Chapter 29 Section 4The War’s End and Impact

President Nixon inherited an unpopular war and increasing troubles on the home front.

Peace Talks Stall

• Formal peace talks began in May, 1968 in Paris• US wanted all VC out of South Vietnam and

release of POW’s• North Vietnam wanted halt to bombings,

withdrawal of US troops, and recognition of NLF (Vietcong) as a political party

• Neither side would budge on negotiations• Both sides argued over shape of the

negotiating table.

Peace With Honor

• Nixon believed he could achieve “peace with honor”

• This was a U.S. withdrawal from Vietnam on honorable terms

• US troops were gradually being pulled out of Vietnam

Vietnamization• Nixon expressed his faith in the South Vietnamese

Army (ARVN) to assume the burden of the war• This was called Vietnamization • The idea was to transfer front-line fighting to the

South Vietnamese

Bombing of Cambodia• The North Vietnamese

were continuing to supply the Vietcong by way of the Ho Chi Minh Trail

• The trail ran through neutral Laos and Cambodia

• Nixon secretly ordered the bombing of the Ho Chi Minh Trail in Cambodia to reduce the flow of supplies to the Vietcong

American Troops Attack Cambodia• Nixon was growing impatient at the pace of peace negotiations• In order to break the negotiations stalemate, Nixon ordered a

ground attack by U.S. soldiers on North Vietnamese bases in Cambodia

• He also hoped to aid the pro-American Cambodian government in its fight against the communist Khmer Rouge

• Nixon addressed the nation on TV and informed them of the invasion

• Although large quantities of supplies were seized, the North Vietnamese continued their struggle

• Anti-war activists immediately criticized Nixon for expanding the scope of the war

US tank in Cambodia

Students Protest• At Kent State University

in Ohio, four students were shot by National Guardsmen.

• A similar confrontation at Jackson State University in Mississippi left two students dead.

• Counterprotests were held by those supporting Nixon and the war efforts.

Kent State

Jackson State

My Lai• In 1971, Americans were stunned to

learn about the My Lai massacre. • Four years earlier, U.S. soldiers searching

for Vietcong in the village of My Lai had killed hundreds of unarmed civilians.

• The unit commander, Lt. William Calley, claimed he had been following orders.

• The military was criticized for covering up the incident and not performing an adequate investigation.

• Lt. Calley was convicted by a military court and sentenced to life imprisonment,

• President Nixon commuted sentence to house arrest and later granted him a pardon.

The Pentagon Papers• The publication of the Pentagon

Papers further shocked the nation.

• The report revealed that American leaders had lied to Congress and failed to inform the public fully about the American involvement in Vietnam.

• Nixon tried to stop publication of the Pentagon Papers, but The New York Times published the report in 1971.

Nixon Wins in 1972• In October 1972, the US and

North Vietnam came to terms on a peace settlement

• Nixon won reelection one month later

• North Vietnam refused to sign the agreement

• Nixon ordered the bombing of North Vietnam to force the Vietnamese to resume negotiations

Paris Peace Accords• In January 1973, the war finally ended with the signing

of the Paris Peace Accords.• The United States, South Vietnam, North Vietnam, and

the Vietcong would stop fighting. • U.S. troops would withdraw from South Vietnam.• North Vietnamese troops would remain in South

Vietnam.• South Vietnam’s noncommunist government would

remain in power.• US POW’s would be returned

The Fall of Saigon• For the United States, the war was over, but

fighting continued in Vietnam despite the peace agreement.

• In the spring of 1975, North Vietnam captured Saigon and won the war.

More Problems in Southeast Asia

• In Cambodia, the communist Khmer Rouge unleashed a genocide, killing more than 2 million people

• A communist government took control in Laos• Vietnam, now unified and communist,

attacked Cambodia who were supplied by the Chinese and supported by the US

The Killing Fields of Cambodia

The Cost of War• More than 58,000 Americans died in

Vietnam. • It would be years before Vietnam veterans

were acknowledged for their sacrifices.• The war undermined Americans’ trust in

their leaders.• Americans became reluctant to intervene

in other nations’ affairs.

Veterans Finally Remembered• The Vietnam Veteran’s memorial was dedicated

in Washington, D.C. in 1982• It lists the name of all Americans killed in

Vietnam in the order in which they died

Vietnam Changes American Policies• The cost of fighting a war effectively killed

Johnson’s Great Society programs• Congress passed the War Powers Act in 1973.• The act restricted the President’s ability to send

the nation to war.