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The US intervention in Vietnam

Between 1955 and 1964, the internal conflict in Vietnam opened its doors to an increasingly strong US intervention, who would end up waging his own war against the communist government of North Vietnam.

In our previous article we have delved into the origins of the political conflict in Vietnam .The situation as it was raised in 1955 showed the territory of Vietnam divided into two states with policies opposite.One of them was communist ( North Vietnam ) and the other capitalist ( South Vietnam ).The latter would soon open its doors to American "help" in the fight against communism .

The beginning of American intervention

Just as it had happened just a short time ago during the Korean War , this was precisely the kind of scenario where the United States acudia to fight their battles against the " communist threat ", what we know as the " Cold War ".

Recall that during the War Cold , the United States hardened their policy against the allies of the Soviet Union .In that context it was that-in 1955- Dwight D.Eisenhower (president of USA .) had pledged his strong support for South Vietnam through an alliance with Ngo Dinh Diem , be the president of the Republic of Vietnam .

  • That support materialized through equipment and training that the US military provided to the South Vietnamese security forces.This allowed
Diem to take energy measures against supporters of the Viet Minh who lived in the south, whom he disparagingly called Viet Cong ( Vi Communist etnam ).
  • A vast persecution began, in which it is estimated that around 100,000 people were arrested, many of whom were tortured and executed.In response, by 1957, the
Viet Cong and other opponents of the repressive regime of Diem began fighting again.They carried out attacks on government officials and other targets,
  • Somewhat later, in December 1960, the various South Vietnamese groups that opposed
Diem (both communists and non-communists) formed the Vietnam National Liberation Front ( FNL ) to organize regime resistance, although the Vietnam National Liberation Front claimed to be autonomous and even though most of its members were not communists, many in Washington felt that the FNL would be a puppet of North Vietnam .
  • A team sent by the president
John F.Kennedy in 1961 to report on the situation in South Vietnam advised increasing US, economic, technical and-of course-military aid.The goal was once again to help face the threat of Viet Cong . Kennedy increased the help of USA ., although he did not commit himself to large-scale military intervention.
  • In fact the intervention was already irrefutable In 1962, the military presence of
USA in South Vietnam had reached about 9,000 soldiers, compared to less than 800 during the 1950s.

The beginning of the War

On November 22, 1963, Kennedy was killed in Dallas. Three weeks earlier in Vietnam from the south there was or a coup d'etat, sharpening the political crisis.This complex scenario of instability convinced Lyndon B.Johnson -a successor of Kennedy as president of USA .-, to further increase the military support of USA .a South Vietnam.

Finally, as it happens late or early, there was that incident that would be enough to finally trigger the war. In August of the following year, two destroyers of USA .were attacked in the Gulf of Tonkin .In retaliation, Johnson ordered the bombing of military targets in North Vietnam.

The US Congress soon approved the so-called Tonkin Gulf Resolution , which gave Johnson broad powers to make the war. The North American airplanes began to carry out regular air bombings, within the framework of the Rolling Thunder Operation , as of February 1965.Yes, without a declaration of war formally, the Vietnam War , which we will talk about in our next article, began in fact.

To read more about the Cold War we recommend them following articles:

The Cold War

The first "round" of the Cold War

The Division of Germany, the prelude to the Wall of Berlin

War of Korea

The People's Republic of China

Cuban Revolution

Source:

History.com

Images:

1.Dwight D.Eisenhower and Ngo Dinh Diem meeting in Washington on wikipedia

2.A soldier of the FNL.in wikipedia

3.U.S.bombers in wikipedia

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