Context and Origins of The Vietnam War

The area of Vietnam was part of Indochina, which was a French colony in southeast Asia. It was created in 1887 by the French to strengthen Catholic missionaries. Indochina was ruled by France up until the 2nd world war. Nazi Germany's invasion of France, prompted Japan to invade the land of Indochina. Viet Minh Revolutionary Party was formed by Ho Chi Minh as a revolution against French rule. After the loss of Japan in World War 2, the Republic of Vietnam came into being. Hanoi was the new capital of the Republic of Vietnam. Viet Minh saw this as an opportunity and declared war against the French, which, in history books is known as the first Indochina war. The anti-communist ideas were drastically blooming due to the Cold War, and China and the Soviet Union became allies of Vietnam in this war, while France was supported by the USA and the UK. The Viet Minh registered a convincing victory, and in the Geneva Accords, it was decided that Vietnam would be divided into two parts: the State of Vietnam and the Democratic Republic of Vietnam. Ngo Dinh Diem was declared the prime minister of South Vietnam through democratic elections. South and North Vietnam were keen to reunite both states into one through a referendum. The Viet Minh from the south fled to the north and vice versa to plan for a unified Vietnamese state. The referendum was held, but there were vast allegations of rigging of the referendum. Diem won the referendum due to the rigging and won a massive 98.91% majority in keeping the South separate. Diem declared South Vietnam independent, and it became the Republic of Vietnam, with Saigon being its capital. These events moved Vietnam into the Second Indochina War or the Vietnam War. The US feared the massive global spread of communism could cause the fall of Vietnam and would jeopardize the regions of India, Japan, and other neighboring countries, as mentioned in the policy of containment of the Truman Doctrine. Diem was strictly against any communist activity in the south, which led to the execution of thousands of civilians. The US provided heavy financial and military assistance to the South Vietnamese government. On December 20, 1960, the Viet Cong organization was formed with the aim of kicking out the South Vietnamese government and reuniting North and South Vietnam.

The new president of America, John F. Kennedy, faced a lot of criticism due to the spread of communism following the events of the Bay of Pigs disaster, the construction of the Berlin Wall, and the power of communists in Laos. He saw Vietnam as a golden opportunity to stand against the spread of communism. The support of US forces strengthened the South Vietnamese army. The North Vietnamese communist forces, or Viet Cong, implemented guerilla tactics against South Vietnamese American forces. Despite strong aid from the US, the South Vietnamese forces suffered silly defeats. By 1963, the pro-Catholic government had established rigid discriminatory and racist policies against Buddhists, banning their flags and killing the protesters. On November 1, the South Vietnamese army declared a military coup, and Diem was assassinated the following day. To make matters worse, John F. Kennedy was assassinated in America a month after the coup. On August 2, 1964, the US Navy ship fired at North Korea three times from the Gulf of Tonkin, resulting in four Vietnamese casualties. In February 1965, North Vietnamese forces attacked a US helicopter in Pleiku, and in retaliation, President Johnson ordered the US army to conduct a series of bombings in North Vietnam. In mid-1965, Nguyen Cao Ky became the prime minister of South Vietnam, bringing some stability to the country. The USA asked its SEATO allies to provide troops and equipment to South Vietnam. It is safe to say that despite the technological advantage of the US, North Vietnam, and the Viet Cong were successfully defending their land because of the knowledge of the territory and support of the people. Underground tunnel pathways were made by the Viet Cong to move to the city of Saigon.

On January 30, 1968, on the Vietnamese New Year, the North Vietnamese launched an intensive attack on the South. The group of 85,000 troops attacked more than 100 cities, including the US Embassy in Saigon. Despite a massive surprise attack, the defensive counterattack of the US and South Vietnamese armies proved effective. The city of Hue, on the border of North and South, was occupied by North Vietnamese forces, and 3000 people were brutally executed. However, the city was recaptured by the US army, but the NLF killings in Hue were declared one of the bloodiest battles in history. There were nationwide protests in the US to bring back US military troops. During these protests, the credibility and reputation of President Johnson were seriously damaged. In May 1968, peace talks were initiated between the US and North Vietnam that put an end to bombings and killings in North Vietnam. Richard Nixon, the new president of the United States, believed that war was now unfavorable and unachievable. The US conducted an operation menu in eastern Cambodia and North Vietnamese camps starting on March 18, 1969, up until May 28, 1970. This operation assisted South Vietnam and the US in the invasion of Cambodia. The South Vietnamese army invaded Laos to cut off the Ho Chi Minh trail, but they eventually failed. President Nixon began to initiate discussions with the Soviet Union and China to seize North Vietnam from its communist allies. During the Easter Offensive in 1972, North Vietnam recommenced its invasion of South Vietnamese areas, which resulted in the US resuming the bombing of North Vietnam. The bombings from the US eventually halted the North Vietnamese offense against South Vietnam. In 1973, the North and South arrived at the negotiation table with the US under the Paris Peace Accords. The peace accords were signed with the declaration of US involvement in the Vietnam War. All US military troops were withdrawn from Vietnam within a month. The evacuation of US troops from the region left South Vietnam defenseless and powerless. The rising oil prices contributed to South Vietnam's hyperinflation. North Vietnam saw this as an opportunity and began to invade the lands of South Vietnam. They soon invaded the city of Saigon. The troops of the North Vietnamese army annexed the city of Saigon on April 30th, 1975. In 1976, the North and South regions were integrated into the Republic of Vietnam. The war concluded with a total of 13 million Vietnamese civilians and military killings. The death toll of the US army at the end of the war was 58000 troops. Vietnam's economy strived hard during the 1970s and 1980. The tons of bombings by the US rendered much of the farmland in Vietnam useless to date. It deeply damaged the thinking of the US, the world superpower, which was unable to win a war against a tiny, pro-communist nation. The intervention of the US in the war proved unworthy and unnecessary due to the millions of lives lost.