Vietnam -- Rules of Engagement
There are many reasons given for the fact that the United States lost the war in Vietnam, and that America was basically pushed out of the country by the Viet Cong and the North Vietnamese Army even though the U.S. had far more firepower. Among the more credible reasons America lost the war was the failure on the part of the political leaders back in Washington to allow soldiers, marines, Air Force pilots and others to take the fight to the enemy. In short, the rules of engagement (ROE) were misguided. The rules of engagement were those authorized by politicians, and not only were they very difficult to follow, they tied the hands of those men fighting the war. This paper reviews the ROE from the perspective of: a) the soldiers on the ground; b) battalion commanders; c) division commanders; d) General William Westmorland; e) Robert McNamara (secretary of defense); and f) President Lyndon Johnson.
Soldiers on the ground
The rules of engagement for soldiers on the ground in Vietnam were constricting, according to authors John Nichols and Barrett Tillman. "In Vietnam the political leadership adopted rules of engagement that ensured that America could not win the war" (Nichols, et al., 1987). The civilian authority constantly "overruled the unanimous recommendations of the military commanders," Nichols explained.
Douglas Willoughby explains that the infantry (troops on the ground) were "forced to follow" a strategy that was devised in order to "…reduce the risks to the Vietnamese civilians" (Willoughby, 2001). The rules that were handed down were "rigidly enforced" and when there were "perceived" violations, careers were "destroyed," Willoughby writes on page 23 of his book. Often soldiers needed to contact headquarters "to get permission to shoot at the enemy," and sometimes permission was granted but it "…came too late, if at all" (Willoughby, 23). The rules dictated "…when and how troops…could employ their weaponry," and this was supposed to be a strategy that would minimize the "collateral damage" to civilians (Birtle). In fact General...
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