Vietnam War Involvement

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History on the United States' Involvement in the Vietnam War This paper will examine the history of united states Vietnam involvement during 1964 to 1968 it will emphasize the evolution of the national policy and objectives during that period. The Vietnam War twisted out to be Americans longest war with massive commitment of men and material, but most consider it a failure for the United States. The Vietnam War resulted in the deaths of more than 50,000 American and serious loss national reputation. Vietnam had an intense and negative effect on American’s view of the military. It was not until desert storm that the military regained the trust of the American people. Perhaps no other event, except the American civil war did so much…show more content…
After Japans attack on Pearl Harbor, there was no doubt that Japan was an enemy. Also Germany became a clear threat to the United States and it’s allies when it declared war on America following Pearl Harbor. Pearl Harbor finally causes a separation United States to became implicated in the war that had been waging in Europe since 1930’s. The Korean War like Vietnam lacked a sense of clarity Korea is an important example of a war that did not threaten the United States vital interest. Therefore both Korea and Vietnam presented policy-making challenges not present in World War II. Containment of communism was the policy that governed U.S actions in both-Korea and Vietnam to many Americans communism in Asia did not pose a direct threat to the united states as did World war II or the cold war in Europe this led to less sustained support for the Vietnam war in a sense Vietnam was a replacement war in which the united states was fighting an enemy other than Vietnam. Although he had no official policy making position at the time Richard Nixon fully expressed the rationale for the war while addressing the common wealth on California on April 2, 1965 (this is a confrontation not between Vietcong and Vietnam or the united States but between U.S and the communist…show more content…
Containment was not new in 1964 and 1965. It originates in the year following World War II. George Kenna’s famous 8,000-world telegram form Moscow to the U.S in February 1946 laid the foundation and had profound implications of U.S strategic thinking. The telegram was extremely well received in Washington because it offered an explanation and rationale for the uncooperative behavior of the Soviet Union (a world war II ally) in Europe. It also provided the guiding principles that United States leaders south as guidance for their actions toward the soviet containment. George Kennan’s telegram planted the seed for idea established the Soviet Union as a communist threat to world democracy. Kennan saw the Soviet Union as an internally insecure and paranoid country that viewed the outside world as a hostile threat. As a result the soviet ruled themselves ruthlessly and autocratically did no compromise or negotiate unless it served their interest. Because of this believe the United States had to deal with soviets firmly and resist their attempts to spread communist influence globally. He introduce the term “containment” (Foreign affairs Kennan wrote) The long telegram and foreign affairs article essentially produced the cold war paradigm that guide U.S soviet relations until 1991 and the collapse of the soviet union not surprisingly the loss of the mainland China to communism in 1949 and the Korean war the followed
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