''U.S. Army Field Manual 30-31B'' is a document claiming to be a classified appendix to a U.S. Army Field Manual that describes top secret counterinsurgency tactics. In particular, it identifies a "

strategy of tension A strategy of tension ( it, strategia della tensione) is a policy wherein violent struggle is encouraged rather than suppressed. The purpose is to create a general feeling of insecurity in the population and make people seek security in a strong go ...

" involving violent attacks which are then blamed on radical left-wing groups in order to convince allied governments of the need for counter-action. It has been called the Westmoreland Field Manual because it is signed with the alleged signature of General

William Westmoreland William Childs Westmoreland (March 26, 1914 – July 18, 2005) was a United States Army general, most notably commander of United States forces during the Vietnam War from 1964 to 1968. He served as Chief of Staff of the United States Army from ...

. It was labelled as supplement B (hence "30-31B"), although the publicly released version of FM30-31 only has one appendix, Supplement A.

History

The first mention of the document was in the Turkish newspaper ''Barış'' (sometimes anglicized to ''Barish''), in 1975. A facsimile copy of FM30-31B then appeared a year later in Bangkok, Thailand, and in various capitals of north African states. In 1978, it appeared in various European magazines, including the Spanish ''Triunfo'' and ''El Pais''. The Italian press picked up the ''Triunfo'' publication, and a copy was published in the October 1978 issue of ''L'Europeo''. A wide range of field manuals, including 30–31, can be accessed through websites that catalog U.S. field manuals. However, 30-31B is not among the field manuals published by the military. The "Westmoreland Field Manual" was mentioned in at least two parliamentary commissions reports of European countries, one about the Italian

Propaganda Due Propaganda Due (; P2) was a Masonic lodge under the Grand Orient of Italy, founded in 1877. Its Masonic charter was withdrawn in 1976, and it transformed into a criminal, clandestine, anti-communist, anti-Soviet, anti-leftist, pseudo-Masonic, a ...

masonic lodge, and one about the

Belgian stay-behind network The Belgian stay-behind network, colloquially called "Gladio" (meaning "sword"), was a secret mixed civilian and military unit, trained to form a resistance movement in the event of a Soviet invasion and part of a network of similar organizations in ...

. The latter says that "the commission has not any certainty about the authenticity of the document".

Authenticity

At a 1980 hearing of the House of Representatives

Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence The United States House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence (HPSCI), also known as the House Intelligence Committee, is a United States congressional committee, committee of the United States House of Representatives, currently chaired by ...

, Subcommittee of Oversight, CIA officials testified that the document was a singularly effective forgery by the KGB and an example of Soviet covert action. Scholars Peer Henrik Hansen and

Thomas Rid Thomas Rid (born 1975) is a political scientist best known for his work on the history and risks of information technology in conflict. He is Professor of Strategic Studies at the Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies. Previously h ...

, both specializing in Cold War intelligence, and the

U.S. State Department The United States Department of State (DOS), or State Department, is an executive department of the U.S. federal government responsible for the country's foreign policy and relations. Equivalent to the ministry of foreign affairs of other nati ...

claim the document is a forgery by Soviet intelligence services.U.S. House. Hearings Before the Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence. ''Soviet Active Measures''. 97th Congress, 2nd session. July 13, 14, 1982.U.S. House. Hearings Before the Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence. ''Soviet Covert Action (The Forgery Offense)''. 96th Congress, 2nd session. February 6, 19, 1980. The document first appeared in

Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a list of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolia, Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with ...

in the 1970s, before being circulated to other countries. It was also used at the end of the 1970s during Operation GLADIO, to implicate the

Central Intelligence Agency The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA ), known informally as the Agency and historically as the Company, is a civilian foreign intelligence service of the federal government of the United States, officially tasked with gathering, processing, ...

in the Red Brigades' kidnapping and assassination of former Italian

prime minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is not ...

Aldo Moro. The discovery in the early-1990s of

Operation Gladio Operation Gladio is the codename for clandestine "stay-behind" operations of armed resistance that were organized by the Western Union (alliance), Western Union (WU), and subsequently by NATO and the CIA, in collaboration with several European Int ...

(NATO stay-behind networks) in

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

led to renewed debate as to whether or not the manual was fraudulent. In

Allan Francovich Allan James Francovich (March 23, 1941 – April 17, 1997) was an American film maker. He is best known for creating a number of films critical of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), linking them to terrorist attacks during the Cold War ...

's three-part BBC documentary on the subject, Licio Gelli, the Italian leader of the anti-Communist P2

freemason Freemasonry or Masonry refers to fraternal organisations that trace their origins to the local guilds of stonemasons that, from the end of the 13th century, regulated the qualifications of stonemasons and their interaction with authorities ...

lodge Lodge is originally a term for a relatively small building, often associated with a larger one. Lodge or The Lodge may refer to: Buildings and structures Specific * The Lodge (Australia), the official Canberra residence of the Prime Ministe ...

, stated "The CIA gave it to me." In the documentary, Ray S. Cline said "I suspect that it is an authentic document", but former CIA head William Colby said "I have never heard of it.".

References

External links

Belgian parliamentary report concerning the stay-behind network
partial copy of FM 30-31B on pp. 80–82.
Joint resolution of the European Parliament on the Gladio affair
p. 16

in German
Internet Archive copy
in English {{DEFAULTSORT:Us Army Field Manual 30-31b Forgery controversies 1975 documents 1975 hoaxes Espionage Cold War documents Years of Lead (Italy) Operation Gladio Soviet Union–United States relations Soviet Union intelligence operations KGB operations United States Army Field Manuals

History

Authenticity

See also

References

External links