Secretary of State Henry Kissinger sent this memo to President Gerald Ford summarizing a report on the Mayaguez incident – known as the “Last Battle” of the Vietnam War, in which Khmer Rouge gunboats from Cambodia seized the American container ship SS Mayaguez and its crew on May 12, 1975.
American reconnaissance planes located the ship and followed its movements to the island of Koh Tang. President Ford and his advisors decided on three simultaneous actions: use the nearby USS Henry Holt to board and seize the Mayaguez, use Marines to take the island of Koh Tang, and use Air Force air strikes against the nearby port of Kompong Som. The crew was recovered safely, but fourteen hours of combat resulted in heavy casualties for the small military strike force.
