PRD'hE 11INISTER'S TOUR OF SOUTH-EAST ASIA
Statement distributed by the Prime Minister J~
at Press Conference in Saigon. Vietnam APRIL, 1966
This morning sees the conclusion of my official visit
to Vietnam. Later today I visit Ubcn in Northern Thailand where
an Australian Air Force squadron is stationed.
From there I go to Bangkok, and subsequently to
various centres where Australian forces are serving in Malaysia
and Singapore. I am deeply appreciative of the welcome which has been
given to me in Vietnam and of the many evidences of friendship and
warm feeling for Australia which I have experienced.
I have had informative and useful exchanges of views
with the Chairman of the National Leadership Committee, the Prime
Minister and other Vietnamese leaders, as well as with Australian,
United States and other officials.
These contacts, together with the observations I have
been able to make in visits to military and other establishments,
have given me a closer insight into the situation in Vietnam and
into current problems.
Miy conclusions and assessments have strongly confirmed
the earlier judgments on which we have based our policies.
As Prime M1inister of Australia I was able in person to
convey to the Vietnamese Government the admiration and support of
the Government and people of Australia for the South Vietnamese
people in their struggle to preserve their national independence.
Our support for the Republic of Vietnam has included
moral support, international political and diplomatic support, as
well as military and economic assistance.
We, of coairse, have a great interest in the effort of
Vietnam to achieve internal stability.
At the same time, we comprehend that this is no easy
task, and the Government and people of Vietnam may be assured
of our undcrstanding and awareness of the difficulties they face.
This country has for years been under Communist attack
systematically designed to destroy the growth of its institutions
and its structure of administration.
The Republic of Vietnam also has faced great : problems
after the end of colonialism in bringing about national stability
and cohesion. But the will to resist Communist aggression and to
prevent Communist domination is common to all the different
elements othe~ r than the Viet Cong and its so-called liberation
front.
This has been a constant factor throughout a period
of political change.
I have discussed the military situation with the most
senior military and diplomatic figures in the Government, the United
States representation and that of Australia.
All have confidently expressed the view that the
military threat can be successfully dealt with.
There are political difficulties which all recognise.
The task of the United States and Australia and of
other allied countries is to help resist the aggression and ensure
the security of the country while it establishes the basis for an
enduring stability. The aspirations of the Vietnamese people are the same
as those of many other newly independent countries of South and
South-East Asia, namely the right to the full and free exercise,
of sovereignty and national independence.
Each has the right to the forms of Government and
society of its choice and to develop its own approach to the
problems of economic and social developmcnt.
In resolutely waging its own struggle for freedom,
South Vietnam is making a major contribution to the security of
the whole region. The problems of security and development are, of course,
interdependent. Efforts to provide and preserve security by military
means nced to be complemented by muasures designed to raise
stndard~ s of living.
It was with particular interest, therefore, that I
have learned about the Vietnamese Government's revolutionary
development programme.
This is designed to counter the Communist threat to
the villages by providing protection and building a better life
for the pcople in rural areas.
Yesterday morning I visited the revolutionary
development cadre training centre at Vung Tau where teams are being
give n comprehensive training for these tasks.
I was most impressed by the dodication of the
instructing staff and the thoroughness and realism of their
training programmlae. Of special intuercst for me, of course, have been the
visits to Australian military and civilian personnel Sc~ rving in
Vietnam and the discussions I've had with them.
Our present force is small but it is a-highly trained
and effective force, which includcs a body of instructors working
directly with the Vietnamese Armed Forces importing their knowledge
and skills to imiprove the ? รต erformiance of thousands of others.