The Cold War VIetnam War

1. The Cold WarVIetnam War

2. Q: How did the U.S. lead a U.N. force in South Korea after the invasion by North Korea in 1950? Q.O.D. #4 3/26/10

3. Q: How did the U.S. lead a U.N. force in South Korea after the invasion by North Korea in 1950? • Domino Theory • Prevent countries from falling to communism • Truman Doctrine • Policy of containment • China’s U.N. representative • Taiwanese government represented China until 1971 • Soviet boycott of U.N. • Disagreement over which government represented China Q.O.D. #4 3/26/10

4. What is a “proxy war”? • A proxy war is a war that results when opposing powers use third parties as substitutes for fighting each other directly. • Proxy wars were common in the Cold War because the USSR and USA did not want to fight each other directly (MAD). • Proxies were used in conflicts in Afghanistan, Africa, Korea, Vietnam, the Middle East and Latin America “Proxy War”

5. Formerly French Indochina • Nearly 30 years of conflict • 1946-54: War with French • 1955-1975: Cold War Vietnam

6. Indochina was conquered by French in 1800s, but Japan took over the region in WWII • Following WWII the French tried to regain control • First Indochina War • Vietnamese led by Ho Chi Minh, communist and nationalist • 1954: Victory at Dienbienphu • French left Vietnam

7. 1954: Western and communist countries agreed to division of Vietnam • North: ruled by Ho Chi Minh’s communists • South: ruled by Ngo Dinh Diem, supported by U.S. • Elections supposed to be held to choose government of reunited Vietnam, never were • Some South Vietnamese preferred Ho Chi Minh • Some North Vietnamese against communist rule fled to South Vietnam divided

8. U.S. supported Ngo Dinh Diem’s government • Ngo was a dictator: corrupt and brutal practices • BUT: • Fear of communist threat from North • If one land in a region became communist, then the surrounding countries would follow. • A change will cause a similar change nearby, which then will cause another similar change, and so on like a row of falling dominoes. Domino Theory - Vietnam

9. Ho Chi Minh was determined to unite Vietnam • Supported National Liberation Front, aka Viet Cong • At first, U.S. sent only supplies and “advisors” aka Green Berets, later sent large numbers of combat troops • Gulf of Tonkin Resolution • Aug. 1, 1964: U.S. destroyer Maddox attacked by Viet Cong who mistakenly believed it had aided South Vietnamese troops’ raid in Gulf • Three days later, Maddox believed it had been attacked a 2nd time, but equipment likely malfunctioned U.S. Enters the War

10. President Lyndon Johnson reported Viet Cong attacks to Congress • Did not mention South Vietnamese raids or the doubts about the second attack on the Maddox • August 7, 1964: Congress authorized the President to take all necessary measures to prevent aggression in Southeast Asia • U.S. began bombing targets in North Vietnam • More than 500,000 troops committed to war Gulf of Tonkin Resolution

11. Guerilla warfare • The Viet Cong and North Vietnamese Army avoided large scale battles using hit and run tactics, ambushes, booby traps, tunnels, and other methods to frustrate the American and South Vietnamese Soldiers. • There were no battle lines, as the communists used the jungle for cover, and extensive tunnel systems to evade US forces. To combat this the U.S. used helicopters to rush troops to an area where communists were active, to conduct Search and Destroy missions. • The communists also blended into the population, making it extremely difficult for the Americans to determine who the enemy was. Many VC lived peacefully in villages by day, and engaged in guerrilla tactics at night. Some civilians supported the US, but many others supported the VC and aided and sheltered them.

12. Ho Chi Minh Trail Ho Chi Mihn Trail • North Vietnam supplied the VC and NVA in South Vietnam through a long series of jungle trails located in Laos and Cambodia, where American soldiers could not attack. • When defeated in battle, the communists would often just flee to the safety of these neighboring countries, coming back to fight another day.

13. Images of the the Vietnam War

14. Air Mobile

17. 1968 – North Vietnamese guerillas attacked American and South Vietnamese during Tet - the Vietnamese New Year. • North suffered huge casualties, but this turned the tide for North Vietnam. • Despite U.S. and ARVN victories, American public support was falling because the government always said the war was going well, but Tet proved the communists were far from defeated. • Johnson announced he would not run for re-election Tet Offensive

18. Growing anti-war opposition in U.S. • Bitter divisions between supporters and protesters • Many did not want to see images of the war and bodies of Americans being returned, but also did not want to lose a war American Opposition to War

19. Americans decided they had to get out of the war • President Nixon signed Paris Peace Accord in January 1973 • Established cease-fire • U.S. withdrew troops, North Vietnamese would not send more into South • The United States loses around 58,000 service men and women in Vietnam, with thousands more physically disabled, or psychologically scarred. Withdraw

20. Two years after American withdraw, North Vietnam conquered South Vietnam • Saigon (capital of South) renamed Ho Chi Minh City, Hanoi (capital of North) became capital of Vietnam • Communists imposed harsh rule on the south • Hundreds of thousands fled • Cambodia and Laos became communist, dominated by communist Vietnam. In Cambodia the communist Khmer Rouge under Pol Pot kill nearly one million people North Vietnam Wins

21. Communist, with president elected every 5 years by National Assembly • Current president won 94% of vote in 2006 • Thriving tourism industry Vietnam TOday

22. Truman Doctrine: American policy of containment- limiting the spread of communism • U.S. would actively resist Soviet expansion • Marshall Plan: massive aid package offered by the United States to European countries to strengthen democratic governments • U.S. gave food and economic aid to Europe to help countries rebuild after World War 2 Review

23. Berlin Blockade and Airlift • June 1948: Stalin tried to force the Western democracies out of Berlin, closed every road and railroad into the Western sections of Berlin. • West replied with a massive airlift of supplies • Operation Little Vittles • Berlin Wall • Berlin divided into East Berlin and West Berlin • Both located within East Germany • East Germany built wall around West Berlin

24. East Berlin West Berlin

26. North Atlantic Treaty Organization (1949) • United States • Belgium • Britain • Canada • Denmark • France • Iceland • Italy • Luxemburg • Netherlands • Norway • Portugal • 1952: Greece & Turkey • 1955: West Germany • 1983: Spain

27. Warsaw Pact (1955) • U. S. S. R. • Albania • Bulgaria • Czechoslovakia • East Germany • Hungary • Poland • Romania