Barry Arthur Peterson as a member of Australian Army Training Team Vietnam interviewed by Greg Swanborough for 'The sharp end'

Captain Adviser AATTV - 27 August 1963 to 14 October 1965. Company Commander 2RAR – 29 April 1970 to 1 June 1971. Scene 3, Take 1: The American CIA controlled the programme in Vietnam and Australian Secret Intelligence Service (ASIS) decided that Australians who had received special operations training should be attached to CIA. Two officers who had experience operating against communists in Malaya were sent and the Americans wanted to tap in to Australian knowledge of counter insurgency. The Australians did not run their own programs and treated as foreign nations. ASIA put pressure on CIA to let Australians have field experience and Petersen sent to Dar Lac province. Convert action branch used by CIA to overthrow government and run guerrilla organisations and foster agents. Scene 3, Take 2: Describes contact with Montagnards and setting up the force. He took control of one hundred men under control of secret police. It was hard to establish contact until they had an interpreter then began to recruit people to work for him (Petersen) directly. Describes socialising with people and gaining their trust. Warned by CIA controller not to have anything to do with the American advisors so as not to be seen as being a part of their operation. Petersen did better on his own and gained acceptance by the Montagnards - careful not to become embroiled in Montagnard’s political aspirations for autonomy from Vietnam. This would result in instant expulsion from the country by Vietnamese Government. Scene 10, Take 1: Recruited one hundred men and more were funded by the CIA and trained with the help of assistant warrant officer. After two years, the force was 1200 men strong. Scene 10, Take 2 [retake 1] In order to train so many, the best of the Montagnards were trained to be trainers. Scene 10, Take 3, roll 47 [retake 1] Also ran an agent informant network and drama teams. Money from the CIA in Saigon (they had bags of it!) paid for recruitment and was replenished when receipts were handed in. They supplied clothing, guns and equipment. They (Montagnards) were paid well by Petersen – a bit more than the Vietnamese soldiers. Scene 10, Take 4: Relations with the Americans began to run sour and Australians refused to raise counter terror teams suing Montagnards. Petersen was asked to personally brief the American ambassador who then asked why the Americans couldn’t run a similar program themselves. Petersen felt uncomfortable working with the Americans (threatened) and was later removed from the program because of his singular influence over the tribal people. Roll 42, Take 1: In Petersen’s opinion, CIA wanted to run the war their way and allowed non conformists Vietnamese to be overrun. It would be very easy to eliminate people who did not cooperate. Some things the CIA did in Vietnam were good especially when they used paramilitary forces. The political intrigues and interference was not good. Petersen tried to stay clear of politics and didn’t do anything or allow his Montagnard groups to do anything without the full knowledge of the Vietnamese.