American Escalation in Vietnam

1
American Escalation in Vietnam
2
Envoys Probe Indochina Rebellion (1947)

• Questions to consider
• 1)Who is coming to Vietnam? Why is he there? Why
  is his country concerned with Vietnam?
• 2)Who is in charge of French military operations
  in Vietnam?
• 3)How is the Minister received in the city of
  Laos?
• 4)To what do the French compare the Hanoi
  attack?
• 5)How does the reporter refer to Vietnam in
  relation to France?

• This is a Universal Newsreel story of the French
  Foreign Minister's visit to Indochina (Vietnam)
  to determine the cause of an uprising in Hanoi.

3
Report by the National Security Council on the
Position of the U.S. with Respect to Indochina
(27 February 1950)

• This report by the National Security Council
  illustrates the U.S. concern about the spread of
  communism in South East Asia following World War
  II.
• The policy of containment was adopted by the U.S.
  fairly early on.
• The Problem To undertake a determination of all
  practicable United States measures to protect its
  security in Indochina and to prevent the
  expansion of communist aggression in that area.

4
War in Indochina Goes On (1953)

• Questions to consider
• 1)Who are the two factions in conflict in this
  story?
• 2)What types of weaponry is each side using?
• 3)The reporter refers to Indochinas Hot War.
  How is this different from a Cold War?

• This news story from 1953 shows French Union
  forces under attack in Indochina. The French
  employ Napalm to defeat their ambushers.

5
Dwight D. Eisenhower on the War in Indochina
(1953)

• This is an excerpt from a speech on the
  geopolitical considerations of the war in
  Indochina relative to France and the United
  States.
• Questions to consider
• 1)What are the types of reasons Eisenhower uses
  to support the French in Indochina?
• 2)What countries does he predict would fall next?

6
Dwight D. Eisenhower Domino Theory Principle
(1954 )

• In a news conference, President Eisenhower
  discussed the importance of Indochina in terms of
  the containment of Communism and international
  trade.
• You have broader considerations that might
  follow what you would call the "falling domino"
  principle. You have a row of dominoes set up, you
  knock over the first one, and what will happen to
  the last one is the certainty that it will go
  over very quickly. So you could have a beginning
  of a disintegration that would have the most
  profound influences.
• When we come to the possible sequence of events,
  the loss of Indochina, of Burma, of Thailand, of
  the Peninsula, and Indonesia following, now you
  begin to talk about areas that not only multiply
  the disadvantages that you would suffer through
  loss of materials, sources of materials, but now
  you are talking really about millions and
  millions and millions of people.
• Finally, the geographical position achieved
  thereby does many things. It turns the so-called
  island defensive chain of Japan, Formosa, of the
  Philippines and to the southward it moves in to
  threaten Australia and New Zealand.

7
John Foster Dulles Indochina - Views of the
United States (29 March 1954)

• Secretary of State Dulles expressed his concern
  for the nationalist movement in Indochina,
  declaring it is being influenced directly by the
  Soviet Union.
• He also expressed a fear of Red China using its
  forces in the region to support an uprising.
• The Communists are attempting to prevent the
  orderly development of independence and to
  confuse the issue before the world. The
  Communists have, in these matters, a regular line
  which Stalin laid down in 1924.
• If the Communist forces won uncontested control
  over Indochina or any substantial part thereof,
  they would surely resume the same pattern of
  aggression against other free peoples in the
  area.

8
The Geneva Agreements(20 July 1954)

• Agreement on the cessation of the hostilities in
  Vietnam
• The Geneva Agreements theoretically ended the war
  between French Union forces and the Vietminh in
  Laos, Cambodia, and Vietnam.
• These states were to become fully independent
  countries, with the last-named partitioned near
  the 17th parallel into two states pending
  reunification through "free elections" to be held
  by July 20, 1956.
• The United States and Vietnam were not
  signatories to these agreements.

9
Southeast Asia Collective Defensive Treaty The
Manila Pact (8 September 1954)

• This document represents the response by the
  United States to the Geneva pact.
• Each Party recognizes that aggression by means
  of armed attack in the treaty area against any of
  the Parties or against any State or territory
  which the Parties by unanimous agreement may
  hereafter designate, would endanger its own peace
  and safety, and agrees that it will in that event
  act to meet the common danger in accordance with
  its constitutional processes.

10
The Origins of the Insurgency in South Vietnam
(1954-1960)

• Throughout the 1950s and early 1960s, American
  leaders were determined to prevent Vietnam from
  becoming a unified communist state, even
  supporting an openly corrupt Ngo Dinh Diem until
  his assassination in 1963.
• This document discusses the failure of the Geneva
  Settlement and recounts the steps which led to
  the U.S. support of Diem.
• The Geneva Settlement of 1954 was inherently
  flawed as a durable peace for Indochina, since it
  depended upon France, and since both the U.S. and
  the Republic of South Vietnam excepted
  themselves.
• The U.S. began to channel aid directly to South
  Vietnam, rather than through France. The
  convolution of French policy then thrust upon the
  U.S. a choice between supporting Diem or the
  French presence in Indochina. The U.S. opted for
  Diem.

11
Indochina News Brief (1955)

• Questions to consider
• 1)What new army was being used in the battle?
  From whom did they receive their training?
• 2)What types of prisoners were taken?
• 3)Who won the battle? What kinds of surrender
  terms were imposed?

• This newsreel story covers a battle near Saigon
  in which Diems new forces are employed. Hundreds
  are killed or wounded, and many prisoners were
  taken.

12
Civil war in Saigon (1955)

• Questions to consider
• 1)Who would the civil war have been between?
• 2)From whom was the victorious side receiving
  aide?

• This story was part of the Summer 1955 review. It
  summarizes the story of the Civil War which broke
  out in Saigon and was eventually brought to a
  successful end for the South Vietnamese
  government.

13
President Kennedy UN Speech on Vietnam (1961)
14
President Kennedy Its Their War. (1963)

• During an interview with Walter Cronkite,
  President Kennedy stated that the people of
  Vietnam, not Americans, must win their war
  against communism.
• During the same Cronkite interview, the President
  dismissed the notion of US withdrawal from
  Vietnam on the grounds of protecting Indochina
  from the domination of communist powers.

Clip One
Clip Two
15
The Gulf of Tonkin Incident (1964)
16
President Johnson Message to Congress (5 August
1964)

• President Johnson outlined what the U.S. policy
  should be in answer to the Gulf of Tonkin
  Incident.
• Our policy in southeast Asia has been consistent
  and unchanged since 1954 America keeps her word.
  Here as elsewhere, we must and shall honor our
  commitments.
• As President of the United States I have
  concluded that I should now ask the Congress, on
  its part, to join in affirming the national
  determination that all such attacks will be met.

17
Joint Resolution of Congress H.J. RES 1145 (7
August 1964)

• Popularly known as the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution,
  this piece of legislation was passed by Congress
  in support of Johnsons proposals.
• The Congress approves and supports the
  determination of the President, as Commander in
  Chief, to take all necessary measures to repel
  any armed attack against the forces of the United
  States and to prevent further aggression.
• The United States is prepared to take all
  necessary steps, including the use of armed
  force, to assist any member or protocol state of
  the Southeast Asia Collective Defense Treaty
  requesting assistance in defense of its freedom.

18
Johnson on Vietnam Vows to Fight On Until Reds
Parley (1965)

• Questions to consider
• 1)What analogy does President Johnson use to
  describe Red China and North Vietnam?
• 2)What does Johnson say he is doing to alleviate
  tensions in Vietnam?
• 3)What does he claim will bring an end to the
  war?

• In this speech to the Association of American
  Cartoonists, Johnson expresses his hopefulness
  for a peaceful Vietnam. He also puts forth a
  policy of staying the course until the
  Communists are ready to negotiate peacefully.

19
Multimedia Citation

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  ietnam/vietnam_march.jpg
• Slide 2 http//www.archive.org/details/1947-01-16
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• Slide 3 http//alumni.usc.edu/travel/images/2004_
  images/Indochina-2.jpg
• Slide 4 http//www.archive.org/details/NewsMaga_4
  
• Slide 5 - 6 http//www.cia.gov/csi/monograph/firs
  tln/955pres18.gif
• http//www.earthstation1.com/pgs/vietnam/des-Eisen
  howerOnVietnamWar1953.mp3.html
• Slide 7 http//www.dhm.de/lemo/objekte/pict/Biogr
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• Slide 8 http//www.earthstation1.com/pgs/vietnam/
  dev-GenevaAccordsSigningCeremony540721.mpg.html
• Slide 9 http//www.afa.org/magazine/aug2004/0804d
  ien9.jpg
• Slide 10 http//history.acusd.edu/gen/20th/images
  /36-3001a.gif
• Slide 11 http//www.archive.org/details/1955-07-1
  5_President_Foreign_Students_Hear_Peace_Hopes
• Slide 12 http//www.archive.org/details/NewsMaga_
  5
• Slide 13 http//www.earthstation1.com/pgs/vietnam
  /dev-KennedyUNOnVietNam61.mpg.html
• Slide 14 http//www.earthstation1.com/pgs/vietnam
  /des-JFK-'It'sTheirWar'630902.mp3.html
• http//www.earthstation1.com/pgs/vietnam/des-JFK-W
  ithdrawalFromVietnam'WhollyWrong'630902.mp3.html
• http//www.cia.gov/csi/monograph/firstln/955pres24
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• Slide 15 http//www.earthstation1.com/pgs/vietnam
  /dev-NavyVersionOfGulfOfTonkinIncident.mpg.html
• Slide 16http//www.ee.princeton.edu/jay/lbj.jpg
  
• Slide 17 http//edusolution.com/myclassroom/photo
  gallery/congress.jpg