Vietnam War

Early US Involvement

• US involved through 5 presidential terms

• Truman—military aid for French

• Eisenhower—financial aid for France; military advisors for S. Vietnam

• Kennedy—military personnel in advising capacity

• Johnson—sent troops into battle

• Nixon—pulled troops out of war

• Eisenhower defended US policy with domino theory--– Vietnam falls to communism so would others

• French struggled with guerilla tactics—– Irregular troops blending in with civilian

population

• Geneva Accords—French Indochina divided into Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia

Textbook Pg 773

Vietnam divided at 17th parallel

•North controlled by Vietminh•South had pro-western regime

Edging Closer to War

• Ngo Dinh Diem, ldr S. Vietnam, refused to hold national election

• Ho Chi Minh, ldr N. Vietnam, set out to unify North and South Vietnam– Created Vietcong, a guerilla army

• Kennedy continued support for S. Vietnam– Military personnel sent in ‘advising’ capacity

Johnson’s Turn

• Inherited Vietnam problem after Kennedy’s assassination (4th President in Vietnam)

• Cautious, but determined to keep S. Vietnam from becoming communist state

Textbook Pg 773

Gulf of Tonkin incident:

*N.Vietnamese fired upon US ships

•Gulf of Tonkin Resolution – Congress gives war powers to President

• 1965 Johnson sends in the troops

–Fight along side S. Vietnamese troops

• Underestimated Vietcong strength

• Refused full scale invasion of N. Vietnam

–Feared China become involved

• Refused full-scale attack on Vietcong supply line—Ho Chi Minh Trail

Textbook Pg 797

Tet Offensive

• Tet (Vietnamese New Year) offensive surprise attack by Vietcong and North Vietnamese

• Attacked almost all American airbases in S. Vietnam, major cities, provincial capitals

• Military disaster for Communist forces

• American public shocked enemy could launch this size attack

• Media openly criticized war effort

Textbook Pg 788

Problems at Home

• Increase in casualties, led to increase in protests

• Public resistance to draft escalated

• 26th Amendment lowered voting age to 18

• March 31, 1968 Johnson withdrew reelection bid based on public opinion

• Richard Nixon elected President based on campaign promise to end war (5th president involved)

Ending the War• Henry Kissinger—gained authority to find

way to end war– Began peace talks with N. Vietnam

• Nixon began Vietnamization– Gradual withdrawal of troops

• January 1973 both sides agree to end war

• March 1975 N. Vietnam invades again– US refuses assistance– By April N. Vietnamese capture Saigon and

united N & S Vietam as one nation under communist rule

The End