Word: saigon
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Despite this, a new snag soon developed. Most of Saigon's leaders urged that Minh become Premier in full charge of the government, with Huong remaining as nothing more than a symbolic head of state. From the beginning, however, Minh insisted that he be chief of state?with real powers...
...halting gasps, wearing dark glasses, he told the legislators that it was for them to decide if he should stay in office or make way for General Minh. "Now our ally has abandoned us and we have to defend our fatherland alone," he warned, "but by doing that Saigon may become a sea of fire and a mound of bones. I wish to avoid this...
Astonishingly, the Assembly refused to take the initiative and told Huong that he had the power to make his momentous decision himself. He would have to act quickly. Most observers in South Viet Nam were convinced that Saigon was running out of time. Already, North Vietnamese forces had responded to the capital's indecision by launching what could turn into a major offensive against Ba Ria, which controls Saigon's escape route to the sea. For the first time in two years, they also lobbed several rockets on Saigon itself...
...Communists, apart from their proclaimed attachment to the goal of reconciliation and concord, they too would probably benefit from a flexible approach, even one that allowed for an interim neutralist government. In the Saigon region, a political compromise would avoid the chaos and dislocations of a military siege. Some pessimists believe that the North is bent on a dramatic battle for Saigon. But reducing the city to rubble would increase the likelihood of bitter-end opposition to Communist control by the many well-organized political groups within South Viet Nam?groups like the Buddhists of the militant An Quang Pagoda...
...close associate of Big Minh. "Problems of stability, problems of security, political problems. It is much better for them if the first step is by political solution." Even if Big Minh manages to get negotiations started, however, the Communists could still launch limited or even all-out attacks around Saigon as a reminder to the new "third force" government of who was really in control. One likely target would be Saigon's Tan Son Nhut airport, the scene of the ongoing evacuation of both Americans and Vietnamese. In any case many analysts believe that the Communists are determined...