The Cold War

Responses to the threat from the USSR

There was a large emphasis of containment and therefore there was a determination to keep a military presence within Germany, as well as to form strong alliances which led to the formation of NATO in 1949. 

There was also a focus on the Philippines, Japan and the general southern east Asian areas so that they wouldn’t fall into communism, as a result the model states were made in the Philippines and Japan. The model states were models of capitalism and democracy that were upheld by the colonial powers, and they mirrored the US and were meant to deter any communist uprisings. The states were also supposed to be very anti-communist.   

The defensive perimeter strategy was also created which was a defensive ‘line in the sand’ which had military bases built along the perimeter. It was meant to deter soviet aggression and limit the domino effect within the area and was similar to the soviet buffer in Eastern Europe. It also enabled the US to control the sea lanes between Japan and SE Asia. However there were some issues with the defensive perimeter strategy as it implied that the US were not committed to protecting mainland Asia and in many ways, it left the green light open for the USSR to spread communism to places such as Indochina and Korea, where the US may have had to intervene. 

Model States

JAPAN 

Japan was a very successful model state as it was a model of capitalism and there was little resistance to SCAP and MacArthur. It was now a democracy with a constitutional monarchy, Yoshida was elected in 1946, and more than 250,000 business elites were purged. Yoshida was beneficial for both the US and Japan as he didn’t try to rock the boat and wanted to peacefully coexist with the US. The US worked towards greater equality and freedom in Japan, as women voted for the first time in 1946, and there was greater freedom of speech and religion. 

However, there was still large amounts of discrimination against women, although it could be argued that this was a product of the time period as across the world there was still discrimination against women. The emperor Hirohito was demoted from his god-like status, however, SCAP and MacArthur still used him to gain favour with the people and make sure that they still supported the US. He took nationwide tours and encouraged positive enthusiasm for SCAP. SCAP was very helpful for rebuilding Japan as they were given much financial aid from Congress and they didn’t pay too much in reparations, there was an emphasis on economic reconstruction. In 1949 Japan was given $500 million in aid so that Japan could buy food and raw materials for economic growth.

PHILIPPINES 

The Philippines was arguably a less successful model state as it was not a model of democracy and capitalism. The elections that they had were rigged by the US as well as MacArthur’s support meaning that their chosen candidate Manuel Roxas narrowly won the election, however, he was very unpopular, and he kept much of the elite in power. Much of the $300 million that the US gave in aid to the Philippines was stolen by corrupt government officials during 1945-1947. 

On the other hand, the Philippines was a successful model state for the US as they were exploited by the US and were made into a consumerist society. The Bell Trade Act of 1946 meant that the US controlled the Philippines economically, which meant that they could only use American imports, such as canned fruit instead of fresh fruit. The Act also meant that the country was forbidden from selling any products that could compete with the US, which ultimately completely destroyed the manufacturing industry. 

As a result of the harsh treatment that the country suffered, communism began to rise up and the Huk rebellion occurred and lasted from 1946-56. Although they were eventually defeated the US spent $500 million to defeat the rebellion. It was mainly peasant-led as many peasants were unhappy with the unfair representation of the Filipino communist party within the government. Ending the rebellion was vital for the US as the Philippines was on the defensive perimeter and they had a lot military bases in the country. Overall, the Philippines was a successful model state for the US as they were able to exploit the country as they worked on the fact that they knew that the Philippines needed them more than the US needed the Philippines. 

The Fall of China

China fell to Communism in 1949 after a 4 year long civil war that the US also fought in. The fall of China was also a very significant event for the US as it made them increasingly worried about the Domino effect that could spread throughout Asia and also increased the fear of communism throughout the US which culminated with the Red Scare. The reasons for the fall:

The Japanese invasion: 

The Japanese played a crucial role in the rise of the Chinese Communist Party as their invasion meant that Jiang Jieshi (the president) was distracted which allowed the CCP to gain support and rise in the countryside. The invasion also took many of Jiang’s best troops which left the army weaker, moreover, the invasion damaged his reputation as when the Japanese he didn’t immediately call on the CCP for help when he was struggling which made him look much more unpatriotic than Mao Zedong.

Communist appeal to the peasantry: 

The communist message about the distribution of wealth appealed to the peasants of China as the richer peasants and landlords only made up about 10% of the population and yet the owned 70% of the country’s land. The communist message was one of the increased equality which was appealing to the peasants as they wanted a better quality of life. Moreover, the fact that Mao Zedong grew up as part of the peasantry made it much easier for the peasants to relate him, whereas Jiang had little contact with the peasantry and therefore couldn’t relate to them and ultimately gain their support

Jiang’s loss of middle class support: 

Jiang had been elected as he spoke a lot about the revolutionary policies that he would put in place, however, when he got into office he employed the same corrupt bureaucrats that had previously been in power and had served in other unpopular regimes. The secret police that the GMD has set up was very repressive and undermined the whole idea of his whole government. Moreover, the fact that Jiang didn’t deal with the hyperinflation that plagued the country’s economy which meant that he quickly lost the support of the middle and upper classes as he had not delivered on the promises that he had made to them. The peasantry also switched their alliances to the CCP due to the problems that hyperinflation caused as well as the fact that they could relate to Mao more. 

Jiang’s army: 

The GMD was very corrupt and sold lots of food on the black market. After years of war morale was low and desertion rates were very high at 70%, the conscription that was in place hit the peasantry the hardest meaning that they were more likely to switch their alliances to the CCP. In terms of the strategy of the army, Jiang also failed in this areas as he made frequent strategic errors and did not listen to his generals who had expertise knowledge. He was suspicious of having communist spies in his army; however, he didn’t suspect the correct people and as a result he made sure that the CCP knew every move that he made.

Communist military performance: 

Mao’s eight rules of conduct mean that he gained more support from the peasantry as he ordered his soldiers to treat the peasants with respect. This means that Mao was able to use the peasants that were able to fight in the war and that he could use the ones that weren’t able to fight as tools of propaganda which would be used in order to gain more supporters. Mao generally had better tactics and strategy as he used guerrilla warfare against the Japanese instead of facing them head on which meant that they lost less men. In addition, Mao listened to more experienced generals unlike Jiang which made him a much better leader and therefore more successful.

Mao’s leadership: 

His leadership meant that he was more popular and won more support from the people because he was more democratic and listened to the people a lot more than Jiang. Mao was also flexible in his policies – that were mainly social and economic – and changed any policies that he had which were unpopular, he adjusted them to gain more support.

Impact of Soviet and US intervention: 

The republicans believed that China had fallen due to the limited US intervention within China as well as the USSR intervention into the civil war. However, this was not true as Stalin had kept the promise that he had made at Yalta, which was to not intervene in the war. In fact, he was a handicap to the communists within the civil war and he did actually support Jiang, showing that the US misplaced the blame for the fall. The Truman administration knew that the only way to save China from Communism was full military intervention however, they did not do this because they wanted their full attention and focus on containment in Europe which was their main priority.

Impact of the fall of China: 

The fall of China acted as a turning point in the war as it heightened the fear of communism, especially in America, and it increased the Red Scare of the 1950s in which Senator McCarthy had accused there of being communists within the US government. The fall of China was also a big reason as to why future presidents took increased action within Korea and Vietnam as China acted as an example of what would have happened if they did not. Overall the fall of China accelerated tensions much more than what would have happened if China did not fall. The USSR and China signed an alliance in 1950 and ultimately the framework for other cold war turning points such as the North Korean invasion of the South in 1950.

Malaya

• Malaya was a British colony after WWII and it was an ethnically diverse country, as the Malays were dominant within the country and there were also many Indians and Chinese. This was helpful for the British as it became useful when using the strategic hamlets tactic that failed so badly in Vietnam when the Americans used it.
• Malay privileges had been restored by the Federation of Malaya, whilst the British Administration was making life hard for the Chinese trade unions and they were deporting Chinese leaders if they were communist. 
• The Malayan Communist Party were inspired by the progress that the CCP had made, as they were mainly Chinese dominated, however, their leader Lai Teck who had been the mastermind behind the peace strategy that had existed, disappeared along with the MCP funds in 1947, after he had been accused of working with the British.
• After Teck’s disappearance, he was replaced with a more radical leader who used the fact that he was disgraced to discredit any cooperation with the British.
• After 3 British planters were killed by the MCP’s Malayan Races Liberation Army (MRLA) 

membership to the MCP was made illegal, and the government declared a state of emergency.

Communist weaknesses: 

In 1948, the Communists were already outnumbered by the 9000 Malayan troops and the 10 British infantry battalions meaning that it was unlikely that they would be successful. 

• The election of a local government in 1952 meant that the MCP were isolated through economic and political concessions to other Chinese.
• They had no true leader and were therefore divided in their aims and unorganised, which meant that they were bound to fail.
• The Chinese did not run the country and they were not the majority, which meant that they had no political power. There was also opposition to the MCP amongst the moderate Chinese, meaning that they didn’t even have support from their own people.
• The British announcement in 1952 that independence was imminent, undermined the MCP as their aims were already being achieved.
• Malaya was actually fairly rich as the Korean War caused a boom in the rubber trade which meant that the country was not in the correct atmosphere for communism to flourish and prosper.

British Strengths: 

The British tried to win the hearts and minds of the Malayan people; they started an anti-insurgent campaign that lasted 9 years. The announcement of independence also won the British a large amount of support from Malayans.  

• They took support away from the Communists and as a result they were isolated and didn’t have any resources to use, they were also isolated by the Strategic Hamlets programme that was implemented. 
• The British also had good military tactics as they used guerrilla warfare as well as helicopters to fight the communists.
• Impact on America: Malaya acted as further evidence that communism was spreading, and that containment was needed, however, the British victory encouraged America as it showed them that communism could be defeated. It also inspired the US use of strategic hamlets and helicopter warfare in Vietnam, but it was much easier to see who was communist and who wasn’t in Malaya in comparison to Vietnam, where both non-communists and communists were the same ethnicity.

Korea

• The issues with Korea were that both states were led by nationalists who wanted to reunify Korean and both leaders sought foreign backing for an invasion into the other in the spring of 1949. Acheson’s defensive perimeter speech made it very clear that the US would promote UN intervention if South Korea was attacked which meant that war with foreign intervention was inevitable. Historian Christine Bragg argued that war was practically inevitable because Korea was so unstable and that there was no chance of a united Korea. 
• South Korea threatened to attack the north which the north used as an excuse to start a war against the south. Initially, Stalin declined to give his support to the north in the outbreak of the war and military shipments began to decline as the USSR did not want to get into a war with the US. However, Kim was able to convince Stalin and as a result Stalin gave his support in 1950 through suppling 150 T-34 tanks, but there was an understanding that war escalation would be impossible. Ultimately Stalin played a key role in the outbreak of the war and he was more of a ‘facilitator and not an originator’, emphasising the fact that even if Stalin did not provide his support Kim was still able to go to Mao for help and support in the war. However, it must be noted that this was not Stalin’s war or Mao’s war, it was Kim who persuaded and pushed until they gave him support, and even then, it must be remembered that Stalin’s intervention was limited. 
• Mao generally offered limited support to Kim’s invasion plans, although they were old allies, Mao had priorities elsewhere as he had to build up the communist party within China as well as defend the nationalist forces in Taiwan. Moreover, some of Mao’s military advisers were in Vietnam advising Ho Chi Minh. However, Mao feared a resurgent Japan and was concerned about the American influence in Korea.
• Syngman Rhee was going to call for an invasion at some point, as there was a growing disillusionment with his rule and the northern invasion allowed him to get the western assistance that he needed to prop up his rule. Ultimately Rhee needed outside assistance to reunify Korea and assistance after the reunification. They had struggled with gaining US support due to Rhee’s increasingly brutal regime. 
• South Korea had been under the protection of the UN security council since 1947 and a resolution that was passed 9-0 required the NKPA to cease and withdraw. The USSR withdrew because China’s seat in the UN had been given to Taiwan. On the 27^th June the UN called for a Joint Command Force, which meant that they could lead the force and fight with the south, this was only possible due to the fact that the US was the biggest contributor to the UN. This caused a lot of issues when talking about the UN war aims because the UN wanted to restore Korea’s status quo, however the US wanted to fully contain communism within the region. This could be argued as a reason why the US weren’t full successful in Korea. It also meant that many US actions could be justified, and this is also why the south didn’t wait for approval before crossing the 38^th parallel, which caused a lot of trouble for the US as it caused the Chinese intervention in Korea. 
• Kim Il Sung was determined to have a unified Korea that was under his leadership, and he also didn’t want any foreign intervention, soviet or American. There was also a propaganda war against the south and Kim was spurred on by the fact that there was growing communist support in the south because they thought that the war would only last a few days. 
• The fall of China had hardened US foreign policy as they didn’t want what happened to China to happen in the rest of Asia due to the Domino Effect. The policies were ill-conceived and clumsy as they believed that Stalin was behind much of the communist activity within Asia which was incorrect. There was also pressure from the republicans to protect Japan from any communist influence and also after the red scare, Truman wanted to make sure that hard action was taken against the communists as if it didn’t look like he was taking action it might have had an adverse impact on democratic candidates in the upcoming congressional election. 
• Bruce Cummings argues that international intervention made the war much worse and Bragg argues that the Korean War became an ideological conflict with the context of a superpower rivalry engendered by the Cold War.
• The Chinese joined the war by January 1951 due to the concerns about the US being at the Chinese border. Mao was also worried as MacArthur had publicly supported Jiang and he feared that Jiang would launch a counter-revolution against him with the help of US troops. The Chinese were battle-hardened as a result of fighting in the civil war and proved to be formidable opponents. They also knew that the south was weaker than the US which meant that they focused their attacks on them. Also, the US troops were not prepared for the harsh winters which meant that they could not compete as the Chinese had good tactics as they retreated often and tried to stretch their opposition. During the offensive that the Chinese had planned the 270,000 US/UN/ROK troops were outnumbered by the 300,000 Chinese troops and the 100,000 North Korean troops. Moreover, for the US morale was low, even though Truman tried to reassure them that everything would be fine, the US were still dropping napalm on their own troops.
• MacArthur was sacked in April 1951, because of his military failures as the disastrous retreat of 1950 had diminished his influence even though he was still quite popular. In the spring of 1951 MacArthur also committed two acts of insubordination which led to his termination, it was also caused by the fact that MacArthur and Truman disagreed over the objectives of the war, whilst Truman wanted a limited war, MA wanted an all-out war with China as he felt that as long as communism existed, containment was never going to be enough. However, Truman didn’t want an all-out war as he didn’t want to risk starting a direct war with the USSR and risking MAD (mutually assured destruction).
• After Stalin’s death in 1953, the North and the Chinese were no longer that confident in their plans as they knew that there was no immediate successor. Malenkov stressed the importance of peace within the region instead of war, as a result it showed the north and the Chinese that Russian foreign policy was about to change very soon. A stalemate was reached, and Kim knew that Korean unification would be impossible, and he wanted to deal with the problems in the north as there was famine and political unrest.
• Whilst negotiating peace there were disputes about the exchanges made and Rhee disagreed with many of the compromises made, and to help their cause the US responded with air fire. An armistice was requested in 1951 however, it took two years to sign meaning that peace was slow as there were military negotiators instead of diplomats which meant that everyone wanted to one up each other and ‘win the peace’ in some way. The talks were aggressive, and no one was willing to compromise. In May 1951 and summer 1952, the US escalated their air strikes in order to make China more amenable and more willing to compromise. However, the damage to the country and harm caused towards the people made Mao less willing to cooperate.
• The war had left both sides of Korea battered and created poverty and created many refugees. North Korea had roughly 400,000 military causalities and 600,000 civilian casualties, the south on the other hand had about 250,000 military casualties and about 1 million civilian casualties. The world was impressed with the fighting of china and as a result the USSR wanted to build China up into a nuclear power from 1955, however, China were still resentful of the fact that they had left them to do all the fighting in Korea. The war also escalated the rivalry and arms race that was brewing between the US and USSR and destroyed relations between the US and China. 

Vietnam

French Indochina: 

Indochina had been ruled by the French since 1877, it was an exploitative rule, especially in the south where resources were rich. During WW2, Indochina was ruled by the Japanese and the Viet Minh arose as they wanted social reform and independence. The US appreciated the help against fighting the Japanese in the war, however, after Ho Chi Minh declared the country independent in September 1945, by January 1950 the US didn’t recognise the country, so Ho persuaded China and the USSR to do so. 

The US started to support the French because of domestic pressure as Truman was informed by the JCS that the word balance of power was in SE Asia, especially in places that had natural resources, he was also pressured by the republicans after the fall of China. Moreover, France were considered allies in the fight against communism and there had been repeated reassurances that Ho was part of a worldwide communist conspiracy that had been orchestrated by Moscow in order to achieve Soviet domination. 

The French left Indochina in 1954, because of the strengths of the Viet Minh as Ho was charming and won over the peasants and ordinary people of the country as he cared about them. General Giap was also very important to the French defeat as he was very smart and had good military tactics as he used guerrilla warfare to wear down the enemy and then used set piece battles. He knew the importance of winning the support of the people and as a result he ordered his soldiers to be respectful of the peasantry at all times. However, the French were weak, and they didn’t have support for their leader Bao Dai, even though they had more weapons the VM was more elusive and determined and they knew the geography of the country much more than the French did. The French also didn’t have support for the war at home as the cost and the death toll meant that the war became unpopular at home. 

Dien Bien Phu: 

In 1954, the French built a fortress at DBP in an attempt to prevent Ho from invading nearly Laos and to draw the VM into a set-piece battle. Both the US and French thought that DBP could be held indefinitely. They failed to anticipate that thousands of peasant would dismantle heavy guns and take them up piece by piece into the surrounding hills. The plan to draw the VM into open warfare failed and the US and Britain declined to help because the war in Korea had just ended. This meant that the French surrendered after 55 days of resistance, this meant that a truce was signed at the Geneva accords where it was agreed that Vietnam would be divided at the 17^th parallel and elections would be held on the 17^th July 1956 in order to reunify the country. The US didn’t sign the treaty, but they respected it and chose to misinterpret the division as permanent. 

Eisenhower supported Diem in the south and wanted him to rule, he ended up rigging the elections, but his rule was harsh and unpopular even though the US tried to get him to undertake some social reform and economic development. His dictatorship was very regressive, and he used nepotism to get many of his friends and family in power. He was also catholic in a country that was mainly non-Catholic, this meant that he was very repressive towards Buddhists, he also arrested and killed many communists within the country. He stole much of the aid that the US gave and used it to boost his own position of power. There was a lack of reform in the south which as Diem used land reform to benefit the rich Catholics in the country. By the end of 1960, the north had waged a people’s war to reunify the country and over 4000 of Diem’s officials had been assassinated and an attempt had been made on to remove diem from power.

One of the reasons for escalating the war was the fact that 200 Americans had been killed and there were 2500 advisers had been added so instead of going in half-heartedly the US wanted to do after North Vietnam itself. Another reason was the gulf of Tonkin incident in 1964, US patrol boats Maddox were fired at by North Vietnamese boats as a result of the constant raids and surveillance from the US, although the attacks were somewhat exaggerated this led to the passing of the Gulf of Tonkin resolution which meant that Johnson could take any ‘necessary steps’ to fight communism and help the south. This meant that Johnson could enter the war without making a declaration of war. 

On January 27^th, 1965, McNamara and Bundy sent a memo to the president saying that the limited intervention in Vietnam was not working and that the US either needed to escalate or withdraw. 

On March 2^nd, 1965, a massive bombing campaign called Operation rolling thunder began and the US began to bomb the Ho Chi Minh trail and Hanoi, it went on for 3 years. On 8^th March the first 3500 troops arrived and came ashore at Da Nang and they joined the already present 23,000 military advisers. By December there were 200,000 troops in Vietnam and 80% public support for the war and sending soldiers into Vietnam. 

Tactics

VC Tactics: 

The VC used guerrilla warfare such as punji (bamboo) stakes as well as booby traps and unexploded US bombs as weapons and traps which were effective as they were cheap and easy to make and were also useful in wearing down the US and Saigon army. The VC wanted to weaken the US and south Vietnamese army. 

The NVA could only fight conventional set piece battles which meant that they were weakened by the guerrilla tactics that were used. The VC were also better at winning the hearts and minds of the peasantry and therefore gained their support, as the VC army were urged to be respectful of the peasants and were told not to rape the women of the villages that they went to. 

However, the VC could be ruthless and killed anyone that opposed them and supported their enemies. For example, in the Tet offensive many people were shot and killed, and 3000 people were found dead in the river and the jungle. The support of the peasantry was also beneficial as it meant that the VC could hide amongst the villagers and could easily launch sneak attacks on the Americans as they had no uniform and no base, unlike in Malaya where the communists and the peasants were easy to tell apart because they were different ethnicities. The booby traps that they used made the US and NVA soldiers scared and on edge which ultimately made them weaker, the traps made up about 11% of casualties in the US army. 

In addition, the VC fought in close quarters as they learned to fear the US air power and if they were too close to each other the US couldn’t use their own air power as they would be firing on their own troops. The VC got their weapons from the Chinese and the soviets as they provided cheap trucks. Hanoi lost many of the $6000 trucks however the US lost many multi-million-dollar bombers which was much more expensive in the long run. 

US Tactics: 

The US did not expect the VC to be so clever and well prepared which lowered morale for the soldiers and made them worse fighters in the long run. Overall US tactics were not successful even though they had more technology and more weapons. One tactic was the search and destroy mission that was developed by General Westmoreland, which was where the army would descend on a village and kill any VC troops that they found in the area. However, sometimes the info that they were given would be inaccurate and they would attack innocent villages which turned the peasantry against the US and towards the VC. 

The US also developed a method of chemical warfare that was called Agent Orange which was used to destroy the jungle that the VC lived in, the US used 82 million litres of agent orange to destroy 4 million acres of land which affected 1.3 million people. Napalm was also a chemical weapon used to destroy jungles and the US dropped 20,000 tonnes of it from 1965-73. It burnt through skin and gave many people birth defects for generations to come. Life magazine calculated that it would cost $400,000 to kill one soldier showing the horrendous cost. 

Although the US had better technology and weapons, they were still limited by the fact that they couldn’t legally enter the neighbouring countries of Laos and Cambodia, which put them at a disadvantage as the VC could enter the neighbouring countries to retreat, regroup and gather more supplies. Although Johnson stressed the importance of winning the hearts and minds of the peasants, which he mentioned 28 times in his speeches from 1964-68, however, the poor morale and the poor quality of the troops meant that they would commit many atrocities and make mistakes which would push the peasantry towards the VC.

Problems in the US army

• Racial problems: African Americans made up 13% of the army but they made up 28% of the people placed in combat units, this led to resentment as there were more black people being drafted into the war than white people. The 60s was also the beginning of the civil rights movement in the US and many didn’t know what they were fighting for, they didn’t want to serve for a country that had treated them unfairly and fight a country that had done nothing to them. 

• Fragging: Between 1969-71, there were 730 fragging incidents in which 83 officers died, this was where soldiers killed their officers by throwing fragmented grenades at them. As General Westmoreland had declared this to be a war of attrition, the officers were most likely trying to get their soldiers to fight so that they could get more kills and get a promotion.

• ARVN: Westmoreland distrusted the ARVN and put them in unimportant places and positions which meant that the US army was weaker and had less manpower.

• One-year drafts: Ordinary soldiers served for 365 days and 13 months for marines which was not good as it meant that there was not enough time to create a bond and a sense of unity between the soldiers. Moreover, the fact that officers only stayed with a unit for five months meant that a sense of trust between the officers and their soldiers could not be established. At the beginning of the war many of the soldiers joined as a career meaning that morale was good and the soldiers were of good quality however, as time went on many more people were drafted and many of them were from poor immigrant backgrounds who didn’t have enough money to go to college and dodge the draft like others. These men didn’t care about democracy or communism and just wanted to get home alive meaning that more mistakes were made.

• Low morale: Many soldiers didn’t know why they were fighting and also didn’t agree with the way that the US waged war, this led to indiscipline among the soldiers. The lack of morale was also caused by the growing anti-war movement that began at home in the US as peoples started to disagree with the war and thought it was too expensive. This meant that the soldiers’ morale dropped as they felt that they didn’t have the support of the people at home, this was worsened by the fact that people’s families were being victimised by opponents of the war. The credibility gap also formed and overall disillusionment with the war meant that morale was severely damaged.

• R&R: This was a place where the American troops could rest and live the typical American lifestyle which created disorientation for the soldiers as they would come from a warzone into a fully airconditioned base. This could be argued as a major reason as to why the US lost the war as the VC were hardened and had spent years away from their family with basic food and medical supplies. 

• Drug abuse: The problem of drugs could not be solved easily as there were many high-level Saigon officials involved with it such as Ky.

My Lai

The My Lai massacre occurred on the 16^th March 1968, it started early in the morning and lasted 4 hours with a lunch break in between. The unit called Charlie Company had been called into a search and destroy mission in the Quang Ngai region, there was a village in which they were told there would be no civilians there because it was a Saturday and they would be at the market. The unit killed almost everyone in the village, 460 civilians were killed and the ones who survived had to hide under the dead bodies of their relatives. There were no VC in the village. 

At the time, the mission was treated as a success until Life magazine published a photo of the massacre which triggered an investigation, which ended with the trial of Lieutenant Calley and in September 1969 he was officially charged with the murder of 109 people and he was sentenced to 20 years of hard labour, however he only spent a day in military prison and spent 3.5 years under house arrest. 

The atrocities of My Lai showed that the war was not going to plan, and it increased the growing opposition it the war back home. This is shown as in November 1974, there was one of the biggest political demonstrations in which 700,000 people attended in DC. Some thought that the massacre was a product of war and others thought it was a product of this particular war.

Responsibility for escalation of the war

• Eisenhower described the domino theory in 1953.

• Kennedy was left in the commitment trap because of E’s actions, as he was the youngest president ever and he wanted to prove himself and didn’t want to be the president that left Vietnam. Kennedy’s policies also changed because of Diem’s unpopularity; they used the strategic hamlets programme which failed because the US didn’t understand the Buddhist traditions of the people as they did not want to be moved from their family burial sites. There were 16,000 military advisers and the ARVN used US helicopters and jets. The US allowed Diem’s assassination because he was unpopular, which meant that Sihanouk in Cambodia did not trust them, however, Kennedy was soon assassinated himself. Kennedy wasn’t wholly responsible for the escalation as he repeatedly ignored the urging of McNamara who wanted to send troops in, when Johnson did not. 

• Johnson was arguably the most to blame for the escalation of the war as patriotism, the commitment trap, the urging of generals and the domino theory, caused Johnson to radically increase the level of involvement of the US in Vietnam. The influence of others around him made it hard for him to deescalate in Vietnam.

Tet Offensive

• Tet offensive in 1968 was a key turning point in the war as it made the US public question the point of the war as they were spending $20 billion a year and US troops were still able to be surprised by an attack by the VC. Walter Cronkite who was said to be the most trusted man in America said that the US was not winning the stalemate and the only way for the US to exit the war was through negotiations. It was also key because it saw Westmoreland be replaced and the wise men who had previously been in support of the war, to turn against it. Moreover, Johnson’s approval rating decreased from 46% to 36% which meant that he withdrew from the 1968 presidential election. 

• The offensive was on the first day of the Tet New year although the US were surprised, it was a loss for the VC as they expected the people of the south to join them as a result they lost nearly 60,000 soldiers but the US and ARVN only lost over 8000 troops together. The fact that Vietnam was a media war mean that many people turned against the war as the offensive was portrayed as a disaster for the US even though they lost less soldiers. 

Opposition to the war

• Many people opposed the war as it progressed, there was one of the biggest political demonstrations against it. There was also outrage as on 4^th May 1970, there was a protest at Kent State University in which four students were killed, some of whom were not even protesting. 

• People also opposed the draft and draft dodged as a result. Many thought that it was unfair that people in education could dodge the draft and as it was so expensive Black, Hispanic and poor white people were drafted more than others. 

• Black people were drafted more 

Vietnamisation

• Nixon wanted to leave Vietnam with a policy of ‘peace with honour’, this was going to be done by slowly removing the troops from the south 

• This policy was largely a failure as it showed that Nixon, like previous presidents had failed to understand the nature of the war. Between 1969-71 400,000 troops left Vietnam, however this did nothing for the people of the south except for reminding them that they were living under a dictatorship, in which any political opponents would be killed. 

• In the south there were over a million men who were armed which meant that they were one of the most equipped armies in the world however the troops were still unsuccessful, and Vietnam fell to communism in April 1975.

• Laos ended up turning communist in 1975 as much of the area was destroyed by the war as even though it was technically supposed to be a neutral ground it suffered many deaths and ultimately destabilisation. 

Why did the US fail to win the Vietnam war?

• The failure of political will: Westmoreland saw the defeat as a result of the limited war that the US was fighting, he believed that the only way the war could have been won was if the US went into full on war with Vietnam. Moreover, there was also the demoralising effect of the opposition to the war at home in the US which was worsened by the media bias against the war which so heavily influenced public opinion. 

• Military failure: The US used conventional methods and failed to understand the tactics and ways of guerrilla warfare meaning that they failed. My Lai, Tet Offensive etc.

• Failure to understand the Vietnamese context: The US didn’t understand the message that the VC had to offer as well as the power of its nationalist message. Moreover, the US didn’t realise how appealing communism would be to people that had been economically exploited and lived in poor conditions for much of their lives, but the money that they had given in the south would not solve all their problems. In both the Korean and Vietnam war the US largely underestimated the power that the peasantry had and how important their support was, a weakness that their enemies used to their advantage. The US also failed to gain the hearts and minds of the people as they didn’t understand their culture, traditions and way of life. This was shown in the strategic hamlets programme, and this lack of understanding meant that it was much easier for their opposition to relate to them and ultimately gain their support. 

Cambodia

How successful was Sihanouk’s government?

• Politically: S silenced people through arrests, execution and censorship, showed execution video just before films were being played in the cinema. He had a referendum in which he gained about 99.7% approval. Generally, his government was undemocratic.

• Economically and socially: S increased the number of schools in the country from 8 to 200 from 1953-67, meaning that the education standard was increased however, people were more educated but there were not enough jobs that matched their level of education meaning that there was no industry that they could go into. Because of their high level of education people learnt about other political ideologies and many people turned to communism which showed that S’s plans had backfired. He repressed the Cambodian communists into the rural areas but this was where the Vietnamese and VC dominated which meant that they were more exposed to communism, which was ultimately a political failure on the part of S. the peasantry failed to prosper as many of them were chronically in debt and the number of landless farmers rose from 4 to 20% from 1950-70.

• Foreign policy: S refused to join SEATO but accepted US military aid in 1954. S wanted to keep the country neutral and out of the war with Vietnam, in the 1955 Bandung conference the country signed a friendship treaty with China. US relations deteriorated as he asked Indochina to be seen as neutral in the Vietnam war, but he lost trust with the US as they allowed the assassination of Diem because he was unpopular. In 1964, he dispensed of US aid and expelled any US citizens and in retaliation the US gained the support of the military and the elite. The US also didn’t ask for permission before bombing in Cambodia which killed many people.

Civil War (1968)

• Reason for war: From 1962-6 there was increased government repression of the left, which was not enough to destroy them, but it was enough to inspire them. Pol pot was also gaining support and he had large amounts of influence as the leader of the Cambodian communists. They were also encouraged by the Chinese. Moreover, the obtrusive nature of the US whilst fighting the war meant that many people blamed the government for this, leading to the civil war.

• Why it failed: Khmer Rouge forces were not as powerful as they only had 10,000 troops by 1970, they also pushed the government to the right (political) which meant that Lon Nol and the US had more influence. And even though S was criticised heavily it was difficult for the Khmer Rouge to overcome his prestige as he was very popular with the peasants. The KR were also ruthless as some of the rebels beheaded and executed people which would have repelled support.

• Impact: As a result of the civil war S realised that the communists were his biggest threat and he began to move away from China and towards the US. The communists then retreated further into Cambodia and destabilised the regime and gained more support. Not long after March 1970, S was replaced whilst he was abroad in Paris by Lon Nol’s government as many were tired of S’s extravagance whilst the country was struggling. The middle class and the military also wanted to fully align Cambodia with the US as they wanted to gain lucrative military contracts.

• The overthrow resulted in the Anarchy of Spring 1970 in which there was increasing anti-Vietnamese sentiment from the people and the government, as well as pro-Sihanouk protests.

Rise of the Khmer Rouge

• US intervention: The US bombing in Cambodia killed many people and meant that it was easy for the KM to turn people against Lon Nol and his government as the US were backing him.

• Strength of the KR: They had a lot of appeal in comparison to LN’s government as they offered land distribution in many areas. Also, the fact that they were now supported by Sihanouk helped them as S was still very popular and he was practically worshipped.

• LN’s weaknesses: The government was unpopular and corrupt as well as very superstitious and had no real plan of what they were going to do when they were in power. However, it could be argued that their weaknesses were not that important because they were bound to fail, the intervention of the US just made this progress happen more quickly especially with the bombing. If the US had given their full support to LN’s gov they may not have been overthrown in 1975.

Democratic Kampuchea

• There was lots of anti-intellectualism and Pol Pot wanted everyone to think the same, so he murdered anyone who was seen as educated. He was a lot harsher on people in urban areas than people in rural areas as he thought that people in urban areas had been infected with the disease of capitalism. He treated people like new-borns as Khmer Rouge rule was to be seen like it was the year 0. Collective agriculture was also put in place to make enough food for the army and to ensure population control.

• There were many ethnic cleanses such as the Muslim Cham who were the largest ethnic minority in the country, by 1969 100,000 of the Cham had been killed. Chinese Cambodians were also treated harshly because they found it hardest to adjust to rural peasant life. Vietnamese Cambodians were also the victims of ethnic cleansing as between 1977-8 10,000 of them were hunted down and murdered.

• Pol Pot broke of all diplomatic relations with all capitalist states in 1975 and later broke off with 4 communist states.

• Pol Pot was then overthrown by Vietnam’s Hen Samrin, because of the anti-Vietnamese purges and the fact that they wanted to control Indochina, they easily took down the KR.

• The pro-Vietnam government was supported by the soviets and Vietnam, they fought well but were not able to fight off the tri-partite rebels. The opposition forces were made up of ASEAN, China and the US, however they lacked the unity and capability to drive out the Vietnamese forces. 

Peace

• Under Gorbachev, soviet policies greatly changed as he was an advocate of global interdependence and ‘new thinking’ in foreign policy. He also wanted to decrease Sino-soviet and Sino American tensions.

• In March 1990 UN security council proposed the formation of a new coalition government with elections being supervised by a new peacekeeping force. 

• At the Paris settlement of 1991, both sides were to demobilise, and elections were to be held in 1993. The results of these elections were that S’s son won despite Hun Sen’s corruption and there was an agreement that he and Sihanouk would rule together. Their rule was undemocratic and corrupt and continued into the late 1990s.