Vietnam War

Kennedy & Vietnam  Diem government becoming unpopular  JFK orders sharp increase in number of “military advisers” (US troops) in South Vietnam  US had allegedly entered Vietnam to foster stability Protect Diem from communists Protect Diem from communists  JFK administration organized a coup against Diem

Kennedy & Vietnam  US contributed to political disintegration that originally they were trying to prevent  Kennedy still told South Vietnamese it was “their war”  By the time of his death, 15,000 men were in Vietnam

Gulf of Tonkin  August 2, US vs. North Vietnam, one US ship damaged  August 4, alleged 2 nd attack on US ships (did not actually happened) Government uses as blank check for war Government uses as blank check for war  Gulf of Tonkin Resolution- authorizes president to take all necessary measures to repel any armed attack and prevent future aggression in SE Asia

LBJ & Vietnam  Viet Cong= National Liberation Front Fought South Vietnam & US Fought South Vietnam & US Wanted to overthrow South Vietnamese government & reunite Vietnam Wanted to overthrow South Vietnamese government & reunite Vietnam Supported by North Vietnamese government Supported by North Vietnamese government  Viet Cong attacks American air base in Feb  LBJ orders retaliation- Operation Rolling Thunder Regular full-scale bombing attacks against North Vietnam Regular full-scale bombing attacks against North Vietnam  184,000 troops now involved in war

LBJ & Vietnam  Escalation- drive enemy to defeat w/ minimum loss of life  Underestimated Viet Cong  US escalation met w/ more men & guerilla warfare  South Vietnamese governments becoming more & more corrupt US still claiming south as “democratic” ally US still claiming south as “democratic” ally

LBJ & Vietnam  US saw this as commitment to containment & resisting communist encroachment  Domino Theory- if one country falls to communism, the surrounding countries will also fall to communism  By 1968, half a million troops in Vietnam & annual bill for war was $30 billion

Vietnam Vexations  Over-commitment in Southeast Asia tied America’s hands elsewhere  USSR gained influence in Middle East Six Days War- expands Israel’s power in Middle East Six Days War- expands Israel’s power in Middle East  Anti-war demonstrations began  Draft brought more & more men to Vietnam Fled to Canada Fled to Canada Burned draft cards Burned draft cards “hell no we won’t go” “hell no we won’t go” “Hey LBJ- How many “Hey LBJ- How many kids did you kill today?”

Vietnam Vexations  Civilians hit hard in Vietnam By 1967, 100, ,000 civilian deaths per year By 1967, 100, ,000 civilian deaths per year  Peasant huts burned  Civilians attacked w/ napalm  Senate Committee on Foreign Relations aired anti-war televised hearings  Public felt they had been deceived about causes & ability to win war  “Credibility gap” developed between public & government

Vietnam Vexations  Secretary of Defense= Robert McNamara  LBJ announces “bombing halts” in 1966 &1967 Lure enemy to peace table Lure enemy to peace table Used bombing pause to funnel more troops into South Vietnam Used bombing pause to funnel more troops into South Vietnam  By 1968, Vietnam War became longest & most unpopular war in US history  More bombs dropped on Vietnam than on all enemy territory in WWII  LBJ clung to strategy of increasing power little by little

Tet Offensive  January 1968  Tet= Vietnamese New Year  Viet Cong suddenly attacked 27 South Vietnamese cities Eventually beaten off Eventually beaten off Victory could not be gained by gradual escalation Victory could not be gained by gradual escalation  Americans demand end to war

Vietnam Topples LBJ  American military leaders respond to Tet offensive by requesting 200,000 more troops  Democrats divided on war issue  LBJ remained committed to war in Vietnam  March LBJ announces he will finally apply breaks to escalating the war Freeze US troop levels Freeze US troop levels Shift responsibility to South Vietnam Shift responsibility to South Vietnam Scale down bombing of enemy Scale down bombing of enemy  Nixon elected president in 1968

Criticisms of Johnson  US rejected idea that main enemy was North Vietnam  US involved in civil war in which Viet Cong was trying to overthrow corrupt South Vietnamese government  In order to save the country, we were destroying it  Long war, huge loss of lives & money spent

Nixon and Vietnam  Vietnamization- gradual withdrawal of US as soon as South Vietnam can defend itself Withdraw 540,000 troops Withdraw 540,000 troops South Vietnamese then take over burden of fighting their own war South Vietnamese then take over burden of fighting their own war  Nixon Doctrine- US would honor it’s defense commitments but in future Asians (& others) would have to fight their own wars w/o American troops

Nixon and Vietnam  Hawks vs. Doves  Doves demanded that withdrawal be prompt & complete  Silent Majority- people who presumably supported the war Nixon appeals to this group Nixon appeals to this group

Realities of Vietnam  High number of black soldiers  Booby-trapped swamps  Steaming jungles  Difficult to tell friend from enemy  My Lai Massacre-1968, American troops massacred innocent women and children

Cambodia Invasion  1970, Nixon orders attack on Cambodia  Students respond w/ protests  Kent State University- members of National Guard fired into a protesting crowd, killing 4 students  Jackson State College

Cambodia Invasion  Nixon withdrew troops from Cambodia 2 months later  Pentagon Papers- leaked to the press; exposed blunders and deceptions of both JFK and LBJ administrations regarding Vietnam Revealed that LBJ lied to public (Gulf of Tonkin) Revealed that LBJ lied to public (Gulf of Tonkin)

Nixon’s Détente  Henry Kissinger- national security adviser Met w/ N. Vietnam to negotiate end of war Met w/ N. Vietnam to negotiate end of war  Détente= Relaxed tension w/ two communist powers (USSR & China)  Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty- limited each nation to two clusters of defensive missiles  SALT- Strategic Arms Limitation Talks Freeze numbers of long-range nuclear missiles for 5 years Freeze numbers of long-range nuclear missiles for 5 years Slowing of arms race Slowing of arms race

Bombing North Vietnam to Peace  Nixon reelected 1972  2 week bombing of North Vietnam to force them into peace talks  January North Vietnamese agree to cease-fire  Peace with Honor US remove troops US remove troops Reclaim POWs Reclaim POWs Keep some troops in S. Vietnam Keep some troops in S. Vietnam  North Vietnam still occupied 30% of South Vietnam

Secret Bombing of Cambodia  Cambodia being secretly bombed while US stated that Cambodia’s neutrality was being respected  Continues after cease-fire  Opposition in Congress  Nixon agrees to stop bombing & seek congressional approval in the future

War Powers Act  November 1973  Required president to report to congress within 48 hours after committing troops to a foreign conflict  Can remain for 60 days without Congress approval

Defeat in Vietnam  North Vietnamese pushed southward South Vietnam collapsed South Vietnam collapsed  Longest, most frustrating war ends  US fought north to a standstill & left South Vietnam to fight  $118 billion  US lost more than a war Lost confidence in military Lost confidence in military Lost face in eyes of foreign powers Lost face in eyes of foreign powers