Peer de Silva | |
|---|---|
 De Silva on Tinian in 1945 | |
| Born | June 26, 1917 San Francisco, California |
| Died | August 13, 1978 (aged 61) Great Falls, Virginia |
| Place of Burial | |
| Allegiance |  United States of America |
| Service |  United States Army |
| Years of service | 1941–1951 |
| Rank |  Lieutenant Colonel |
| Service number | O-24000 |
| Commands | 1st Technical Service Detachment |
| Battles / wars | Atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki |
| Awards | Distinguished Intelligence Medal Intelligence Service Medallion Legion of Merit |
| Other work | Central Intelligence Agency |
Peer de Silva | |
|---|---|
| Chief of Station, CIA | |
| In office 1956–1972 | |
| Chief of Operations Soviet Russia Division | |
| In office 1951–1956 | |
| Deputy Chief CIA base, Pullach | |
| In office 1949–1951 | |
| Personal details | |
| Alma mater | United States Military Academy |
Peer de Silva (June 26, 1917 – August 13, 1978) was a station chief in the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA). A 1941 West Point graduate, during World War II he served as an Army officer providing security for the Manhattan Engineer District; this undercover project sought to build the first atomic bomb. After the war, he joined a pre-CIA military intelligence unit. Then, having learned Russian, he worked in central Europe, frequently traveling to Moscow. Resigning from the Army, he rose within CIA ranks, becoming a chief of station (COS). He first held such rank in Vienna, 1956–1959.
He next led the CIA station at the American Embassy in Seoul, South Korea, where he played a role in two major events. First was the democratic April Revolution in 1960. Yet in 1961 a successful May coup d'état installed General Pak Chung Hee (head of state, 1961–1979). De Silva then was assigned to Hong Kong as COS.
Following the November 1963 military overthrow of South Vietnamese President Ngo Dinh Diem (head of state, 1954–1963), President Johnson personally ratified de Silva as the CIA's new Chief of Station in Saigon. He quickly came to view the Vietnam War as political. He then advocated a counterinsurgency strategy, and took an active role in fostering such programs. The Viet Cong bombed the American Embassy in March 1965; the blast badly wounded de Silva. After an initial recovery, he returned to his post.
For a year de Silva served as the Director's first Vietnam expert (SAVA) at CIA headquarters in Virginia. However, he asked to be sent back to Southeast Asia, and arrived as COS in Bangkok in 1966. His last CIA assignment was to Canberra, Australia, where he served again as COS, until 1972.