[TMJC] Second Indochina War

SUPPLEMENTARYNOTESONTheSecondIndochinaWar(Focusingontheperiod1964-1975) Learning Outcomes ● Analysethefactors contributing totheinvolvement of external powers intheSecondIndochinaWar from1964-1975.● Analysethediffering actions andconditions that shapedoutcomeof theSecondIndochinaWar.● Analysetheimpact of theSecondIndochinaWar onColdWar developments inAsia. Brief Timeline 1954 TheBattleof DienBienPhu– GiapdefeatedtheFrenchforcebasedthere.Aceasefirewas agreedat Genevathat splits VietnamintoNorthandSouth. 1955 Thepro-AmericanNgoDinhDiembecamePresident of SouthVietnaminOctober. Diemstarts toarrest anyonesuspectedof beingintheViet Minh(NorthVietnamesecommunists) andAmericaagrees totrainDiem’s army. 1956 SouthVietnamesePresident NgoDinhDiembegantocampaignagainst political dissidents. 1957 ThePeople's Army of Vietnam(PAVN) startedacampaignof guerrillawarfareinSouthVietnam. Weapons andmenfromNorthVietnambeganinfiltratingtheSouth. Americanmilitary advisors werekilledinVietnam– they werefirst UScasualties of thewar. 1960 AmericanaidtoDiemincreased. TheNational LiberationFront (NLF) was formed. It was knownas theVietcongorVCfor short. 1961 President Kennedy pledgedextraaidtoSouthVietnam. 1962 Thenumber of US military advisors inSouthVietnamroseto12,000. 1963 TheVietcong, thecommunist guerrillas operatinginSouthVietnam, defeat units of theARVN, theSouthVietnamesearmy. President Diemwas overthrownandthenkilledinaUS-backedmilitary coup. 1964 TheGulf of Tonkinincident - theUS says that NorthVietnamesepatrol boats havefiredontwoUS Navy destroyers.US Congress approvedtheGulf of TonkinResolution, whichauthorises military actionintheregion. 1965 OperationRollingThunder began. Thefirst US combat troops weresent toVietnaminMarch. By theendof theyear, thereare20,000US troops stationedthere. 1966 US troopnumbers inVietnamroseto400,000, thento500,000thefollowingyear. 1968 Tet Offensive- on31January, 70,000NorthVietnameseandVietcongforces launchedaco-ordinatedseries offierceattacks onmorethan100cities andtowns inSouthVietnam. Morethan500civilians diedintheUS massacreat MyLai. Secret peacetalks begininParis. By 1968, therewere540,000US troops inVietnam. 1969 HoChi Minhpassedaway. Thepolicy of Vietnamisationbeganas President Nixonstarts toreduceUS groundtroopsinVietnamas domestic public oppositiontothewar grows.Nixonorderedthesecret bombingof Cambodia. TheMy Lai massacre, whichtheUS Army triedtocoverup, was madepublicinNovember. 1970 Nixon's national security advisor, Henry Kissinger, andLeDuc Tho, for theHanoi government, startedtalks inParis.US troops inVietnamwerereducedto280,000. 1971 140,000US troops inVietnamremained. Lt WilliamCalley convictedof murder at My Lai andjailed. 1972 TheChristmas bombingof Hanoi 1973 Aceasefireagreement inParis was reached. TheUS trooppull-out was completedby March. 1975 Fall of Saigon 1

1. Background: SecondIndochinaWar● The SecondIndochinaWar (calledthe VietnamWar inthe US or the AmericanWar inVietnam) beganas aconflict betweentheUnite