Why did the United States find it so difficult to ends its involvement in the Vietnam War?
In this essay, I will outline and explore the reasoning behind the United States involvement and withdrawal from Vietnam and why the decision to withdraw from the war, was one of great complexity. The Vietnam War was a civil war fought between the communist’s states of North Vietnam and the capitalist South. The North Vietnamese wanted to join with the south as one united communist country. Whilst the communists in the North were supported by the Soviet Union and other countries who favoured communism, the South was supported by anti-communist countries primarily, the United States. Consequently, the US aided the French and the South Vietnamese as the …show more content…
Notably, this was due to the hostility and growing resistance in the United States over their participation in the war. Nixon wished to improve relations with communist China Additionally, the economy of America was suffering exceedingly from budget deficits and inflation. Nixon was a realist and notably recognized the strength of the Viet Cong and accepted that the US would not prosper in the war. Accordingly, he aspired to end America’s involvement in the war. However, negotiations in Paris proved arduous and laborious with Nixon using the Chinese to pressurise the North Vietnamese. Nixon established a policy of Vietnamisation. The term 'Vietnamisation' was used to describe the policy adopted by the Nixon administration to withdraw the United States combat troops in the Vietnam War . In addition, he wished to turn the fighting over to the South Vietnamese by training, equipping and expanding South Vietnamese forces so they could inhabit more military responsibility against the communists in the North Vietnam and the Viet Cong. Nixon wished for peace with honour, establishing separate governments for North and South . The ramifications of Americans involvement in the war was strenuous on the President. With the deliberation of the peace talks, Nixon increased the aerial bombings of North Vietnam and the Ho Chi Minh Trail. This was a concept of his Madman strategy whereby he …show more content…
The US did not want to jeopardize its credibility. Succeeding the Wold War II, America was one of the most influential and potent countries in the globe. Abandoning the war would portray their weakness and so they remained involved, deep rooted in the turmoil until it was patent they could not defeat their opposition. With the support of the Viet Cong by the USSR, America did not want their policy of containment to fail. Therefore, as many of the presidents regarded the Vietnam War as a Cold War conflict, they endeavoured to defeat communism. Admitting defeat in the War, would only epitomize the strength of communism, something the Americans were reluctant to allow to happen. They wanted to defeat communism and overpower the USSR and so remaining in the war conveyed their determination, capability and fervent stance. Lastly, the American’s mistakenly regarded the war in Vietnam as a Cold War conflict when in essence it was a civil war. Therefore, as mentioned above they would endeavour to defeat communism and thus endure several decades of deep turmoil in
In this essay, I will outline and explore the reasoning behind the United States involvement and withdrawal from Vietnam and why the decision to withdraw from the war, was one of great complexity. The Vietnam War was a civil war fought between the communist’s states of North Vietnam and the capitalist South. The North Vietnamese wanted to join with the south as one united communist country. Whilst the communists in the North were supported by the Soviet Union and other countries who favoured communism, the South was supported by anti-communist countries primarily, the United States. Consequently, the US aided the French and the South Vietnamese as the …show more content…
Notably, this was due to the hostility and growing resistance in the United States over their participation in the war. Nixon wished to improve relations with communist China Additionally, the economy of America was suffering exceedingly from budget deficits and inflation. Nixon was a realist and notably recognized the strength of the Viet Cong and accepted that the US would not prosper in the war. Accordingly, he aspired to end America’s involvement in the war. However, negotiations in Paris proved arduous and laborious with Nixon using the Chinese to pressurise the North Vietnamese. Nixon established a policy of Vietnamisation. The term 'Vietnamisation' was used to describe the policy adopted by the Nixon administration to withdraw the United States combat troops in the Vietnam War . In addition, he wished to turn the fighting over to the South Vietnamese by training, equipping and expanding South Vietnamese forces so they could inhabit more military responsibility against the communists in the North Vietnam and the Viet Cong. Nixon wished for peace with honour, establishing separate governments for North and South . The ramifications of Americans involvement in the war was strenuous on the President. With the deliberation of the peace talks, Nixon increased the aerial bombings of North Vietnam and the Ho Chi Minh Trail. This was a concept of his Madman strategy whereby he …show more content…
The US did not want to jeopardize its credibility. Succeeding the Wold War II, America was one of the most influential and potent countries in the globe. Abandoning the war would portray their weakness and so they remained involved, deep rooted in the turmoil until it was patent they could not defeat their opposition. With the support of the Viet Cong by the USSR, America did not want their policy of containment to fail. Therefore, as many of the presidents regarded the Vietnam War as a Cold War conflict, they endeavoured to defeat communism. Admitting defeat in the War, would only epitomize the strength of communism, something the Americans were reluctant to allow to happen. They wanted to defeat communism and overpower the USSR and so remaining in the war conveyed their determination, capability and fervent stance. Lastly, the American’s mistakenly regarded the war in Vietnam as a Cold War conflict when in essence it was a civil war. Therefore, as mentioned above they would endeavour to defeat communism and thus endure several decades of deep turmoil in