FOIA: 2/G11/VHN/R32-64 SIGINT Readiness Bravo Lantern Report Nr. 30, page 1

This document is another report of intercepted communications from the Democratic Republic of Vietnam (DRV) after the Gulf of Tonkin Incident, in which the DRV attacked US Naval vessels on Aug. 2nd, 1964.

This report is similar to previous reports in that two DRV vessels were sunk. This damage to the DRV ships occurred during the US air strike in retaliation to the earlier attack on the USS Maddox destroyer.

What I found interesting is at the end the message said to “Cancel any of the wrong orders with these orders and administer exactly like these orders”. This is either an incorrect interpretation, or possibly a disinformation message. Disinformation was used to confuse or mislead the enemy, and was common practice when the enemy was know to be listening in on communications.

The Gulf of Tonkin Incident prompted the US Congress to pass the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution, which gave President Johnson authority to use military force to defend allies in the area and ultimately lead to the beginning of the Vietnam War.

Related FOIA Documents:
FOIA: DRV attack on US Ships in Gulf of Tonkin; 2 - 4 August 1964
FOIA: Summary of DRV Naval Communications Revealing Pre-Planned Attacks on USS Maddox
FOIA: SIGINT Reflections of DRV Attacks on USS Maddox - 08/08/1964