Documents / FOIA release
This is the Central Intelligence Agency's Current Intelligence Weekly Summary of 23 March 1962, a secret digest from the Office of Current Intelligence covering world events. It reviews Soviet foreign policy on Berlin, the Berlin air corridors, disarmament and a nuclear test ban. It also covers Algeria, Argentina's elections, the Congo, Laos, South Vietnam, Guatemala, food rationing in Cuba and Middle East tensions. Special articles assess Brazil under Goulart and Turkey's economic prospects. It contains no UFO material.
Approved for Release: 2026/03/06 C03176167 ,saeRET/ CURRENT INTELLIGENCE WEEKLY SUMMARY highly placed army officers who feared that Ydigoras’ continua- tion in power in the face of public hostility would lead to an extremist takeover of the government, and that a military coup was the only solution. On 19 March, when the worst of the crisis had abated, Ydigoras ap- parently ordered the replacement of Army Chief of Staff Ponciano and the commander of one of the capital's two key garrisons. There are some indications he may have had to reverse the order. The American army and air attaches expect further high- level military reassignments of officers who wavered during the crisis. The minister of defense Colonel Enrique Peralta, may be among those replaced in the near future. The acute crisis had abated by 20 March, but Ydigoras ex- tended the state of siege to 22 April. He still faces a diffi- cult situation, and a new series of incidents could quickly cause a new deterioration of his posi- tion. Student groups are still on strike, although they have called off their demonstrations. Communist-supported guerrilla activity continues in the moun- tains north of the capital, but this by itself does not consti- tute an immediate threat to the regime. The deep wounds and rancors aroused during the crisis will 7 complicate Ydigoras’ already difficult job of developing workable relations with the non—Communist opposition par- ties--the moderate leftist Revolutionary party, which has significant popular support, the rightist National Liberation Movement, and the small Christian Democratic party. These parties formed a loose alliance during the crisis and formally demanded his resignation. Although the progovernment coalition has at least 48 seats in the 66-member unicameral Congress, there have been defections from this coali- tion and Ydigoras may have diffi- culty working with Congress. A continuing problem of considerable importance is the strong opposition in rightist circles to the candidacy of the popular ex-President Juan Jose Arevalo in the elections sched- uled for December 1963. Even his enemies concede that Arevalo would win in a free election. He will not be constitutionally eligible for the presidency, how- ever, until March 1963, when he will have been out of office fo the required 12 years. During the course of this year, there- fore, opponents of Arevalo will continue to press for Ydigoras’ removal, since this would require 1' new elections within four months --while Arevalo is still ineli- gible. Arevalo is opposed not only by rightists because of his socio-economic reform pro- gram but also by certain mod- erate leftist leaders who are personally antagonistic to him. 23 7 r 62 WEEKLY REVIEW Page 14 of 22 (b)(3 ' Approved for Release: 2026/03/06 C03176167
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FOIA release, from the cia-readingroom collection. The PDF is mirrored here; the original link is above. 42 pages are in the text index: search them above, or from the library's search.