vietnam war end
DESCRIPTION
Vietnam War - NixonTRANSCRIPT
Chris Taylor: [voiceover] I think now, looking back, we did not f ight the enemy; we fought ourselves. And the enemy was in us.
- PLATOON, 1986
VIETNAM:America at war with itself
Johnson Steps Down
Totally discredited because of Vietnam and decided not to run in 1968
Nixon won a peace platform but did not pull out of Vietnam
Vietnamization: 1969
Antiwar movements in the USA were putting increasing pressure on Nixon to get out of Vietnam-he needed an honourable way out (“Peace with Honour”)
A plan was put in place to replace American troops with Soviet Vietnamese over time
Two Track Formula
Goal: Make South Vietnamese independent so that the Americans can go home
Military Solution Political Solution
Strengthen the South Vietnamese Army
Strengthen the South Vietnamese government
Kent State ShootingsMay 4 th, 1970
Withdrawal and Defeat
Nixon Peace Offensive (1970)B-52s bombed North Vietnam, Cambodia and
LaosCeasefire with North Vietnam (1973)All troops out of Vietnam (1973)
Why did the USA lose?
1) Difficulty fighting guerilla forces2) Unpopular at home
i. Anti-war movementii. Many casualtiesiii. Huge costs financially
3) Could not win the “hearts and minds” of the Vietnamese people
4) American military was half-hearted and disillusioned
Fundamental beliefs were questioned in American Society:
1)Power of the President
2)The role of the military
3)Was it worth opposing the spread of communism?
4)Moral Identity: America could no longer claim innocence and moral superiority
Questions, Change
Fundamental beliefs were questioned in American Society:
1)Power of the President
2)The role of the military
3)Was it worth opposing the spread of communism?
4)Moral Identity: America could no longer claim innocence and moral superiority
Questions, Change