HOW EFFECTIVE DID THE USA

CONTAIN THE SPREAD OF

COMMUNISM ?
 What is this enquiry about ?

- When Lenin’s Bolshevik party came to power in Russia in 1917 it was not was not well
received internationally
- The USA sent troops to fight in the Russian Civil war (1918-1921) hoping to destroy the
new communist regime ( they failed)
- From 1950-1973 there were many tests of the policy of containment, but 3 major
examples stand out :

1. Korean War
2. Cuban Missile Crisis
3. Vietnam War
 Student have to able to understand the cause and consequences of each
event
 Students have to able to evaluate American policy and strategy and also
on what they are trying to achieve
 Students have to be able to access weather the threat of communism had
increased or decreased after a quarter of a century of containment
Case study 1 : USA and the events in Korea, 1950-1953
- In January 1950, President Truman ordered a review of the USA’s foreign policy
- This was due to increase to the communism treat that developed in 1948 and 1949
- Several incidents had raised concerns about the global spread of communism :

 1948 : Czechoslovakia was taken over by a communist government

 -Benes tried desperately to hold his nation together, but by February 1948 the communists had forced the
other coalition parties out of the government
 -In 1989 The "Velvet Revolution,“ overthrow the Communist government in Czechoslovakia

 1948 – 1949 : Berlin Blockade brought the two superpowers (USA,USSR) close to conflict

 1949 : The communists finally won the Chinese civil war under Mao Zedong
 -Kuomintang vs Communist
 -Kuomintang’s ideology is Socialism
 -Socialism political and economic theory of social organization which advocates that the means of
production, distribution, and exchange should be owned or regulated by the community as a whole

 1949 : USSR produced a nuclear weapon, at least three years in advance of American estimates
The result of Truman’s investigation was National Security Council report 68, which outlined four options:

1. Continue with the USA’s existing policies

2. Fight a preventative war to block Soviet expansion

3. Withdraw behind the shield of ‘fortress USA’ and do nothing about the expansion of communism
around the world

4. Start a programme of massive rearmament to surpass the forces available to communism

- Truman chose the 4th option. USA armed forces been expanded

- Containment was to be put forcefully into practice

- Containment remained as USA new foreign policy until the end of the Vietnam War

CONTAINMENT (the action or policy of preventing the expansion of a hostile country or influence)
 What caused the Korean War ?

KOREAN LAND UNDER JAPAN

 1910 until 1945, the entire Korean land had been ruled as a colony by Japan
 Young Koreans were taught at school in the Japanese language (Nihingo)
 All political oppositions was banned
 Koreans was used as conscripts (enlist someone compulsorily, typically into the
armed services) as the Japanese waged war from 1937 to 1945
 Liberated (freed from enemy occupation) by the Soviet troops in the North and
the American troops in the South
 Dividing line of North and South known as the 38 parallel
 Development of the war between Il-sung and Rhee

 Korean communist in the North led by Kim Il-sung (WW2 he was trained by Joseph Stalin in Moscow)
 Anti-communist South Korea was led by a Syngman Rhe
 Fighting soon broke out between northern and southern forces along the border (38th parallel)
 Kim Il-sung keen to reunite the entire Korean land under his leadership
 So he approached Stalin to get help but was refused
 WHY? Because Stalin was busy with Berlin Blockade
 Later on once the Berlin Blockade event concluded, Stalin offered his help to Il-Sung
 At that time, Chinese revolution also ended and Mao transformed China to become a communist nation
and Soviet manage to develop their nuclear weapons
 Stalin gave Kim Il-sung his support to invade South Korea
 Soviet Union gave 200,000 troops (100,000 specially trained in USSR
(200,00 specially trained in the USSR, 40,000 gained experience fighting in the
Chinese Civil War)
 South Korea were ill-equipped, poorly trained and their armies was less than
100,000
 The capital city Seoul was taken, all Korea was occupied except Pusan in
the far South
 American reactions to the invasion of South Korea

 USA had been watching events in the Korean peninsula

 Rhee was elected president in 1948 after the first ever election in that region of Korea
 South was deeply divided and Rhee ruled as a dictator
 He performed poorly in the first ever elections due to corruption in his government
 Still USA gave strong support to Rhee as the best hope for containment
 Chinese revolution of October 1949 made Mao in power in China but USA refused to
accept
 USA still recognise Chiang Kai-shek (leader of Kuomintang) as the rightful leader of China
 Chiang Kai-shek escaped to Taiwan in 1949
 USSR did not attend UN’s Security Council meeting in 1950 because UN did not accept
Mao’s victory in China
 USSR also refused to attend the meeting even when South Korea was invaded my
communist North Korea in June 1950
 USA used this against USSR and requested UN to form a coalition of powers against the
spread of communism
 Truman the USA President appealed to the United Nations to come to the aid of Rhee
the South Korean Prime Minister
 Harry S. Truman sent American troops from Japan led by General Douglas MacArthur
 Another 14 nations contributed to the UN army and 5 sent medical support
 This was the first time ever that the United Nations had gathered an international army
and it was determined to show that is was stronger and more capable than its
predecessor, the League of Nations
 SUMMARY OF THE KOREAN WAR
United Nations Command (UNC) was established on July 7, 1950 following the United Nations' recognition of
North Korean aggression against South Korea. UNC signifies the world’s first attempt at collective security under
the United Nations system. United Nations Security Council Resolutions 83 and 84 provided the international legal
authority for member states to restore peace on the Korean Peninsula, and they designated the United States as
the leader of the unified command we know as UN Command. During the Korean War and the reconstruction
period following the signing of the Armistice Agreement, twenty-two countries contributed either combat forces
or medical assistance to support South Korea under the United Nations flag
Timeline:
 June 25, 1950: North Korean forces crossed the 38th Parallel and invaded South Korea. The UN condemned
the attack and passed United Nations Security Council Resolution (UNSCR) 82, calling for the cessation of
hostilities and withdrawal of North Korean forces

 June 27, 1950: United Nations Security Council Resolution (UNSCR) 83 declared North Korean actions
constituted a breach of peace, recommending UN members provide assistance to South Korea to repel the
attack and restore peace on the Korean Peninsula

 June 28, 1950: Seoul, South Korea’s capital city, was captured by North Korean forces

 July 7, 1950: United Nations Security Council Resolution (UNSCR) 84 authorized the United States to establish
and lead a unified command comprised of military forces from UN member states, and authorized that
command to operate under the UN flag

 July 31, 1950: United Nations Security Resolution (UNSCR) 85 called for UNC to determine the requirements
for the relief to, and support for, the people of South Korea

 August 4—September 16, 1950: U.S. and South Korean troops established the "Busan Perimeter", and
prevented North Korea from capturing South Korea
 September 15—16, 1950: U.S. forces conducted the Incheon Landing

 September 16—22, 1950: UNC forces broke out of the Busan Perimeter, recaptured Seoul, and advanced north into North
Korea

 November 25, 1950: The Chinese People’s Volunteer Army crossed the Yalu river into North Korea and drove back UNC
forces

 November 27—28, 1950: UNC forces are surrounded at the Changjin (Chosin) Reservoir

 November 1950: United Nations Command incorporated the Civil Assistance sections of major combat units with the small
UN Public Health and Welfare Detachment to form the UN Civil Assistance Command (UNCACK) in Busan. UNCACK
supervised the distribution and utilization of more than $450 million in relief assistance from 33 UN member nations
UNCACK clothed, fed, housed, and medically treated millions before operations ceased in September 1953

 December 9—24, 1950: Evacuation of UNC forces from the port city of Hungnam. This operation also included the largest
sea-borne military evacuation of civilians under combat conditions, transporting 98,000 Koreans from Hungnam, Wonsan,
and Sonjin ports

 January—April 1951: Chinese People’s Volunteer Army pushed UNC forces back across the 38th Parallel and recaptured
Seoul

 May 1951: UNC counterattack freed Seoul. Fighting stalled around the 38th Parallel

 June 1951—July 1953: UNC and communist forces fought sporadic battles for control of territory around the 38 th Parallel

 July 10, 1951: Peace talks began at Kaesong and eventually continued at Panmunjom

 July 27, 1953: The Armistice Agreement was signed at Panmunjom, temporarily ending all fighting. A permanent peace
treaty has never been signed
 The course of the war, 1950-1953
The events of any war can often seem confusing
so it helps to break them down into clear phases
Phase one : Liberating the South
 Rhees’s army surrounded in Pusan (now Busan) by North Korean forces
 USA forces who had landed in the South Korean early also had been unable to stop the North
Korean forces
WHY ? Because they were told that they will be back to Japan within 6 months so they didn’t
pack much equipment for the Korean war
 MacArthur’s response was to launch a bold landing north that would allow him to cute the
North Korean army
 He landed his forces at Inchon (now Incheon)
 This was a very difficult task as was a sea wall and dangerous conditions for landing the boats
 Still MacArthur and his forces managed to get his forces on land and defeated the
communist troops
 By October they had retaken Seoul and reached the 38th parallel
Phase two : ‘Rollback’ – the UN invasion of the North
 Original mission had been completed
 South had been freed from communist forces
 The communist containment had been achieved
 MacArthur wanted to move on above the 38th parallel to roll back communism (not
only in North Korea but at China as well)
 This is to stop the spread of communism and made it disappear in Asia
 Truman was not into MacArthur’s strategy
 China warned MacArthur but still he sent his forces across the border and pushed
onwards throughout late October
 In November, the Chinese responded by sending 500,000 troops, whom they called
‘volunteers’ across the Yalu Rivers, which marks the border with North Korea
Phase three : The Chinese counter-attack
 UN forces began to struggle because of Chinese counter-attack
 Chinese were less armed but superior in number
 China also had aerial support from Russian MiG-15s which were faster than American
planes, could fly higher and had superior firepower
 By end of November, MacArthur’s men were suffering heavy casualties and were in
retreat
 January 1951, Chinese forces recaptured Seoul
 Press conferences forcefully asked Truman weather USA is going to use nuclear again
 British Prime Minister Atlee flew to Washington to tell Truman of his opposition on the
usage of nukes
 Truman clearly stated that he would not use nuclear weapons
Phase four : Stalemate and peace talks
 UN counter-attack in early spring managed to stop the Chinese forces at the 38th
parallel
 Since South Korea had been liberated until 38th parallel, Truman considered peace
talks
 MacArthur disagreed and he publicly criticised the president
 Truman decided to sack MacArthur
 New commander General Ridgeway, American strategy changed to defence
 July 1951 the two sides sat down to discuss peace terms
 The main disagreement was the issue of prisoners of war (POWs)
 Movement of troops up and down Korean peninsula large numbers had been
captured on both sides
 130,000 communist soldiers were held in the South, they were given option to remain
there, half of them accepted
 In the North half of prisoners of war died in the winter of 1950/1951
 September 1953, there was an exchange of 77,000 communist fighters for 12,700 UN
troops in Operation Big Switch
The end of the war
 Peace talks dragged on in 1952 and 1953 there seemed no likely end to the war
 Dwight ‘Ike’ Eisenhower (WW2 USA General) replaced Truman as the USA president on
January 1953
 He promised to end the Korean War
 After Joseph Stalin died, Nikita Khrushchev took his place as the communist leader of
USSR
 United Nation helped arrange a ceasefire (temporary suspension of figting) on 27 July
1953, which was accepted by all sides except Syngman Rhee
 The international involvement in the Korean war came to an end but both North and
South Korea never signed any peace treaty
 So technically the war is still not yet over and still going on
 The most tragic consequences was the horrific loss of life
 Seoul and Pyongyang were both extensively damaged
 Civilians casualties were 3 million which was around 10 percent of the total population of the Korean peninsula during that war time
 Other loses :
North Korea – 406, 000 combat deaths
South Korea – 217, 000 combat deaths
China – 500, 000 combat deaths
USA – 36, 914 combat deaths and illness, 7, 800 still unaccounted
United Nations – 3, 000 to 4, 000 deaths, including 686 British loses, with 1, 102 missing

 Weapons such as napalm were used

 Napalm can cause catastrophic human and ecological results
 Chinese casualties were high, but Mao was the main victor
 He consolidate his power in China and ended a period of more than a century of Chinese defeats at the hands of western power

NAPALM (A petrol based chemical weapon)

Case study 2: The Cuban Missile Crisis, 1959-1962
 Khrushchev and Eisenhower got on better than Stalin and Truman when they met in
1955 (the first meeting between Soviet Union and USA since 1945)
 Arms race and spy networks developed until neither side could trust each other
 Technology played an important role in raising tension
 1957, the Soviet put their first satellite (Sputnik) into space and they also developed
long-range nuclear missiles called ICBMs
 1959, the USA developed Polaris missiles which called be launched from submarines
 The underlying theory of the arms and technology race was Mutually Assured
Destruction (MAD)
 But neither side will launch a nuclear war because it will bring destruction to both
country. This gave comfort to the world civilians
The USA’s reaction to the Cuban Revolution, 1959-1961
 1898, USA defeated the Spanish in war that gave them control over Cuba
 USA had taken over trade, land and natural wealth on Cuba (sugar and oil industries)
 USA supported the corrupted Cuban leader Batista
 He was replaced with Fidel Castro in 1959 along with his brother Raul and famous revolutionary Ernesto ‘Che’ Guevara
 Fidel started a revolution in Cuba which troubled Washington
 He wanted to show Cuba’s new freedom to America so he signed a trade agreement with Moscow and received
weapons as well

This lead to a series of ‘tit-tat-toe’

- Castro nationalised 1 billion of American investments in Cuba, including oil refineries
- Eisenhower started a trade embargo. The USSR agreed to buy sugar from Cuba to save its economy
- The USA announced it would bot buy oil from Cuba. Again, the USSR bought the oil instead, even though it was very
inconvenient to send Soviet ships to Havana

 Fidel Castro never been a member of the Cuban Communist Party, he met Khrushchev at the UN in 1960 and embraced
like old friends
 Fidel even called himself a ‘good Marxist-Leninist’
 CIA responded to Fidel’s statement by train a group of 1.400 Cuban exiles to invade the island and overthrow Castro
 USA mistakenly believed that Castro was not popular among Cuban’s and poorly armed
 1961, Cuban exiles landed at the Bay of pigs but were defeated
 Castro had 20,000 soldiers and Soviet tanks
 This event was the first incident for John F. Kennedy the newly elected American President and it was a huge
embarrassment for him
Causes of the Missile Crisis
 Introduction of nuclear weapon Cuba was decided by Khrushchev
 USA had placed strategic nuclear weapons in Italy and Turkey as a part of
NATO
 It were too close to Russia
 With the help of Che Guevara and Raul Castro, Khrushchev wanted to
counter this by placing nuclear on Cuba
 September 1962, Kennedy warned the USSR that he would do anything to
prevent the placement of the nuclear weapons in Cuba
 October 14, a U2 plane flew over Cuba and took pictures of missiles
 Kennedy formed a special team called EX-Com to advice him because he
knew that 20 Soviet ships carrying nuclear missiles were on the way to Cuba
Key events of the crucial week:
 21 October
- USA informed Britain about the discovery of missiles

 22 October
- Kennedy ordered a naval blockade around Cuba. Khrushchev denied that where were missiles in Cuba

 23 October
- Khrushchev send a letter stating that Soviet ships would attempt to sail through the USA blockade

 24 October
- Soviet ships carrying warheads turned back. Some missiles and warheads made it to Cuba before the blockade

 25 October
- USA provided photographic evidence of the missiles sites to UN

 26 October
- Khrushchev’s first offer was made in a letter to Kennedy. The missiles would be withdrawn if the USA promised not to invade Cuba. Soviet admit that the missile
exist in Cuba

 27 October
- U2 spy plane was shot down over Cuba and the pilot killed. Kennedy urged to invade Cuba but he delayed. Khrushchev made a second offer in another
letter. He demanded USA to remove the missiles from Turkey in exchange for the missiles removal from Cuba. USA guarantee not to invade Cuba again and
remove Turkish missiles

 28 October
- Khrushchev accepted these terms, ending the crisis
Analysis
Kennedy had five realistic options:
1. Don’t react: USA had more nuclear weapons and the Turkish site gave them the same advantage. MAD
meant that nothing essentially had changed. However, this would be a sign of weakness after the Bay of
Pigs
2. Surgical air attack: the aerial destruction of all the missiles. However, soviet engineers would be killed and
if one silo remained it could be used to counter-attack
3. Invasion by the US army: this would remove the missiles, and communism, altogether. However, a similar
Soviet response might be expected
4. Use diplomacy: the UN could provide a forum for discussion but Khrushchev still denied that the missiles
existed, Again, it might look like weakness
5. Blockade; it could prevent warheads arriving, and avoid hot war. However, it might trigger a similar Soviet
response. Also, some missiles were already in Cuba and could be working within a week
-Kennedy choose a blockade , it’s a balance between appearing to be weak and using violence. This option
was still not guaranteed to work
-The final settlement terms of the Cuban Missile Crisis looked much better in Kennedy’s view but in reality the
USA had a less powerful position than before the crisis
-Fidel Castro was still in power and they lost their Turkish missiles sites
- Yet for the USA and the world, Kennedy successfully stood up to Khrushchev and saved everyone from the
nuclear war
The aftermath of the crisis

 Cuban Missile Crisis was the closest that the two superpowers (USA and Soviet) came
to a nuclear war
 A hotline was set up between the White House and the Kremlin to improve
communications in the event of a future crisis
 August 1963 they signed the Nuclear Test Ban Treaty, both promised not to test any
more nuclear weapons
 This didn’t reduce the stockpiles but it did stop the arms race
 Fidel Castro remained as the leader of Cuba until 2008 and later we was succeeded
by Raul Castro
 Kennedy was assassinated in November 1963 and his successor was the Vice-
President Lyndon Baines Johnson
Case study 3: The war in Vietnam, 1961-1975
Background : the French war in Vietnam
 From 1860s, France controlled the colony of Indo-China (Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos)
 After the French lost to Nazi in 1940s, they lost control of Indo-China to Japan
 At the end of WW2, communist leader Ho Chi Minh announced that Vietnam was independent
 However, the French later regained control which soon led to the war between Vietnam
 1946-1954, French lost 72,000 men in the war
 The Chinese revolution 149 made matters worse as Mao supplied arms to the North Vietnamese communist forces
(Viet Minh)
 USA gave 2.6 billion US Dollar in aid from 1950 to 1954 to French to win the war but still French unsuccessful in Vietnam
 French withdrew after a heavy defeat at Dien Bien Phu in March 1954
 French controlled the towns but Ho Chi Minh’s guerrilla forces controlled the northern Vietnam and countryside
 Peace treaty was signed through the 1954 Geneva Agreements

 Main points of the treaty :

- Indo-China would be divided into 4 : North Vietnam, South Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia
- North Vietnam was divided from the South Vietnam at the 17 degree North line of latitude. Northern Vietnamese
communist forces have to withdraw from Southern Vietnam
- All foreign troops would withdraw from Indo-China
- Elections will be held in 1956
- An international commission would ensure that the settlement was respected

 Several countries signed the agreement (include USSR, China and Britain) but USA refused. 1967 USA President
Eisenhower persuaded President Diem not to hold elections because evidence suggested the communist would win
in the South
Reasons for American involvement
 Civil war broke out in 1960 and the National Liberation Front was created in South Vietnam later
known as the Viet Cong
 Viet Cong were a mixture of anti-government forces includes: Buddhist, patriots and communist
 They used guerrilla tactics operating from a complex network of tunnels and underground bases
that even included whole hospitals
 There were many booby-traps (A booby trap is a device or setup that is intended to kill, harm, or
surprise a human being or an animal. It is triggered by the presence or actions of the victim and
sometimes has some form of bait designed to lure the victim towards it) as well
 Viet Cong successfully waged war against President Diem’s government and were supplied
through Ho Chi Minh Trail
 Ho Chi Minh Trail ran through neighbouring Laos and Cambodia and allowed for weapons and
supplied to be secretly brought South from North Vietnam and China
 Kennedy first foreign policy was on Laos because the communist group Pathet Lao were trying to
overthrow the monarchy
 Viet Minh (North Vietnam) and the Pathet Lao had worked together to fight the French
 Eisenhower told Kennedy that the whole Indo-China region would become communist
 CIA trained an anti-communist force and supplies were flown in from Thailand (by Air America)
 Aerial bombing began and continued heavily until 1975 in Vietnam and Laos
 16,000 military force were sent to help Diem in the South Vietnam. These include a special force
Green Berets similar to British SAS marine force
 1963, Buddhist monks protest against the government began
 Kennedy had tired of Diem after the defeat at Ap Bac
 November 1963, CIA helped stage an internal coup which ended the bloody execution of Diem
and his advisers
 Kennedy was assassinated on 22nd November 1963
Johnson and increasing US involvement
 Lyndon B. Johnson (USA President 163-1969) succeeded Kennedy
 He was a strong believer in the Domino Theory (If one country fell to communism, so would its
neighbours and their neighbours in turn- falling like a line to communism like domino)
 In August, before the election in November 1964, Lyndon was given the opportunity to
expand American involvement in the war through the Gulf of Tonkin incident
 Tonkin incident (It was passed by the U.S. Congress after an alleged attack on two U.S. naval
destroyers stationed off the coast of Vietnam. The Gulf of Tonkin Resolution effectively
launched America's full-scale involvement in the Vietnam War)
 Congress gave the president authority to send more military power to Vietnam
 Viet Minh (North Vietnam communist force formed by Ho Chi Minh)
 Viet Cong (Its South Vietnam communist force fought under the direction of North Vietnam,
against the South Vietnamese and United States governments during the Vietnam War,
eventually emerging on the winning side)
American tactics
 1965, Viet Cong attacked the USA base at Pleiku
 American bombing over Vietnam took place under the name Operation Rolling Thunder
 Viet Cong still being supplied by the USSR and China at the port of Haiphong (USA afraid bomb the port because fear the bomb will hit Soviet
ships)
 The supplies were taken using Ho Chi Minh Trail
 But Lyndon send land troops to Haiphong port after been advised by General Westmoreland
 USA was now involved in total war (military conflict in which the contenders are willing to make any sacrifice in lives and other resources to
obtain a complete victory as distinguished from limited war) in Vietnam
 USA tactics for victory were:
- Heavy use of aerial bombing to destroy Viet Cong fortress.
Chemical weapons such as napalm (is an incendiary mixture of a gelling agent and a compatible volatile petrochemical)
and Agent Orange (Agent Orange was a tactical herbicide the U.S. military used to clear leaves and vegetation for military operations mainly
during the Vietnam War. Veterans who were exposed to Agent Orange may have certain related illnesses) were used to destroy tress and jungle
- ‘Search and destroy’ missions. Combat units would go out into the countryside to locate Viet Cong weapons stores, bases and fighters. They also
punish any villagers helping the enemy

 Vietnam war was called as the ‘first media war’ because for the first time in American history, the news from the front lines was brought straight
into the living room. So why was Vietnam called the first “television war”? ... Big stories like the A-bomb stayed out of the news until after the war
ended. The main focus of the media was high morale and support for the war effort
 1968, USA government claiming that victory was close, the North Vietnamese Army became
more heavily involved in the Vietnam war
 The Tet Offensive (launched on Tet, the Vietnamese New Year) saw Viet Cong troops almost
capture the US embassy in Saigon, Ho Chi Minh. Viet Cong failed
 The Tet Offensive (was a coordinated series of North Vietnamese attacks on more than 100
cities and outposts in South Vietnam)
 Anti-war protest in the USA increased after this, especially when the My Lai massacre was
revealed in 1969. Lyndon announced to the American people that he would not seek re-
election as president
 The new president, Richard Nixon, promised to end the war but didn’t want to withdraw in a
humiliating fashion
 His Vietnamisation policy reduced USA troops number significantly
 1970, Nixon extended the aerial bombing into Cambodia. He did without telling the American
Congress and this increased public criticism
My Lai massacre

 The My Lai massacre was one of the most horrific incidents of violence
committed against unarmed civilians during the Vietnam War. A company
of American soldiers brutally killed most of the people—women, children
and old men—in the village of My Lai on March 16, 1968
 During USA nationwide protest against Vietnam war, four students were killed at Kent State University by the Ohio National
Guard
 1972, some war veterans were protesting against Nixon, throwing away their medals
 Nixon also replaced the Cambodian ruler with Lon Nol, who later became a corrupt leader and was deeply unpopular
among the Cambodian people
 Peace talks did make progress in 1972 as they were led by Nixon’s National Security Adviser, Henry Kissinger
 Nixon launched the heaviest aerial bombing in North Vietnam known Operation Linebacker I and II
 He also made a secret promise to the South Vietnam that the USA would support them if they were invaded again by the
North Vietnam. American Congress was not told about this well
 January 1973, a peace treaty was signed, with USA troops withdrawing from Vietnam and the South Vietnam have to
fend for itself
 Nixon was forced to resign in 1974 over the Watergate scandal
 North Vietnam invade the South Vietnam in March 1974 and won in April 1975
 Cambodia and Laos also fell to communism the same month
 Laos is still a communist nation until now but communism end in Cambodia in 1979
Watergate scandal

 The Watergate scandal began early in the morning of June 17, 1972, when several
burglars were arrested in the office of the Democratic National Committee, located
in the Watergate complex of buildings in Washington, D.C. This was no ordinary
robbery: The prowlers were connected to President Richard Nixon’s reelection
campaign, and they had been caught wiretapping phones and stealing
documents. Nixon took aggressive steps to cover up the crimes, but
when Washington Post reporters Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein revealed his role
in the conspiracy, Nixon resigned on August 9, 1974. The Watergate scandal
changed American politics forever, leading many Americans to question their
leaders and think more critically about the presidency
Effects of the Vietnam War
 South Vietnam lost 2.5 million civilians
 300, 000 citizens of South Vietnam were tortured in ‘re-education camps’ after the war (Re-education camps
were prison camps operated by the Communist government of Vietnam following the end of the Vietnam War. In these
camps, the government imprisoned up to 300,000 former military officers, government workers and supporters of the
former government of South Vietnam)
 North Vietnam lost 650,000 men and the Viet Cong lost 1 million
 The USA lost 58,220 men
 1.5 million people escaped Vietnam in boats in 1975-1990, heading to Hong Kong and Australia
 Vietnam’s economy was destroyed by bombing
 Use of chemical weapons (napalm and Agent Orange) massively increased cancer rates and led to babies being
deformed at birth
 Many USA soldiers became drug addicts. 1971 four times more men were treated for drug addiction than combat
wounds
 Congress passed the War Powers Act to restrict the president’s ability to send troops abroad
 Communism in Cambodia under Pol Pot (Cambodian communist President) led mass murder during 1975-9179 in which
more than 2 million people were killed
Why did the Americans lose the war?
 Military factors:
- Viet Cong were too well organised and difficult to identify
- Ho Chi Minh Trail kept the Viet Cong’s supplied and they dressed like villagers and farmers so they
blended in with civilians
- Viet Cong’s also been fighting the Japanese and French with the same guerrilla tactics so they were very
experienced
- American soldiers who fought for one year then returned. American soldiers were ordinary soldiers and
they didn’t build up much experience
- American soldiers do not have any survival or battling skills in the tropical rain forest
- Modern technology was of little use in Vietnam because they have fight in the jungle not on a battle
ground
 Domestic factors:
- American public increasingly against the Vietnam war
- Propaganda was so important during the Cold War and USA can’t be seen killing innocent civilians (My Lai massacre)
- Protest like Kent State University divided the nation
- Lyndon and Nixon became figure of hate
- 1966 more then half of the USA public disapproved of the war
- No president could keep on fighting when the media was showing the horrific nature of the war through TV, photographs and articles
- American government only recruit healthy young man to be in their soldiers to be sent to Vietnam , this is under the Military Draft System
- A gay or hippie guy is not considered as a healthy young man. American congress identified them as the risk category to get HIV and other
disease because of their lifestyle
- To avoid to be recruit and sent to Vietnam as soldiers, many young American male came out as gay and many involve themselves in
evolving hippie cult
- American civilians also did huge protest asking the government on why they have to send their husbands, brothers and son for a war which
they didn’t fight for
 Failure of the containment policy (domino theory):
- American withdrawal in the Vietnam War was that Vietnam became less
strategically important as the domino theory was proved to be incorrect
- Cambodia and Laos fell to communism but Thailand and Philippines did
not
- 1960s, USSR and China argued and there was even possibility of war
between them