Early Vietnam

BackgroundVietnam was part of French Indochina

since late 19th centuryJapan had occupied them during WWIIWhen Japanese surrendered to the

Allies, Ho Chi Minh (leader of Vietnamese resistance to Japan) declared their independence, using words from the US Declaration of Independence

By Sept. 1945, they were independent

BackgroundFrance rejected their independence in

1946 and began an eight-year struggle for who would take control

Ho Chi Minh tried to call on Truman for support

He ignored the call for help and instead sided with the French

Done in part to help French rebuild their economy

In addition:When China became Communist in

1949, the US was concerned they would side with the USSR and try to bring down colonial empires in Asia

Republican criticism of Truman about China being “lost” persuaded Truman to take a strong stance against Communist aggression in Korea and Vietnam

In addition:Truman would do anything at this

point for France’s support in large part due to his wanting NATO to last

The Soviets and Chinese recognized Ho’s republic in 1950

The British and US recognized the puppet government of Bao Dai

Truman and IkeBoth gave a great deal of financial

support to the French in VietnamThis was part of the domino effect:

support non-Communist governments in the area so that they stay non-Communist

TensionsEven with US support, French control

was weakening: Viet-minh forces were getting stronger in northern Vietnam

In 1954, Viet-minh forces seized Dienbienphu after 56 days of attacks

This victory led to the partitioning of Vietnam at the 17th parallel in the Geneva accords

France withdrew forces north of the line

More...Geneva Accords called for free

elections for both sides within two years to choose a unified government

The US feared that Communism would be voted in; they did not sign the accords

Instead, said they would acknowledge the accords and would refrain from using violence

Results:Ngo Dino Diem was an anti-Communist

Catholic who was in the US for eight years; he was chosen to rule South Vietnam in 1954

Ho Chi Minh would have won the unified elections; before they were to take place, Diem called them off

The US supported this move

At this point...The US replaced France as the main

democratic power in Vietnam, looking to ensure that communism would not spread

Vietnam, though small, became a symbol for US Cold War struggle

Ike funded Diem and gave a small number of troops for protection and support in Saigon

JFK’s roleJFK wanted to use Vietnam to test

counterinsurgency techniquesOver the course of three years, North

and South Vietnam built towards a major conflict: guerilla warfare in the north was now present

US increased its troop level, stayed out of guerilla warfare

National Liberation Front

A combination of North Vietnam’s Communists and South Vietnam’s Diem opponents: NLF aka Vietcong Est. 1960 Found civilian supporters that would be accepting of

Diem’s being removed They tried to ally with Buddhists (main religion of

Vietnam) who would not support Diem’s Catholicism A number of militant demonstrations Diem retaliated by raiding temples and mass arrests

of Buddhist priests

JFK’s reactionHe realized that Diem needed to be

removed or there would be risk to losing the South to the Communists

Due to the fact that the US now supported the end of Diem’s tenure, they were now seemingly forced to stay in the region

Diem’s assassinationNov. 1, 1963: Diem was assassinated

by officers in the South Vietnamese army

JFK was assassinated less than a month later; some feel that he might have removed the troops had he lived; most feel that his actions showed he was not going to do that

LBJHe decided to keep the troops there,

saying he would maintain US support of South Vietnam