The "second Geneva Convention" of 1962 settled "de jure" the neutrality of the Kingdom of Laos, obtaining commitments from both the Soviets and the Americans. Nonetheless, such a neutral "status quo" in Laos soon became threatened "de facto", e.g., by North Vietnamese (NVN) armed support for the communist Pathet Lao. The CIA in 1963 was tasked to mount an armed defense of the "neutrality" of the Kingdom. Helms then served as DDP and thus directed the overall effort. It was a "secret war" because both NVN and CIA were in violation of Geneva's 1962 terms.