The Spy Who Loved Us_ The Vietnam War and Pham Xuan An's Dangerous Game ( PDFDrive )

A Country
Created by
Salvador Dali
A
n scored more coups in the years following the Têt Offensive,
some as a spy, some as a journalist. Occasionally,
during our conversations, I find my head spinning as I imagine
him shifting through the multiple roles he played during the
war. When the South Vietnamese army invaded Laos in 1971,
An tipped off the North Vietnamese. His advance warning, including
the battle plans for what was called Lam Son 719, allowed
the Communists to inflict eight thousand casualties.
Abandoned in the Laotian jungle at the end of this disastrous
invasion were one hundred helicopters, one hundred and fifty
tanks, and any hope that the South Vietnamese army could defend
itself against the north.
“When we lost the battle in southern Laos in 1971, we
were hoping to cut off the Ho Chi Minh Trail, after an earlier
raid into Cambodia to cut off the Sihanouk Trail,” An says.
“What do you mean when you say we lost the battle?” I ask.
“I am referring to the nationalist side. I am sorry. I am confused,”
An says, laughing.
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