Vietnam
American Involvement in Vietnam Vietnam originally a French colony Ho Chi Minh (leader of nationalist movement) wants independence communist Vietminh (nationalist group) fight the French - ask US to help Truman helps France because he thinks the Soviets are imposing communism on East Asia China fell to communism the Korean war
Important details Eisenhower - Domino Theory - If Vietnam falls to communism, the rest of SE Asia would follow Geneva Accords divided Vietnam along the 17th parallel - In 1956 elections were supposed to be held to reunite the gov’t Ho Chi Minh in charge of N pro Western regime in charge of South US left as the protector of new gov’t in the South
Ngo Dinh Diem president of the Republic of Vietnam in the South, pro western, catholic, and anti-communist refused to allow 1956 elections - US supports discriminates against buddhism rules with terror - assassinations of gov’t officials South Vietnamese Communists organize - Vietcong Military coup overthrows him - 1963 - nation left in disarray with weak leadership US supports S Vietnam - bombing campaigns
Warfare Vietcong used ambushes, booby traps, and other guerrilla tactics blended in with the general population and then vanishing hid in the jungle “search and destroy missions” - US would find enemy positions, destroy their supply lines, and force them into open combat dropped napalm to destroy the Vietcong’s cover Agent Orange - chemical
1,313,000 total deaths in North and South Vietnam 58,220 U.S. military fatal casualties
Popular Reaction At first, 66% approved As the war dragged on, public opinion dropped worries about the gov’ts truthfulness (credibility gap) media and casualties Young protesters focused on the draft (young people from working families more likely to be drafted) protest at Lincoln Memorial (Students for a democratic society) doves - withdraw from Vietnam Hawks - stay and fight
Vietnamization Promises to end the war and bring troops home vietnamization - policy to end the war and train the S Vietnamese troops to take over secretly bombed Vietcong in Cambodia eventually invades viewed as a widening of the war
End of US Involvement Pentagon papers - showed many gov’t officials questioned the war 1971 - 2/3s of Americans want to end the Vietnam war Christmas bombings - the most destructive bombing raid of the war thousands of tons of bombs on N Vietnam for 11 straight days Jan 27, 1973 - N and S signed an agreement ending the war US withdraws from Vietnam 2 years later S Vietnam falls
Who ended the USSR? Reagan? Pope JP II? Gorbachev? Internal issues?
How did Reagan end the Cold War? Openly criticized the USSR and Communism SDI (Strategic Defense Initiative) Spend the USSR into bankruptcy Increase military conflicts throughout the era Trade embargos \ Saudi Arabia
How did the Pope end the Cold War? Traveled around Poland encouraging people to resist communism