,,ed all three agreements
(for separate cease-fires in, Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia), while
France signed the Vietnam and Laos agreements, The Khmer National Army
signed the Cambodian one.14/
The Final Declaration, wh-'ch ca>,?d for a
political settlement -- electicns in Laos and Cambodi,-, in 1955 and in
Vietnam in 1956 -- was not signed by any of the participants,
The French and Viet Minh were the designated executors of
the Accords, while the GV14, under the Bao Dai regime, clearly repudiated
the Accords 3nd declined to accept any responsibility for observing or
enforcing them. In fact, the GVN was given its independence by France
before the Accords were signed, and they were treated as a separate state
throughout the conference. The GVN signed nothing at Geneva. Through the
concessions of the communist countries and the firmness of its Western
Allies, the GVN had been given an opportunity to get its act together and
consolidate itself.
A few days after the Accords had been signed, Secretary of
State Dulles, referring to "the loss of Northern Vietnam", expresseu the
F hope that much would be learned frcm the experience toward preventing
further communist inroads in Asia.
Smith,
Under Secretary of State Walter 3edell
in a separate declaration, said that the US would "refrain from the
threat or the use of force to disturb" the agreements and "would view any
renewal of the aggression in violation of the aforesaid agreements with
grave concern and as seriously threatening international peace and security."15/
1) Outcomes as Viewed by the Participating Nations 16/
* United States
- public view was cautious, the best of a bad situation
- private reactions were gloomy: NSC evaluated the
conference as a major defeat, OCB considered it a
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