1. The French had colonized Indochina but while nationalist leaders led their nations to freedom, other problems developed.

2. In Vietnam, the French were temporarily replaced by the Japanese but reclaimed their colony after World War II.

3. But Vietnamese nationalists, led by Ho Chi Minh, fought for their freedom.

4. However, at independence, Vietnam was divided. Ho Chi Minh led a communist regime in North Vietnam while South Vietnam was led by a non-communist dictator.

5. But some South Vietnamese favored unification with the Communist North. This led to a civil war in South Vietnam.

6. American troops entered South Vietnam hoping to defeat the Communist Vietcong.

7. But even American troops could not prevent the collapse of an unpopular government.

8. By 1975, Vietnam was a united, communist nation.

9. Cambodia, Vietnam’s neighbor, was destabilized by the Vietnam War.

10. Pol Pot, a communist leader of the Khmer Rouge, came to power in Cambodia in 1975.

11. The Khmer Rouge wanted to eliminate city life, education, Western culture, religion, and foreign influences.

12. The Khmer Rouge committed genocide, killing 25% of the Cambodian population.

13. By 1979, the Khmer Rouge fled as Vietnamese soldiers invaded the country. Pol Pot died in 1998 before his trial for crimes against humanity.