Vietnam Conflict

Vietnam: Cold War heats up After gaining independence in 1954, Vietnam was temporarily divided. The nationalist leader, Ho Chi Minh, created a Communist state in North Vietnam, while South Vietnam established ties to the West. South Vietnam refused to hold elections to reunify the country, as previously agreed, arguing that elections in the Communist North would not be free. Vietnamese Communists, known as Viet Cong, launched a guerilla war against the South Vietnamese government.

US enters Vietnam The United States stepped in to resist Communism American leaders feared Southeast Asian countries might otherwise fall like a row of dominoes. At first American soldiers acted only as advisors to the South Vietnamese army. However, that changed when American combat troops were sent to Vietnam in 1964

Struggles in Vietnam Although the United States eventually used extensive bombing, had large numbers of helicopters, and sent in a half a million troops, it was never able to turn the tide against the Viet Cong and North Vietnam The 1968 Tet Offensive demonstrated the strength and lack of quit in the Viet Cong. Resistance to the war grew in the US as many boys were drafted into service in the war This was the first war which was vividly broadcast to the public through pictures and video on the news In 1973, American troops withdrew from Vietnam in accordance with an agreement reached in Paris. In 1975, South Vietnam fell to North Vietnamese forces and the country was finally reunited under Communist rule.

Cambodia The withdrawal of American forces from Vietnam also led to the collapse of the government in neighboring Cambodia. In 1975, Cambodian Communists, known as the Khmer Rouge, seized control. Pol Pot, the Khmer Rouge leader carried out a policy of genocide (mass murder) against city-dwellers and opponents. The Khmer Rouge killed as many as four million Cambodians between 1975 and 1978, until they were finally overthrown by Vietnamese intervention