The Vietnam War in the West, or Second Indochina War, was the most shameful U.S. defeat in history. The roots of this conflict date back to the Second World War. After the defeat of Japan, the Viet Minh organization began a guerrilla war for independence in the North, led by future Communist President Ho Chi Minh. The North subdued the cities of Hanoi, Tanhua, and Vin. In turn, the South was headed by Prime Minister Nago Dinh Diem, taking territories from Saigon to Danang.
Geneva Accords and the Rise of Anti-Communism in Vietnam
The new anti-communist leader in South Vietnam was supported by President Eisenhower. The first military conflict ended with the signing of the Geneva Accords, which divided Vietnam along the 17th parallel into a North and South, similar to Korea. But this did not suit the Vietnamese, who considered themselves a united nation. France’s attempts to regain its former colony were unsuccessful. The rapid rise of Communism in Eurasia worried the U.S.
Early U.S. Involvement and Expansion in the Vietnam War
During the Second Indochina War, the U.S., led by President Eisenhower, joined the conflict. In the early years of this war, U.S. intervention was insignificant, with everything limited to the appointment of 900 military advisors and instructors. New U.S. President John Kennedy had to expand the U.S. presence. By the 1960s, the first two helicopter companies arrived in Vietnam to support South Vietnamese soldiers. Additionally, the military corps gradually expanded.
Kennedy, Khrushchev, and the Escalation of the Vietnam Conflict
The 1961 Vienna negotiations between Kennedy and USSR leader Khrushchev on Vietnam had no positive results. The situation in the conflict was aggravated by the ineffectiveness of the South Vietnamese Army compared to the Vietnamese Army of the North, which, besides high morale, received support from the USSR. This prompted United States Army Commander General William Westmoreland to suggest a transition to active actions of the U.S. Army and to develop a plan to defeat North Vietnam and the established Viet Minh military organization.
Coup, Assassination, and Johnson’s War Policy
The reason became a military coup with the exception of South Vietnamese pro-American leader Nago Dinh Diem and the assassination of President Kennedy. A few weeks later, after Kennedy’s death, President Johnson declared active war against Communism. Meanwhile, anarchy and war for power continued in South Vietnam. A year later, the U.S. presence in Vietnam ceased gradually but greatly, marking the beginning of an active escalation of the conflict.
Underestimating the Enemy: North Vietnam’s Guerrilla Tactics
North Vietnam, supported by China and the Soviet Union, faced open confrontation against South Vietnam, supported by the United States and its allies. However, the Pentagon and its then leader Robert McNamara completely underestimated the enemy. In the U.S. Army, the average age fell significantly from 26 during World War II to 22. Instead of a regular army battling another regular army, U.S. troops faced a whole country of partisans.
The Impact of Vietnamese Underground Cities and Tunnels
The 115,000-strong North Vietnamese Army broke into groups across the country. North Vietnam chose an ambush strategy instead of a direct confrontation. The jungle, with poisonous snakes, was supplemented by ingenious Vietnamese traps. U.S. soldiers were massively caught in nail traps, exploded on grenades, and bitten by snakes. The ingenious Vietnamese of the Viet Cong had built entire underground cities that could be up to 200 kilometers long.
Resilience of Viet Cong Tunnels and Soviet Support
These underground cities allowed for unexpected sabotage against the South and then disappear like smoke. Underground, there were entire headquarters with kitchens, warehouses, hospitals, recreation rooms, and radio communications. Vietnamese underground cities supplied themselves with water from wells and electricity through bicycle generators. These underground cities became stubborn strongholds and one of the reasons for the defeat of the United States.
U.S. Technological Responses and Strategic Failures
It was unbelievable, but those constructions, built by hand tools, withstood even the impact of bombs. The largest tunnel in Cu Chi is still partially preserved and is an important tourist destination. In addition to the tunnels, North Vietnam received substantial support from its allies, including instructors, coordinators, and new weapons from the USSR. The artery for the Soviet Lend-Lease became the so-called Ho Chi Minh Trail, consisting of a set of roads.
Soviet Arms and the Strategic Impact on U.S. Forces
It was due to this trail that the Vietnamese partisans, in addition to AKM assault rifles, received many other weapons like MiG-17 and MiG-29 fighters, 228 T-54 tanks, and missile systems such as Divina and S-75. The study of the USSR did not go without a trace; after a few years, the soldiers of North Vietnam learned to operate air defense and fly planes independently. However, their tendency to be thin and short in height allowed them to move in underground cities without problems but did not allow for complex maneuvers.
Combat Strategies: U.S. Air Force and Chemical Warfare
As a result, Soviet pilots were often at the helm. In response, the United States used modern F4 and F8 Crusader aircraft in the skies over Vietnam. But those fighters were not as useful in the jungle as in the Korean skies, so Americans started using different strategies. U.S. planes dropped poisonous substances on the jungle and burned the area with a combustible substance, napalm.
Tunnel Rats and the M16 Rifle’s Deficiencies
The Pentagon ordered the organization of the detection of underground cities. Tunnel rat units were created for this purpose. The lowest soldiers with lanterns and pistols overcame the traps in the narrow underground tunnels but could not significantly prevent Vietnamese activities. The war also had a significant influence on firearms. In the early 1960s, the U.S. government ordered Colt rifles of a new type, the M16, to test them in the real field in Vietnam.
Reliability Issues with the M16 and Its Consequences
This was another factor in the coming defeat. Although the M16 was significantly dominated by the AKM in its main characteristics, it was significantly less reliable. The rifles massively failed and were quite demanding in terms of cartridge quality. In wartime, the U.S. decided to save money on components for cartridges. Cheaper cartridges produced residue. The specific climate caused rapid clogging, and soldiers were not trained in care and using cleaning kits.
Societal Impact and Protests Against the Vietnam War
This led to frequent jams of the shell casings and rifle failures, resulting in heavy casualties in the American Army. During the Vietnam War, the United States controlled Japan, and the United States itself had revolts against the war. Society was sharply divided into two camps: the older adults who lived through World War II, convinced that power was the most important thing in the country, and the younger, more progressive generation, which considered the state an aggressor and refused to kill for ideology.
Protests, Draft Evasion, and the Case of Muhammad Ali
Initially, the strikes were organized by students, but they were later joined by entire organizations and veterans of Vietnam, throwing their medals at the Pentagon. The degree of tension was also increased by the killing of the Vietnamese civilian population. Some units resembled gangs of thugs rather than the army. One of the best-known cases was the My Lai massacre, in which about 500 civilians were killed by American soldiers in Vietnam.
The War’s Toll: Draft Evasion and Prominent Cases
As a result of a desire to avenge their fallen comrades, the case went public in the United States, but only one in 80 suspects received a prison sentence. In total, during the Second Indochina War, more than 503,000 people refused to go to Vietnam to fight. This figure exceeded 40 times the number of those who refused to go to Korea. Some of the unwilling fled to Canada, neutral to the conflict, and countries in Europe.
Post-War Consequences and Vietnam’s Recovery
Others fled to the villages, and for those already in Vietnam but not wanting to fight, there was even a route from Japan to Europe through the USSR. More than 3,000 people received actual prison sentences for evasion of service. The most prominent case was Muhammad Ali’s refusal in the late 1960s. Cassius Clay’s refusal made him a real hero in certain circles. The boxer lost his professional license for refusing to leave for Vietnam but did not abandon his ideals.
The Impact of War on U.S. Troops and Allied Withdrawal
Supported by anti-war organizations, Cassius traveled to schools and universities, inspiring more and more people against the war. At that time, the situation in Vietnam itself had only worsened. The insufficient number of military personnel was compensated by mentally handicapped people and even prisoners. Thanks to this step, the U.S. presence became recording, which was perceived extremely negatively by the regular army and command of Vietnam.
The Decline in Military Discipline and Allied Troop Withdrawal
The availability of drugs made a fifth of the fighting force addicted, most were addicted to marijuana or cocaine. An interesting fact was that in the early 1970s, one hospital admitted a wounded American fighter, counterbalanced by four hospitalizations due to overdose. An unpleasant psychological blow was the decision of the allied Australians and New Zealand to withdraw their troops. The U.S. Army began to divide, and discipline was reduced.
The Final Stages of the Vietnam War and U.S. Withdrawal
According to various estimates, from 200 to 1,700 commanders were executed by their own troops, often passed off as accidents or hostile sabotage. The end of the Vietnam War for the United States was effectively set by one of North Vietnam’s most serious offensives. The following year, as a result of Operation Nguyen Hue, the Easter Offensive, also known as the 1972 Spring-Summer Offensive, the North Vietnamese Army suffered significant losses but was able to push the South Vietnamese Army in all directions: north, south, and center, capturing considerable territory.
Consequences and Aftermath of the Vietnam War
The strategy of the Soviet Union, which relied on quantity, was successful. The South Vietnamese Army suffered significantly fewer casualties, and the United States suffered the lowest casualties in the war. However, this factor was due to the already lower activity of American troops. In general, the weakness of the American Army in its current state and repeated strikes led to severe demoralization in the country itself. President Nixon had no choice but to decide on the withdrawal of troops.
Peace Agreement, U.S. Withdrawal, and Vietnam’s Reunification
In January the next year, a peace agreement was signed in Paris, and two months later, the U.S. withdrew the remainder of its military contingent. Without U.S. support, over the next two years, North Vietnam completely conquered South Vietnam and created a single state. In April 1975, the war finally ended with the raising of the flag in Saigon. This war became the most violent and bloody conflict in the second half of the 20th century.
Casualties, War Destruction, and Post-War Recovery
Exact losses are still the subject of controversy. Official U.S. casualties are over 58,000, making Vietnam the fourth worst war casualty in U.S. history. Total military casualties on both sides are about 2 million, mostly Vietnamese from North Vietnam. Civilian casualties on both sides ranged from four to five million, although historians suggest that the real numbers are twice as high. More than 100,000 were injured, and millions became refugees.
The Vietnam War’s Legacy: Environmental and Economic Impact
The war had significant consequences. The UN in 1973 seriously condemned the U.S. bombing of Vietnam during the escalation. The U.S. dropped about 8 million tons of bombs on Vietnam, four times more than was dropped during World War II on the Third Reich. As a result of the U.S. leader’s desire to stop the spread of Communism, more than 2 million people from the U.S. and allied countries passed through Vietnam. The U.S. spent a whopping 352 billion dollars on this war.
Vietnam’s Recovery and International Relations Post-War
Vietnam’s agrarian economy had been completely destroyed, and chemicals had done great damage to the country’s flora. However, since the 1990s, the country has established its exports to the world and also set up diplomatic relations with different countries, including the U.S.