Ngo Dinh Diem was elected for President of South Vietnam in 1955, after employing military offensives, bribes and a rigged referendum against his opposition – his corruption was already apparent. The flood of 900 000 refuges (mostly Catholic) from North
Beginning in the 1950s, maintaining a non-Communist South Vietnam became crucial in American efforts to contain communism. What was the nation's justification for its actions in South Vietnam in the 1950s and its determination to abide by the outcome of free elections there only if those elections yielded a non-Communist leader? For a long time the United States were in fear of the threat of communism stemming from a direct attack and the aspect of the Cold War, played a vital role in the fears. In the beginning the Vietnam War was first thought to be just another Cold War between northern and southern Vietnam. While the United States was nervous of Communism consuming the entire globe.
His fantastic strategies combined with his skills of being a great general helped many of the outcomes of the American conflicts in his time and many of the victories may not have been received if it was for MacArthur. His involvement at West Point, the Korean War and his service during WW2 were just some major events that made MacArthur so popular and powerful. His influences throughout his life also helped him become the great General he
The Vietnam War or Vietnam conflict to some was perhaps one of the most intriguing conflicts in the history of modern America. Some suggest it was justified in stopping the spread of communism, while others feel that it was a waste of American lives that encourage an age of civil rebellion. To first understand the war one must first understand, the history leading up to the conflict. Prior to Americas involvement in the war in 1960 the French occupied what was then called indo-china up until 1954. In 1950 communist nations such as china recognized the Vietminh state, which in turn gave support to the viet-cong.
So instead they supported Ngo Dinh Diem in South Vietnam. Diem was an unpopular leader because he was accused of corruption and torture and failed to win over the peasants. Instead, popular support went to the South Vietnamese Communists, called the Vietcong. They sent in aid and increased the number of military advisers. There were supported by Ho Chi Minh, who was backed by the Soviet Union and China.
Aiming to win back support from the American’s, as many people did not support the Vietnam war due to the bad media that was publicised. This was the first War to be so publicised and it shocked many of the people back home. This lead to Anti-War protest, which became one of the US governments aims to stop. However they still stuck to the aim to try and contain Vietnam from the spread of communism and supporting the SV defeat the VC in nearby country Cambodia. On the other side the aims of the NV government and their terrorist organisation the VC did not alter as they still aimed to persuade the SV government to vote for Vietnam to become a communist country.
During a conference meeting Eisenhower explained his domino theory. In which all the countries on the brink of communism were dominos in a line, if you push the first one over the rest will surly fall fairly quickly. Even with the U.S. By its side the French were unable to retake Vietnam, they were overran at Dien Bien Phu. The country of Vietnam was split into two, the people who believed communism and the ones who did not. The Geneva Accords was a temporary divide of the north and south until the election of Ho Chi Minh or Ngo Dinh Diem.
The American policy of containment was in tatters. It had failed militarily. The war had shown that even America's vast military strength could not stop the spread of Communism. The US had lost its first war in History. It had also failed politically.
In 1961, after Kennedy was elected he recognized the problem. “Now we have a problem in making our power credible, and Vietnam is the place” (Nalty 76). America did not want Russia to have the ability to aid the Communist North without a defense brought by South Vietnam. It was not as much about the U.S. stopping North Vietnam per say, but rather America stopping the spread of Communism around the World. This was called by the U.S. as “The Domino Effect.” As former American President Eisenhower said, “You have a row of dominoes set up; you knock over the first one, and what will happen to the last one is that it will go over very quickly” (Nalty 314).
North Vietnamese soldiers intruded Cambodia and used the country as their refuge. At the same time, a communist movement, the Khmer Rouge, began pressuring the government as well. In 1970, the Khmer Rouge started anti-Vietnamese riots, and Sihanouk was overthrown by General Lon Nol. The Vietnam Peace Agreement of 1973 set removal of foreign forces from Cambodia, but the fighting did not end. The people of Cambodia hated their corrupt government, so they followed the lead of the Khmer Rouge.