Introduction
It took two months after the signing of the Vietnam peace agreement, for the last of the American prisoners to be released by Hanoi and American troops to exit South Vietnam. The closing of an eight-year long war in Vietnam ended. Saigon had an estimated 7,000 American Department of Defense civilian workers remain to assist South Vietnam against communist North Vietnam. The Vietnam War was a taxing experience for everyone in the United States. It took over five presidencies with the last presidents Lyndon B. Johnson, Richard Nixon, and Gerald R. Ford having to deal with the ongoing struggle and aftermath of the war.
Former President Lyndon B. Johnson became engulfed in the war as it became the major initiative in his presidency. President Nixon had to deal with public outcry from American citizens and pulling back of American troops. Former President Gerald R. Ford declared a formal end to the war in Vietnam and concluded this years-long conflict. But what led to the pulling back of the troops by then President Nixon that would ultimately lead to the end of the war? President Richard Nixon ordered the withdraw of United States forces in Vietnam; however, protests by the American people as well as political pressure from other politicians influenced his decision.
Ends
The U.S. intervention in the Vietnam War formally began March 8th, 1965. Although this is the official data, just a month before, then President Johnson a retaliation that would spark the desire for the United States to intervene in this long war.
Using as a pretext a Vietcong attack on 7 February 1965 at Pleiku that killed eight American soldiers, Johnson ordered retaliatory bombing north of the Demilitarized Zone along the 17th parallel that divided North and South Vietnam, within a week, the administration began ROLLING THUNDER, a gradually intensifying air bombardment of military bases, supply depots, and infiltration routes in North Vietnam (Anderson, 1999).
These actions helped provide what would end up being an eight-year long conflict in Vietnam. While the United States did not want to spread communism in the world, there was a need once the...
References
American History. (2017). American Military Strategy in the Vietnam War, 1965–1973 - Oxford Research Encyclopedia of American History. Retrieved from http://americanhistory.oxfordre.com/view/10.1093/acrefore/9780199329175.001.0001/acrefore-9780199329175-e-239
Anderson, D. L. (1999). The Military and Diplomatic Course of the Vietnam War. Retrieved from http://www.english.illinois.edu/maps/vietnam/anderson.htm
Chase, J. (1985, April 7). How America 'Lost the Peace'. Retrieved from http://www.nytimes.com/books/98/06/14/specials/nixon-vietnams.html?mcubz=3
History Staff. (2010). Vietnamization - Vietnam War - HISTORY.com. Retrieved from http://www.history.com/topics/vietnam-war/vietnamization
Sema, F. P. (2015, April 28). Nixon’s Retrospective on the Vietnam War | The Diplomat. Retrieved from http://thediplomat.com/2015/04/nixons-retrospective-on-the-vietnam-war/
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