The war that enmeshed the United States in battle against communism in southeast Asia for more than 20 Years.
OVERVIEW
- The Vietnam War was a prolonged military conflict that started as an anti colonial war against the French and evolved into a Cold War confrontation between International Communism and Free-Market Democracy.
- The Democratic Republic of Vietnam (DRV) in the north was supported by the Soviet union, China and other communist countries ,while the United States and its Anti-communist allies backed the republic of Vietnam (ROV) in south.
- President Lyndon Johnson Dramatically escalated US involvement in the conflict, authorizing a series of Intense Bombing Campaigns and committing Hundreds of thousands of US ground troops to the fight.
- After the US withdrew from the conflict , North Vietnam invaded the South and united the country under a Communist Government.
ORIGINS OF THE WAR :-
The origins of American Involvement in Vietnam dates back to the end of WW2,when people of Vietnam were struggling against the French. Ho Chi Minh ,the leader of Viet Minh (Vietnamese Independence League) and Founder of Vietnam’s Communist Party, United all Factions of Society with communist ideology. In 1954, after a long Guerrilla Warfare with French , the Viet Minh captured
Dien Bien Phu, and kicked out the French.
In peace negotiations at Geneva, French made a decision to divide Vietnam .The Communists in the North lead by Ho Chi Minh with capital Hanoi, while the non-communist will govern South with capital Saigon (now Ho chi minh city).
In December 1960, National Liberation Front was formed . A Civil War erupted for control of South because North wanted to unite the country in its own communist leadership. In spring 1961, President John F Kennedy expanded US support for south Vietnam ,increased US military advisors ,equipment and also authorized the use of deadly Napalm, Herbicides and Defoilants.
All this was driven by the logic of Domino Theory, because of which US thought that the falling of one country to Communism would result in other surrounding countries succumbing to communism, much as one toppled domino will take down others in a row. The containment strategy laid down by George Kennan in the Long Telegram, dictated that the US do everything in its power to prevent the spread the communism. US officials believed that if South Vietnam fell to communism, so would the surrounding countries of Laos, Cambodia, Phillipines, Thailand, Burma, Malaysia, Indonesia.
PRESIDENT LYNDON JOHNSON AND VIETNAM :-
In August 1964, two Vietnamese torpedo boats supposedelly attacked US destroyers in the Gulf of Tonkin. President Johnson requested authorization from congress for the use of military force, resulting in the gulf of Tonkin resolution. The resolution Declared the support of Congress for all necessary measures to repeal any armed attack against the armed forces of the US and to prevent further aggression.
Johnson fully subscribed to the Domino Theory and to the containment strategy, and also feared appearing weak in the eyes of his domestic political opponents.
In 1965 President Johnson Dramatically escalated US involvement in war. He authorized a series of bombing campaigns ,most notably [OPERATION ROLLING THUNDER].
The 1968 Tet Offensive , a bold North Vietnamese attack on the south, convinced many US officials that the war could not be won at a reasonable cost.Heightened opposition to the war was one of the major factors in Johnson’s decision to not run for re-election in 1968.
RICHARD NIXON AND VIETNAM:-
Richard Nixon Once in office sought to achieve “Peace with Honor”
Nixon expanded the war In Laos and Cambodia and encouraged “Vietnamization” by gradually withdrawing US troops and increasing South Vietnamese Forces.By the end of 1969,US troops had been cut in half.
The Paris Peace Accords established the terms of last withdrawal of US troops in Vietnam. In 1975, the North finally achieved its goal of uniting the country under one communist government. The Socialist Republic of Vietnam was formally established on July 2,1976 and Saigon was renamed Ho Chi Minh city. Though the war was a clear Defeat for US , the countries surrounding Vietnam did not fall to communism, demonstrating the Flawed Domino Theory.
The war had lasting consequences for US foreign policy. Congress Passed “War Powers Act in 1973”, to reassert a measure of control over the making of foreign policy and to impose constraints on presidential powers. For over a Decade , American Public Opinion was hostile to the idea of foreign interventions. This was known as ‘Vietnam Syndrome’ and it entailed an unwillingness to become bogged down in foreign wars in which American National Security interests were Unclear.
