END OF THE VIETNAM WAR U.S. HISTORY 11

NIXON PULLS OUT TROOPS PEACE TALKS BEGAN IN 1968, BUT MADE LITTLE HEADWAY NIXON WAS COMMITTED TO THE POLICY OF “PEACE WITH HONOR” BEGAN AND GRADUAL PULLOUT OF TROOPS, BELIEVING THE ARVN TROOPS COULD HANDLE THINGS ALONE KNOWN AS “VIETNAMIZATION” ALSO SECRETLY PLANNED BOMBING RAIDS OF THE HO CHI MINH TRAIL IN CAMBODIA

CAMBODIA BY 1970, NIXON WANTED TO SPEED UP THE PROCESS OF ENDING THE WAR AND GET AID THE PRO-AMERICAN TROOPS IN CAMBODIA THE AMERICAN PUBLIC WAS OUTRAGED THAT NIXON WAS NOW EXPANDING THE WAR LEAD TO MORE VIOLENT PROTESTS (I.E.- KENT STATE) NEWS OF THE MY LAI MASSACRE AND THE LEAK OF THE PENTAGON PAPERS, MADE THE WAR EVEN MORE UNPOPULAR

FINALLY ENDS VIETNAMIZATION WAS FAILING AND DISSENT AT HOME WAS INCREASING TO WIN RE-ELECTION IN 1972, NIXON HAD TO END THE WAR OCTOBER U.S. AND NORTH VIETNAM FINALLY CAME TO A PEACE SETTLEMENT IN JANUARY U.S., NORTH VIETNAM, AND THE VIETCONG SIGNED THE PARIS PEACE ACCORDS AGREED TO A CEASE-FIRE AND U.S. TROOP WITHDRAWAL POW’S WOULD BE EXCHANGED, BUT N. VIETNAMESE TROOPS WOULD REMAIN IN S. VIETNAM

THE FALL OF SAIGON FOR THE U.S. THE WAR WAS OVER, BUT FIGHTING CONTINUED IN VIETNAM NEITHER THE NORTH OR SOUTH HONORED THE CEASE-FIRE MINOR FIGHTING ESCALATED WITHOUT U.S. AID OR GROUND SUPPORT, THE ARVN WERE NO MATCH FOR THE SOVIET SUPPLIED N. VIETNAMESE TROOPS BY APRIL SAIGON HAD FALLEN TO COMMUNISM VIETNAM WAS OFFICIALLY UNITED UNDER ONE FLAG

LASTING IMPACTS OF VIETNAM APPROXIMATELY 58,000 AMERICAN SOLDIERS DIED DURING THE WAR 300,000 AMERICAN SOLDIERS WERE WOUNDED THE VIETNAMESE LOSSES APPROXIMATE OVER 2 MILLION COMMUNISM SPREADS TO LAOS AND CAMBODIA CAMBODIAN GENOCIDE ~2 MILLION CAMBODIANS WERE EXECUTED OR DIED IN CAMPS WAR RAGED BETWEEN VIETNAM AND THE CAMBODIAN RULER- KHMER ROUGE CAMBODIA WAS SUPPORTED BY THE CHINESE, WHO WERE ALSO SUPPORTED BY THE U.S.

LASTING IMPACTS OF VIETNAM AMERICAN SOLDIERS RETURNED TO A DIVIDED COUNTRY SOME BELIEVED WE NEVER SHOULD HAVE GOTTEN INVOLVED IN THE WAR, FELT BETRAYED BY THE LEADERS OTHERS FELT THAT THE U.S. HAD BETRAYED S. VIETNAM IN THE ONGOING STRUGGLE AGAINST COMMUNISM FEW VIETNAM VETERANS CAME HOME TO PARADES AND ADULATION- MOSTLY TO INDIFFERENCE MANY ALSO SUFFERED FROM PHYSICAL AND PSYCHOLOGICAL AILMENTS THESE TROOPS WERE NOT RECOGNIZED FOR THEIR BRAVERY AND SACRIFICE UNTIL NEARLY A DECADE LATER VIETNAM VETERANS MEMORIAL IN WASHINGTON D.C.

LASTING IMPACTS OF VIETNAM ECONOMICS- MONEY WENT TO GUNS RATHER THAN TEXTBOOKS AMERICAN POLICY CHANGES: 1973 WAR POWERS ACT- RESTRICTED THE PRESIDENT’S WAR MAKING POWERS, BY REQUIRING THE CONSULTATION OF CONGRESS WITHIN 48 HOURS OF COMMITTING AMERICAN FORCES TO A FOREIGN CONFLICT A CHECK ON PRESIDENTIAL POWER FEAR OF “ANOTHER VIETNAM” IN CONFLICTS TO COME- I.E.- CENTRAL AMERICA, AFRICA, THE BALKANS AND THE MIDDLE EAST