Johnson approved National Security Action Memorandum 273 (NSAM 273). The NSAM affirmed the U.S, commitment of helping South Vietnam "win their contest against the externally directed and supported Communist conspiracy." There was one substantive change in the text previously drafted by McGeorge Bundy on November 21. Kennedy had previously agreed with South Vietnamese covert attacks against North Vietnam; the newly drafted paragraph 7 in the NSAM called for "prompt submission of plans" for covert U.S. attacks on North Vietnam.McMaster, H. R. Dereliction of Duty: Lyndon Johnson, Robert McNamara, the Joint Chiefs of Staff and the Lies that Led to Vietnam New York: Harper Perennial, 1997, p. 49 Regarding Kennedy's plan for the withdrawal of 1,000 U.S. soldiers by the end of 1963, the NSAM said only, "The objectives of the United States with respect to the withdrawal of U. S. military personnel remain as stated in the White House statement of October 2, 1963."
