required. Both Japan and the Republic of China were capable of supplying more assistance in all of the categories, but once again political considerations and fear of Chinese Communist escalation of the war limited their support.
It was also in April 1966 that the U.S. Mission in Saigon put its abeyance indefinitely the concept of inviting military observer teams from selected African countries to South Vietnam. These observers were to have been used to advise and assist in counterinsurgency warfare. The idea had been advanced as early as August 1965 but never got off the ground. Efforts to get other military observers to South Vietnam did continue, however. Both Greek and Dutch military officers showed interest, but the same could not be said for the Greek government. The U.S. Ambassador in Athens suggested the if one or more of the other North Atlantic Treaty Organization nations were to take the first step, the Greek government would probably follow suit. The government of the Netherlands appeared to favor the idea and as a result a joint invitation from Vietnam and the United States was sent to the Dutch Minister of Defense. However, the invitation to send Dutch military observers to Vietnam was never issued. In late September a group of observers from the Japanese Self-Defense Force visited South Vietnam and toured various installations. The visit was sponsored by the Japanese Embassy, and the U.S. Military Assistance Command, Vietnam, provided the transportation within Vietnam.
While the military situation seemed to be sorting itself out, the political turmoil in South Vietnam caused concern within the Korean government over the advisability of increasing the Korean commitment. Some influential government officials and segments of the press suggested that it might be wise to delay the deployment of additional troops until after the Vietnam elections. When the United States pointed out the adverse effect such a decision would have, the Korean Minister of Defense on 25 May reaffirmed the Korean commitment to South Vietnam.
Philippine assistance to Vietnam came closer to being a reality when the Philippine Vietnam aid bill was passed in June. Unexpected opposition to this measure and the election of a new president the previous November had all contributed to months of delay. In addition, the original plan of Diosdada Macapagal, the defeated candidate for president, who favored a combat force, was altered to provide a task force tailored to carry out a civic action mission. Consisting of an engineer construction battalion, medical and rural community development teams, a security battalion, a field artillery battery, and logistics and headquar[ters]
