American Policy Changes in Relation to Indochina Specifically Vietnam

8/12/2019 American Policy Changes in Relation to Indochina Specifically Vietnam

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Saxon King Modern History: Mr Creighton Word Count:1200

Nature and Development of U.S. policy towards Indochinagenerally and Vietnam in particular.

America originally showed next to no interest in Indochina after the Second World War. Howeverdue to certain which included the Communist Takeover of China in 1949 and the Korean War,American concerns towards indo-china and the power of communism escalated rapidly, specificallyin Vietnam. This was due to the Vietnamese communist fighters, under Ho Chi minh, ability to expelthe French forces from Indo-china.

In the march of 1947 President Truman established the policy of communist Containment . ThisContainment was to ensure that communism didnt escalate into a world -wide ideology. The

Truman Doctrine was a policy that the US would provide political, military and economic assistancefor to all democratic states under threat from all authoritarian forces.

American Policy towards Indochina from 1953-1961:

President Eisenhower:

- Communism: President Eisenhower was an individual who not only believed in President Trumans theoryof containment but also added to it through his development of the Domino

effect/Theory. In this theory he states that should a single nation or state fall tocommunism then all neighbouring states and governments were at risk of also falling tocommunism. President Eisenhower stated that,You have a row of dominoes set up, you knock over the first one, and what will happen to

the last one is the certainty that it will go over very quickly.This was used as an explanation and also evidence for the use of this theory.

- Vietnam: - President Eisenhower view Vietnam as the First Domino, stating that it would be the piece to

possibly cause the collapse of the eastern and western world to communism. Due to this he

sent aid to the South Vietnamese government so that they may stabilised their position inthe world as a democratic nation and also an Opponent of Communism.

President John Fitzgerald Kennedy and Policies: 1961-1963

Opinion/Policies:

- Communism:Kennedy viewed communism as a threat to the capitalist way of life however he did not

view it with as much aggression as Truman as LBJ would later do.

- Vietnam:


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Kennedy believed that Vietnam was the perfect battlefield for the superpowers of theworld without resulting to nuclear means to win the war. He came to this conclusionafter the Cuban missile crisis. Kennedy feared how close mankind had come toextinction after the near miss of nuclear war with the USSR.

- Diem:Diem was viewed by Kennedy as corrupt and untrustworthy however this was still

better than a communist in Kennedys eyes. However this did not stop K ennedy turningon Diem when there was enough s upport for Diems removal.

- Ho Chi minh and the North Vietnamese:JFK viewed Ho Chi Minh and the North Vietnamese as a threat to the South Vietnamese

and their Capitalist government (this government more closely resembles anAutocratic Government under D iems leadership).

Assassinations and their effect on policy:

On the 1 st of November 1963, Diem and his brother were executed/assassinated by the SouthVietnamese generals. This was supported by the United States, who provided funding for theGenerals. Three weeks later however, President Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas Tex as. Diemsdeath had no effect on the policy change except for the fact that USA now had support from certainreligious organisations within the country. Kennedys Death allowed President Johnson to takepower. At the start of Kennedys term there was only 800 American military personnel in Vietnam byNovember 1963 there was over 16000.

President Lyndon Baines Johnson and Policies: 1963-1969

I guess weve got no choice, but it scares the death out of me. I thinkeverybodys going to think were landing marines, were off to battle Lyndon Baines Johnson

Opinion/Policies:

- Communism:LBJ held a view of communism which was almost identical to that of President Trumanand Eisenhower. He feared that if Vietnam fell it would lead to a conservative backlash

in America which would lead to the repeal of his domestic reforms.- Vietnam:

LBJ was extremely reluctant to continue the war in Vietnam. However, according to theRobert Dallek (author of Johnsons biography, The Flawed Giant), Johnson felt thatVietnam was a situation for America yet he was extremely proud and insecure man, thisled to his inability to justify leaving Vietnam to himself and his nation.

- American Involvement:Before the Tonkin incident US involvement and policy was to only send advisors toVietnam, however after the Tonkin Incident in which a US Destroyer was fired upon byVietnamese patrol boats, Jonson was able to convince the houses of parliament to

engage in war with North Vietnam. Most importantly this was done legally with both thehouses backing Johnson and his decision.


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- South Vietnamese Government:LBJ aimed to solidify the South Vietnamese government by giving them aid in the formof money, munitions and materials for the building of a solid infrastructure. He hoped tobe able to leave the South Vietnamese in a position of strength after the war was won. Itwas to be used as a re presentation of Capitalism and democracys power.

- Ho Chi Minh and the North Vietnamese: LBJ viewed the communist North as Bullies and believed that stiff resistance couldstop them.

President Richard Nixon and his policies: 1969-1971

The greatest honour history can bestow is the title of peacemaker. -RICHARD NIXON, Inaugural Address, Jan. 20, 1969

Opinions/Policies:- Vietnamisation :

This was the term used by Nixon in relation to the US policy in Vietnam, it changed whatthe Truman policy had established. This policy had two key parts:1. Firstly U.S. forces would be withdrawn, this was done quite quickly so as to maximiseits effectiveness2. The South Vietnamese military would continue to e funded by the U.S. in theirstruggle against the NLF/North Vietnamese.

- The Madman Theory: This was a technique used by the U.S. at the peace accords, it was used so as to make itseem President Nixon was absorbed by his hatred of communism and was such a firmbeliever in domino theory that he would resort to nuclear means to overcome the NorthVietnamese if they didnt comply with the peace agreement.

- America/China:President Nixon was able to re-open extremely successful negotiations with the PeoplesRepublic of China during the closing years of the war. This caused the Chinese tominimise their amount of imports into North Vietnam for e.g. the amount of weaponsthey supplied the NLF with.

The Policy Changes?:

Overall the United states approach to commu nism didnt change til it was time for them to withdrawand due to this it seemed that the only major changes in policy over time was the resources aPresident was willing to employ in Indochina. Vietnam was a front for the U.S.s war againstcommunism and it was a war of Ideals and beliefs as much as a war of territory.


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Bibliography:

Cawthorne, N 2010, Vietnam: A War Lost and Won, Arcturus Publishing Limited, London

Curtis Le May and LBJ quotes, Brainy quote, Accessed 19 August 2013

Chomsky, N 1993, Rethinking Camelot, South End press, Boston, USA

Dallek, R 1998, Flawed Giant: Lyndon Johnson and His Times, 1961-1973, Oxford University,England.

Domino Theory, 2012, Illustration, Domino Theory, accessed 17 August 2013,.

Lyndon Johnson's Presidential recordings, 2013 Professional Presidential recordings,accessed 19 August 2013,http://presidentialrecordings.rotunda.upress.virginia.edu/essays?series=Vietnam

Office of Historian, 2013 Milestones, Bureau Of Public Affairs, accessed 19 August 2013,http://history.state.gov/milestones/1961-1968

Presidents of America, 2013 The White House, accessed 17 August 2013,http://www.whitehouse.gov/about/presidents/richardnixon

Trueman, C 2013 John F Kennedy and Vietnam, History learning site, accessed 17 August

2013, http://www.historylearningsite.co.uk/kennedy_vietnam.htm
http://presidentialrecordings.rotunda.upress.virginia.edu/essays?series=Vietnamhttp://presidentialrecordings.rotunda.upress.virginia.edu/essays?series=Vietnamhttp://history.state.gov/milestones/1961-1968http://history.state.gov/milestones/1961-1968http://www.historylearningsite.co.uk/kennedy_vietnam.htmhttp://www.historylearningsite.co.uk/kennedy_vietnam.htmhttp://www.historylearningsite.co.uk/kennedy_vietnam.htmhttp://www.historylearningsite.co.uk/kennedy_vietnam.htmhttp://www.historylearningsite.co.uk/kennedy_vietnam.htmhttp://www.historylearningsite.co.uk/kennedy_vietnam.htmhttp://history.state.gov/milestones/1961-1968http://presidentialrecordings.rotunda.upress.virginia.edu/essays?series=Vietnamhttp://presidentialrecordings.rotunda.upress.virginia.edu/essays?series=Vietnam

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American Policy Changes in Relation to Indochina Specifically Vietnam