As in the northeast, the Viet Cong went to extraordinary lengths to cover their tracks. A directive issued in early 1969, for example, advised subordinates not even to discuss the Cambodian Communist Party. A second document put forth the ground rule that "no person should deliberately attempt to contact the 'Red K'." Some documents — particularly those which received broad distribution — claimed that stories of Viet Cong connections with the Red Khmers were Allied provocations, A widely broadcast COSVN edict stated that the Allies were alleging Communist support for the Red Khmers in order "to undermine the friendship between the Viet Cong and the Cambodian government.* Another internal report stated that Cambodian