Programs Evaluation Office

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The Programs Evaluation Office was a covert paramilitary mission to the Kingdom of Laos, established on 13 December 1955 by the United States Department of Defense. The 23 July 1962 International Agreement on the Neutrality of Laos would cause it to be shut down in September 1962. It would be succeeded by the Requirements Office.

Paramilitary Militarised force or other organization

A paramilitary is a semi-militarized force whose organizational structure, tactics, training, subculture, and (often) function are similar to those of a professional military, but which is formally not part of a government's armed forces.

Kingdom of Laos former country

The Kingdom of Laos was a constitutional monarchy that ruled Laos beginning with its independence on 9 November 1953. The monarchy survived until December 1975, when its last king, Savang Vatthana, surrendered the throne to the Pathet Lao, who abolished the monarchy in favor of a Marxist state called the Lao People's Democratic Republic, which has controlled Laos since.

United States Department of Defense United States federal executive department

The Department of Defense is an executive branch department of the federal government charged with coordinating and supervising all agencies and functions of the government concerned directly with national security and the United States Armed Forces. The department is the largest employer in the world, with nearly 1.3 million active duty servicemen and women as of 2016. Adding to its employees are over 826,000 National Guardsmen and Reservists from the four services, and over 732,000 civilians bringing the total to over 2.8 million employees. Headquartered at the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia, just outside Washington, D.C., the DoD's stated mission is to provide "the military forces needed to deter war and ensure our nation's security".

Contents

Background

With the end of World War II, Laos was no longer under the French Union but became entirely sovereign and governed by the Royal Lao Government. The agreements reached at the Geneva Conference (1954) prohibited Laos from having foreign military bases and participating in any foreign military alliance, but allowed a small French military training mission which supported the Royal Lao Army. In the wake of the Geneva Conference, France announced it would cease funding the Lao government on 1 January 1955. The French training mission began to wind down. As part of its goal of containment, the U.S. sought to ensure that the Royal Lao Army was capable of meeting the threat posed by the Pathet Lao , who were backed by communist North Vietnam. In turn, on 3 December 1955, the RLG requested that the United States step into the void. Ten days later, the Programs Evaluation Office was established. Staffed by 12 retired American military or reserve personnel, the PEO skirted the conditions of the Geneva agreement by its civilian staffing. [1] Retired Brigadier General Rothwell H. Brown, who reported to the Commander in Chief Pacific Command, headed the office. The PEO kept a low profile as it began working to improve an army of 23,000 undereducated and poorly trained peasants. [2] By 1957, PEO was slated for a staff of 60, although turnover kept onboard staff to about 30 men. Progress in upgrading the RLA was at a standstill; the French military mission had dwindled with their involvement in their Algerian War. Such French trainers as were assigned were reluctant to cooperate with Americans, and regarded the Lao as inferior recruits for soldiering. [3]

World War II 1939–1945 global war

World War II, also known as the Second World War, was a global war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. The vast majority of the world's countries—including all the great powers—eventually formed two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis. A state of total war emerged, directly involving more than 100 million people from over 30 countries. The major participants threw their entire economic, industrial, and scientific capabilities behind the war effort, blurring the distinction between civilian and military resources. World War II was the deadliest conflict in human history, marked by 50 to 85 million fatalities, most of whom were civilians in the Soviet Union and China. It included massacres, the genocide of the Holocaust, strategic bombing, premeditated death from starvation and disease, and the only use of nuclear weapons in war.

French Union

The French Union (1946–1958) was a political entity created by the French Fourth Republic to replace the old French colonial system, colloquially known as the "French Empire". It was the formal end of the "indigenous" status of French subjects in colonial areas.

Royal Lao Government

The Royal Lao Government was the ruling authority in the Kingdom of Laos from 1947 until the communist seizure of power in December 1975 and the proclamation of the Lao People's Democratic Republic. The Franco-Lao Treaty of 1953 gave Laos full independence but the following years were marked by a rivalry between the neutralists under Prince Souvanna Phouma, the right wing under Prince Boun Oum of Champassak, and the left-wing, Lao Patriotic Front under Prince Souphanouvong and future Prime Minister Kaysone Phomvihane. During this period, a number of unsuccessful attempts were made to establish coalition governments.

Operational history

Beginning

A coalition government emerged in Vientiane in 1957, which included royalists as well as the Pathet Lao. When the United States wanted to influence the 1958 Lao elections, it staged Operation Booster Shot. This civic action program was supported by a PEO supervised air lift by the Central Intelligence Agency's proprietary civilian airline, CAT, as well as by the U.S. Air Force. [4] The Pathet Lao formed a coalition with a minor party when they garnered 14 of 21 seats in the National Assembly. [5] The PEO's election advice to the Royal Lao Government politicians—to run a single slate of candidates to avoid splitting the votes—went unheeded. Indeed, in one instance, the supporters of one defeated RLG candidate told him he had never asked them to vote for him. [6]

Pathet Lao communist political movement and organization in Laos

The Pathet Lao was a communist political movement and organization in Laos, formed in the mid-20th century. The group was ultimately successful in assuming political power in 1975, after the Laotian Civil War. The Pathet Lao were always closely associated with Vietnamese communists. During the civil war, it was effectively organized, equipped and even led by the People's Army of Vietnam. They fought against the anti-communist forces in the Vietnam War. Eventually, the term became the generic name for Laotian communists.

Operation Booster Shot was a rural aid program run by the United States in the Kingdom of Laos during March and April 1958. Its purpose was to influence Lao peasantry to vote during May National Assembly elections for those politicians the U.S. favored. Because of the lack of roads in Laos, Booster Shot became an air delivery operation. It proceeded somewhat haphazardly due to rushed planning. Although logistically successful, the end result was electoral victory by the communist candidates opposed to the U.S.

Central Intelligence Agency National intelligence agency of the United States

The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) is a civilian foreign intelligence service of the federal government of the United States, tasked with gathering, processing, and analyzing national security information from around the world, primarily through the use of human intelligence (HUMINT). As one of the principal members of the United States Intelligence Community (IC), the CIA reports to the Director of National Intelligence and is primarily focused on providing intelligence for the President and Cabinet of the United States.

By May 1958, the U.S. Department of Defense was proposing a training mission by civilian technicians to the Royal Lao Army to retrain four of its branches—logistics, communications, ordnance, and combat engineers. Later that year, a small group of military advisers arrived to teach construction of airfields, bridges, and highways. In October 1958, 39 training slots for Lao officers and non-commissioned officers were reserved for 1959 courses at Fort Benning, Georgia. [3] [7] In conjunction with the Central Intelligence Agency, PEO trained some regular Lao soldiers into Scout Ranger Teams; these would later evolve into two paratroop battalions. [6] However, the most important event was the arrival of former General John Heintges as head of PEO in September 1958. [3] [7]

Non-commissioned officer Military officer without a commission

A non-commissioned officer (NCO) is a military officer who has not earned a commission. Non-commissioned officers usually obtain their position of authority by promotion through the enlisted ranks. In contrast, commissioned officers hold higher ranks than NCOs, have more legal responsibilities, are paid more, and often have more non-military training such as a university diploma. Commissioned officers usually earn their commissions without having risen through the enlisted ranks.

Fort Benning United States Army post outside Columbus, Georgia

Fort Benning is a United States Army post straddling the Alabama–Georgia border next to Columbus, Georgia. Fort Benning supports more than 120,000 active-duty military, family members, reserve component soldiers, retirees, and civilian employees on a daily basis. It is a power projection platform, and possesses the capability to deploy combat-ready forces by air, rail, and highway. Fort Benning is the home of the United States Army Maneuver Center of Excellence, the United States Army Armor School, United States Army Infantry School, the Western Hemisphere Institute for Security Cooperation, elements of the 75th Ranger Regiment, the 1st Security Force Assistance Brigade, and other additional tenant units.

Up-grade and end

Heintges assessed the PEO program with an eye to improvement. As he noted in his report, both the American and Lao ends of the PEO program had major problems. To date, the PEO had served as a simple conduit for military materials supplied to the Royal Lao Army. It made no followup beyond delivery. The RLA, on the other hand, reflected some severe faults of the French army. Most deleterious was the stratification between the officers, NCOs, and enlisted ranks. The officer corps was arrogant and distant in its relationship with NCOs and enlisted men; it seldom led in the field. Responsibility for leadership thus devolved on under-educated and under-trained sergeants. Military equipment was scarce and outdated. Heintges moved to address the problems he saw. He brought in a new larger PEO staff of 65 in December; most were veterans of the Third Infantry Division during World War II, as was Heintges. He also advocated for military training teams of Green Berets. [3]

3rd Infantry Division (United States) United States Army infantry division

The 3rd Infantry Division is a combined arms and light infantry division of the United States Army based at Fort Stewart, Georgia. It is a direct subordinate unit of the XVIII Airborne Corps and U.S. Army Forces Command. Its current organization includes one Infantry and two armored brigade combat teams, one aviation brigade, a division artillery and support elements. The division has a distinguished history, having seen active service in both World War I and World War II.

The 107 Green Berets of Project Hotfoot arrived on 24 July 1959. Led by Arthur D. "Bull" Simons, the dozen eight-man teams were shared out three per training base at Luang Prabang, Pakse, Savannakhet, and Vientiane. Even as the Operation Hotfoot teams began weapons training and the French military mission taught tactics, the RLA was losing a series of skirmishes in Xam Neua near the Vietnamese border. The training was held in abeyance while the Green Berets surveyed the situation. They deemed the higher command of the RLA inexperienced, especially in command of any unit above company level, or in staff positions. Having surveyed the situation, the Green Berets began training in September 1959. That same month, under the codename Project Erawan, the Royal Thai Army began training 1,400 Lao recruits in guerrilla and counter-guerrilla warfare. [8]

Luang Prabang District & municipality in Louangphabang Province, Laos

Louangphabang, or Luang Phabang, commonly transliterated into Western languages from the pre-1975 Lao spelling ຫຼວງພຣະບາງ as Luang Prabang, literally meaning "Royal Buddha Image", is a city in north central Laos, consisting of 58 adjacent villages, of which 33 comprise the UNESCO Town Of Luang Prabang World Heritage Site. It was listed in 1995 for unique and "remarkably" well preserved architectural, religious and cultural heritage, a blend of the rural and urban developments over several centuries, including the French colonial influences during the 19th and 20th centuries.

Pakse District & municipality in Champasak Province, Laos

Pakse, or Pakxe, is the capital and most populous city of the southern Laotian province of Champasak, making it the second most populous city in Laos. Located at the confluence of the Xe Don and Mekong Rivers, it has a population of about 88,000. It also served as the capital of the Kingdom of Champasak until it was unified with the rest of Laos in 1946.

Savannakhet District & municipality in Savannakhet Province, Laos

Savannakhet, officially named Kaysone Phomvihane and previously known as Khanthabouli (ຄັນທະບູລີ), is a city in western Laos and the capital of the Savannakhet Province. With a population of 120,000 (undated), it is the second-largest city in Laos, after Vientiane. The city is the birthplace of Kaysone Phomvihane, the first leader of Laos after the dissolution of the Kingdom of Laos from 1975 to 1992, and was named after him in 2005. Although the old French colonial quarter of the town, along the Mekong River-front, is depressed and crumbling, the town's proximity to Thailand's booming economy has brought about new commercial development in the northern part of the town, near both the river crossing and the bus terminal.

The structure of the Royal Lao Army was a conventional one, with the Royal Lao Air Force and the River Flotilla were both subordinate to it. In conjunction with the regular units, the RLA also had a home guard organization of 100-man companies, the Auto Defense Corps. It was authorized a strength of 16,000 militiamen. PEO reached out to other countries, in an attempt to arrange additional training cadre. Overtures to Malaysia and South Vietnam were unsuccessful. However, in September 1959, the Royal Thai Government agreed to retrain paratroopers at Camp Erawan in Lopburi. PEO also was successful in hiring technicians in the Philippines. Filipino technicians from Eastern Construction Company (abbreviated as ECCOIL) arrived under contract to instruct the nascent Royal Lao Air Force, as well as the sailors of the Mekong River Flotilla. Displaced French trainers were to devolve to the RLA's regional training centers. [9] In November, PEO began contact with the Committee for the Defence of the National Interests, a political faction of younger Lao military officers. [10]

On 25 December 1959, General Phoumi Nosavan seized Vientiane. By the New Year, he had dissolved the National Assembly and firmly installed himself as head of the Lao government. By this time, the PEO had increased to an onboard strength of 175, a mixed crew of civilians and temporarily assigned U.S. military. A second Hotfoot contingent rotated in for duty. However, now that the PEO began to make progress on the military task of upgrading the RLA, internal political disagreements began to hamper them, as elections were slated for 24 April 1960. Once again, the PEO carried out a civic action program meant to influence voters to support anticommunist candidates for office. This was successful to the extent that the Pathet Lao lost an election widely perceived as fraudulent. On 23 May, they fled into the wilderness of Houaphanh Province to once again foment an insurrection. [11]

Then on August 9, 1960, Phoumi’s government was removed in a lightning coup d'état by a group termed the Neutralists led by Captain Kong Le, a paratroop officer of the Royal Lao Army. PEO headquarters in Vientiane became inactive following Kong Le's takeover of the city, but the PEO branch office in Savannakhét continued to supply and pay General Phoumi Nosavan's troops. Eventually, on 14 December 1960, Phoumi re-captured Vientiane. [12]

The Central Intelligence Agency infiltrated Laos with Thai commandos at that time. After the momentous meeting between CIA agent James William Lair and Vang Pao, the PEO was tasked with funding of the first 2,000 irregulars under Operation Momentum. [13] The justification for not tasking PEO for the Momentum mission was PEO's rigid adherence to long-term planning. [14]

In April 1961, the PEO was upgraded to a Military Assistance Advisory Group (MAAG), and its members were allowed to wear uniforms within Laos. [15] On 29 April 1961, Project Erawan morphed into Project Ekarad; despite the code name change, Lao troops still trained in Lopburi, Thailand. [16] By June 1962, the MAAG had grown to a staff of 866, with a further 465 Filipinos from ECCOIL also employed. The MAAG was withdrawn to Thailand by October 1962 under the terms of the Geneva Agreement, becoming Deputy Chief, Joint United States Military Assistance Advisory Group Thailand. [17] The Programs Evaluation Office would eventually be replaced by the Requirements Office of the U.S. Embassy. [15]

During its existence, the Programs Evaluation Office controlled logistics to as many as 30,000 Royalist regular soldiers. It was denied control of the Project Momentum effort to train Hmong as irregular military. Despite PEO, "...the Laotian army continued to distinguish itself primarily by its lassitude and incompetence." Essentially, the Hmong were becoming the Lao government's combatants, leading to unsuccessful PEO attempts to gain control over the guerrillas. [18]

Notes

  1. ↑ Conboy, Morrison, p. 17.
  2. ↑ Anthony, Sexton, p. 14.
  3. 1 2 3 4 Conboy, Morrison, p. 20.
  4. ↑ Anthony, Sexton, pp. 12, 15, 16.
  5. ↑ Conboy, Morrison, p. 18.
  6. 1 2 Ahern, p. 6.
  7. 1 2 Conboy, Morrison, p. 24.
  8. ↑ Conboy, Morrison, pp. 20 - 25.
  9. ↑ Conboy, Morrison, p. 24.
  10. ↑ Ahern, p. 9.
  11. ↑ Conboy, Morrison, pp. 24-26.
  12. ↑ Conboy, Morrison, pp. 24-26, 40-42.
  13. ↑ Conboy, Morrison, p. 61.
  14. ↑ Ahern, p. 28.
  15. 1 2 Castle, pp. 52-53.
  16. ↑ Conboy, Morrison, p. 67.
  17. ↑ Anthony, Sexton, pp. 72-73.
  18. ↑ Ahern, pp. 52, 55-57.

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References

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