News stories from Sunday November 25, 1973
Summaries of the stories the major media outlets considered to be of particular importance on this date:
- President Nixon will speak to the nation about the severity of the energy crisis at 7:00 p.m. Expected measures include cuts in home heating oil deliveries, reduced speeds on highways and Sunday closings of gas stations.
Closing gas stations on Sundays could have a serious impact. The president of the Gasoline Retailers Association believes the Sunday closings are unfair to consumers and dealers, and he thinks rationing would be a better solution. Stations being closed would rule out any long Sunday trips, but the nation's highways probably will remain filled on Sundays anyway.
If the closing of stations on Sundays doesn't work, the possibility of rationing exists as a last resort. President Nixon is against gasoline rationing, but some experts believe it will eventually happen.
[NBC] - The Greek military has overthrown the government; President Papadopoulos was ousted early today. Streets in Athens are quiet after the calm overthrow of the Papadopoulos government. General Phaedon Gizikis was sworn in as the head of the new government in a nationally televised ceremony. [NBC]
- The cease-fire talks between Egyptian and Israeli officials that were scheduled for today were postponed. Talks are now on the verge of collapse. Several violations of the truce were reported during the day. Israel has agreed in principle to attend a peace conference. [NBC]
- The Viet Cong in South Vietnam accused the United States of making reconnaissance flights over its territory, thus violating the truce agreement. The U.S. admitted to the flights but insisted that the planes are unarmed.
According to American intelligence reports, thousands of North Vietnamese troops have infiltrated South Vietnam since the cease-fire. Many officials believe the move is a prelude to a military offensive by North Vietnam against South Vietnam. The U.S. is unlikely to re-enter the fighting even if an all-out offensive is declared; a step-up in arms to South Vietnam is more likely, despite the fact that would also be a violation of the truce.
[NBC] - The Cambodian government reported that 31 Communist rebels were killed in fighting east of Phnom Penh. [NBC]
- A Dutch jet bound from Beirut was hijacked over Baghdad. The plane was forced to land in Damascus, then took off again. The Dutch are targets of Arab hostility lately because of their friendship with Israel. [NBC]
- Prime Minister Tanaka of Japan reshuffled his cabinet in an attempt to deal with the Arab oil cutback and mounting inflation. The oil embargo has hurt Japan's booming economy.
Japan was enjoying the greatest prosperity in its history until the Arab oil boycott hit. Last spring Japan's barriers to the import of foreign goods was lowered; the Japanese overbought in their excitement. Ten giant trading companies oversee Japan's buying throughout the world. Now suffering an unfavorable balance of trade, the United States was anxious to sell even more to Japan. The drive to sell U.S. goods to Japan was paying off until the Mideast war and Arab oil boycott shook the world. America's balance of trade may slide too far in the other direction if the oil embargo is not removed.
[NBC] - The Los Angeles Times quoted a high White House official as saying that President Nixon's personal secretary Rose Mary Woods erased the 18 minute segment which is missing from one of the subpoenaed White House tapes. Miss Woods is expected to testify to that effect in Judge John Sirica's court. [NBC]
- Congress must soon decide about resupplying arms to Israel. The House Armed Services Committee will be first to make the decision. Some Congressmen visited the Mideast for firsthand observations. [NBC]