One may be fathomed as to how a small army of Vietnamese were able to defeat the superpower of America during the Vietnam War. Within this war, America faced not only military challenges, but challenges towards their issued foreign policies as well. Furthermore, America’s excuse, of a communism threat, to enter the war not only appeared ambiguous but rather contradictory. By analysing the causes and course of the Vietnam war throughout 1954-1975, the following essay will dissect the difficulties America faced as well as their cloudy morality throughout their intervention.
The War of Vietnam can be traced back to the country’s split after their liberation from French colonialism. This occurred at the Geneva Conference of 1954, where South Vietnam fell under Ngo Dinh Diem and North Vietnam fell under Ho Chi Minh. These countries were further split by the ideologies they followed. The North became communistic with its …show more content…
On this year, in August, a North Vietnamese attack was made on American ships. This occurred in the Gulf of Tonkin and, thus, led to what was known as the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution. This resolution was instated by President Johnson and gave America legibility to impose a full scale war against North Vietnam.
Following this, the American troops entering Vietnam increased drastically. In 1964, alone, the number of troops had risen to roughly 82 000, of which this number still continued to grow throughout the war. A harsh bombing campaign, known as Operation Rolling Thunder was put in place and led to strategic attacks on places such as supply routes. Additionally, the Americans were even more severe with their use of chemical warfare. This was done through the use of napalm as well as Operation Ranch Hand in 1962, where they destroyed Vietnam lands and forests with the use of chemicals, such as Agent
The War of Vietnam can be traced back to the country’s split after their liberation from French colonialism. This occurred at the Geneva Conference of 1954, where South Vietnam fell under Ngo Dinh Diem and North Vietnam fell under Ho Chi Minh. These countries were further split by the ideologies they followed. The North became communistic with its …show more content…
On this year, in August, a North Vietnamese attack was made on American ships. This occurred in the Gulf of Tonkin and, thus, led to what was known as the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution. This resolution was instated by President Johnson and gave America legibility to impose a full scale war against North Vietnam.
Following this, the American troops entering Vietnam increased drastically. In 1964, alone, the number of troops had risen to roughly 82 000, of which this number still continued to grow throughout the war. A harsh bombing campaign, known as Operation Rolling Thunder was put in place and led to strategic attacks on places such as supply routes. Additionally, the Americans were even more severe with their use of chemical warfare. This was done through the use of napalm as well as Operation Ranch Hand in 1962, where they destroyed Vietnam lands and forests with the use of chemicals, such as Agent