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5
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- Even in the 1940s, President Truman provided economic and military aid
to prevent the growth of Communist power in what was then French
Indochina.
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6
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7
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- When France withdrew from the area in 1954, the Geneva Accords divided
Vietnam into two segments at the 17th Parallel: North Vietnam, ruled by
the Communist VietMinh; and South Vietnam, controlled by non-Communist
allies of the French.
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8
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- SEATO - Southeast Asia Treaty Organization
- Formed to guarantee the security of the region
- Members
- U.S., England, France, Australia, New Zealand, Philippines, Pakistan
and Thailand
- Gave US international backing for action
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9
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- Cold War warriors in the United States believed that Communist
aggression posed a threat in Asia. They especially feared a Communist
takeover of Vietnam. If Vietnam fell, they believed, Communism would
engulf all of Southeast Asia.
- Limited War Limited Objectives
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10
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- Communists in Vietnam began their takeover by moving their forces and
supplies into the South to aid an communist-led insurgency
- US began involvement
- providing technical and
administrative aid
- limited war for limited objectives
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11
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12
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- The United States supported non-Communist South Vietnam and in
subsequent decades increased its commitment to the region. Under
Eisenhower, from 1955 to 1961, America sent economic aid to South
Vietnam.
- Limited War Limited Objectives
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13
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- A Vietnamese Buddhist monk burned himself to death in an act of protest
against the Diem government in June 1963. Constituting a majority of the
country’s population, Buddhists in Vietnam accused the Diem government
of religious discrimination.
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14
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15
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- Kennedy continued Eisenhower's efforts in Vietnam by tripling American
aid to South Vietnam and by expanding the number of military advisers
from about 700 to more than 16,000. In 1963 the United States approved a
coup led by South Vietnamese military officers to overthrow Diem, who
was killed.
- Limited War Limited Objectives
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- A few weeks later, Kennedy was assassinated and Lyndon B. Johnson became
president. Johnson inherited the problem of U.S. commitment to South
Vietnam, where Communist insurgents were gaining strength
- Limited War Limited Objectives
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- Vietnam War began
when Ho Chi Minh backed
by the Soviet Union &
Red China attempted to
take the entire
country of Vietnam
- Also supported by South Vietnam rebels - Vietcong
- Limited War Limited Objectives
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20
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- Most important, Johnson did not want to be the first American president
to lose a war. He enlarged the war in Vietnam.
- After an allegedly unprovoked attack on U.S. warships in the Gulf of
Tonkin off North Vietnam in August 1964, Johnson authorized limited
bombing raids on North Vietnam.
- Limited War Limited Objectives
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- At the administration’s request, Congress then offered an almost
unanimous resolution, known as the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution, that
enabled the president to use military force in Vietnam.
- In 1965, after a landslide victory in the 1964 election—when voters
endorsed his platform of domestic reform and peace abroad—Johnson again
escalated American involvement.
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- President Lyndon Johnson ordered deployment of Air Force
units to Southeast Asia
- Objective was to
stop the North from taking
over the South
- Limited War Limited Objectives
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25
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26
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- First commitment of
combat troops - 1964
- triggered by incident in
Gulf of Tonkin
- North Vietnamese patrol boats
fired on US destroyer
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27
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- Reconsidering his earlier policies, Johnson limited bombing in Southeast
Asia and initiated peace talks with Hanoi and the NLF.
- Johnson decided not to seek reelection and withdrew from the race. The
president became a political casualty of the Vietnam War.
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30
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- At home, the war generated intense debate. "Hawks" assailed
the policy of limited war and favored an all-out effort to defeat
Communism in Vietnam.
- "Doves," in contrast, believed that the United States should
never have become involved in Vietnam.
- Limited War Limited Objectives
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- Vietnam remained a limited war, one in which the United States purposely
refrained from employing all its military strength.
- Some contended that politicians prevented the military from winning the
war, or that military leaders had no strategy for victory.
- Limited Objectives
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- By 1968 more than 500,000 troops were in Vietnam, and the United States
had begun heavy bombing of North Vietnam.
- The United States never declared war on North Vietnam or made a total
commitment to winning the war.
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- US involvement based on 4
points of strategy:
- Improve ground operations
- Conduct a campaign against North Vietnam
- Calm the fear
of the people &
restore government
control
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38
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- US involvement based on 4
points of strategy:
- All strategies were
open ended and had
no way of measuring accomplishment
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39
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- “Vietnamization” under President Nixon
provided advice and
material support to allow
the Vietnamese to
take control of
the war
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40
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41
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- From 1965 until the end of 1972, American B-52s flew regular bombing
raids over North Vietnam. The United States had begun bombing Laos as
early as 1964, targeting areas used by North Vietnamese and National
Liberation Front (NLF) fighters. B-52s were also used extensively from
1969 until 1973 to bomb Cambodia, in an attempt to destroy the
headquarters of the North Vietnamese and the NLF.
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42
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43
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- Linebacker I
- B-52 bombing of
North Vietnam
- designed to cut
off supply lines
to the communist forces in
the South
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- Linebacker II
- B-52 bombing of
North Vietnam
- hardest hitting campaign of the war - virtually damaged or destroyed all
military facilities in
Hanoi
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- Bombing brought the
peace talks in
Paris to end
the war
- Vietnam was the
longest war in
US history
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- In 1973, as Nixon began a second term, the United States and North
Vietnam signed a peace treaty in Paris, which provided for a cease-fire.
The terms of the cease-fire included: American withdrawal of all
remaining forces from Vietnam, Vietnamese return of American prisoners
captured during war, and the end of all foreign military operations in
Laos and Cambodia.
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48
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- On January 27, 1973, a cease-fire agreement was signed by all the
participants in the Vietnam War. United States president Richard Nixon
announced the terms of the agreement in a televised address. Although
the agreement provided for the withdrawal of U.S. forces from Vietnam,
it did not resolve the conflict. Fighting continued until South Vietnam
surrendered in 1975.
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50
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51
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- The Vietnam War affected the United States in many ways. Most
immediately, it spurred policy changes.
- The United States ended the military draft and switched to an
all-volunteer army.
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52
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- Congress passed the War Powers Resolution over Nixon’s veto in November
1973.
- The resolution limited the president’s ability to send troops into
combat without congressional consent.
- Its passage reflected legislators’ desire to restrain presidential power
and to prevent U.S. involvement in a war like that in Vietnam.
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53
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54
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- Results of the
war included:
- Ending the draft
- Television news impact on
public opinion over
the war
- War Powers Act
of 1973 - limited Presidents power
to wage war with out Congressional approval
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55
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56
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- American troops left Vietnam, but the war between North Vietnam and
South Vietnam continued. South Vietnam finally fell in April 1975, as
North Vietnamese forces entered Saigon.
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- Lessons Learned:
- US cannot win
a counterinsurgency
in another country; only
the government and
people of that
country can do
so
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- Lessons Learned:
- No amount of
force can win
a war against people and
gain their loyalty to
the established government
- The people of
the US
underestimated the enemy’s ability to
wage war
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59
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- Lessons Learned:
- Gradual use of
air power is ineffective
- Congressional and popular support in
a limited war
is important
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60
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- John Levitow was
the youngest airman to
earn the Medal
of Honor in
Vietnam
- General “Chappie” James was
the first black
four star general in
the Air Force
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61
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- More than 58,000 Americans were killed in Vietnam, and over 300,000 were
wounded. Even after the war's end, Americans continued to debate its
purpose and the meaning of its failure.
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63
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- Total US Military Personnel in Vietnam Date and
Total Personnel
- 31 December 1960 31 December 1961 900 3,200
- 31 December 1962 31 December 1963 11,500 16,300
- 31 December 1964 31
December 1965
23,300 184,300
- 31 December 1966 31 December 1967 425,300 485,600
- 31 December 1968 31
December 1969 536,100
474,400
- 31 December 1970 9 June 1971 335,800 250,900
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- First war to
hold prisoners of
war for long
periods of time
without adherence to
the Geneva Convention
- held without medical attention
- tortured for information
- not given proper food
to eat
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66
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67
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68
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69
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70
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71
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72
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73
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74
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- Movie Hanoi Hilton is
a graphic example of
the treatment of
US prisoners or
war in North
Vietnam
- Many men endured years
of solitary confinement in the
most despicable conditions
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