The United States andVietnam: 1954-1975

Roots of the conflict

• France colonizes Vietnam in the 1860s, brutally crushing any resistance.

• Japan invades during WWII. France takes over Vietnam colony after Japan is defeated.

• Communist revolutionary Ho Chi Minh leads resistance against French occupation.

• After 9 years of U.S. funded fighting, the French are defeated.

Roots of the Conflict

• In 1954, Vietnam is split into two countries, North and South. Known as the “Geneva Accords”

• The two sides agree to have nationwide elections in 1956.

• Part of the peace agreement says that there is to be “no foreign influence in Vietnam”.

• The U.S. does not sign this agreement.

Roots of the Conflict

• In an effort to curb the spread of communism in S.E.Asia, the U.S. initiates and signs the South East Asia Treaty Organization (SEATO).

• Signed in 1955, This is a mutual defense treaty similar to NATO. Most of the countries that signed on were NOT in S.E.Asia.

• Some argue that this was the U.S.’s main justification for the war in Vietnam. They asked for aid in defending against the communist north.

Roots of the conflict

• Beginning in 1954, the U.S. supports anti-communist leader Ngo Dinh Diem

• President Diem violently oppressesthe people of South Vietnam

– No basic freedoms: religion, speech– Torture of political prisoners

• South Vietnam refuses to participate in nationwide elections, saying the communists in the north won’t hold fair elections

The conflict escalates

The conflict escalates

• Ho Chi Minh’s army: the “Viet Minh”, and communist guerillas in the south: the “Viet Cong” fight to unify the country

• August 1964: President Lyndon Johnson claims that U.S. ships were attacked off the coast of N. Vietnam

• Congress passes the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution, making possible the Vietnam War

The Conflict Escalates

• 1965: President Johnson sends increasing numbers of ground troops. By the end of the year there are 200,000 U.S. soldiers in Vietnam.

• At first, the U.S. strategy is “Attrition”:– Try to use our overwhelming force to kill as many

“V.C” or “N.V.A.” (North Vietnamese Army)– The U.S. Air Force begins Operation Rolling

Thunder: mass scale bombing of North Vietnam to destroy bridges, roads, railroads.

The Conflict Escalates• The major goal of the U.S. is to prop up the

government of South Vietnam.• U.S. Soldiers are ordered to raid villages

looking for V.C.– Snipers, booby traps, landmines frustrate ground

troops.– Vast networks of tunnels make the enemy very

hard to find.

Opposition to the War

• By 1966, the war in Vietnam was causing a big split among Americans: “Hawks and Doves”

• Growing movements on college campuses raise awareness through “teach-ins”. Resistance to the Draft grows.

• Because of the high numbers of African Americans serving and dying, Civil Rights leaders also join the resistance.

The Tipping Point

• December 1967: President Johnson announces to the nation that the enemy was on the verge of collapse.

• The V.C. and the N.V.A. announce a cease fire leading up to “Tet”, which is the Vietnamese New Year.

• January 31st 1968: The “Tet Offensive”: ALL U.S. military bases are attacked. Much of it is televised.

The Tipping Point

• After two weeks, the attack is beaten back by U.S. forces.

• Although this was a military defeat for the V.C., it is a public relations success.

• How did the “Tet Offensive” destroy Americans’ support for the war?

After Tet: NOW WHAT?• President Johnson refuses to run for re-

election in 1968:– Anti-War candidate Robert Kennedy is

assassinated in June.– Riots erupt at the Democratic National

Convention in Chicago.– Hubert Humphrey, Johnson’s Vice

President, is nominated.– Republican Richard Nixon appeals for “law and

order”, and narrowly wins the election.

After Tet: NOW WHAT?

• Frustrated U.S. soldiers hunting for the VC after Tet ’68 are told that a big weapons cache had been located in the village of My Lai.

• The operation yielded no VC or weapons, but the company commander, LT. William Calley ordered his men to “leave no one in the village alive”

• Uniformed U.S. soldiers murdered around 400 unarmed civilians.

After Tet: NOW WHAT?

• The incident that came to be known as the My Lai Massacre is covered up, but breaks in the press in November of 1969.

• Calley is court-marshaled, but only serves 3 years of a life sentence.

Ending The War

• President Nixon talks of “Peace with Honor” and a “secret plan” to end the war.– 1) Secret peace talks with the North– 2) “Vietnamization” of the war: withdrawal of

U.S. troops, training Vietnamese army– 3) U.S. bombs Laos and Cambodia to stop enemy

supply lines.

Ending the War

• 1972-1973: The Paris Peace Talks are held.• January 27th, 1973: the Paris Peace Accords

are signed.– Immediate cease-fire, – Return of all P.O.W.s on both sides,– U.S. Troops will leave within 60 days,– 17th Parallel will divide N./S. Vietnam until the

country could be reunited.

Ending the War

• North and South Vietnam continue to fight for 2 more years.

• South Vietnamese government accuses the U.S. of abandoning them.

• April of 1975: the final North Vietnamese Offensive– U.S. Evacuates all citizens from our Embassy,– Saigon is captured by N. Vietnamese army on April

30th, 1975.