The Vietnam War began in 1954 after years of conflict stretching back to the 1940s between the communist regime of North Vietnam and South Vietnam. North Vietnam was attempting to make South Vietnam a communist country; since we are a democracy, the United States opposes the views of communist countries, and because we feared the spread of communism the United States became involved as an ally of South Vietnam. The war ended in 1975, resulting in disastrous effects on Vietnam and America. The assertion of the United States in this war rose controversy among Americans, and I disagree with our involvement in the Vietnam War because of the United States’ reasons to fight.
Over thirty years ago the Vietnam War ended, and the U.S. came back home with their tails between their legs and nothing to show for other than a high number of casualties, and a huge pile of debt. The U.S. underestimated the North Vietnamese army, and it was costly. Many believe that the Vietnam War was none of the U.S. business, but on the contrary, many believe we should have tried to stop the spread of communism. The long-lasting Vietnam War was unnecessary for the U.S. to be a part of; it put many people through unneeded stress and hard times.
The American involvement in the Vietnam War was a very controversial decision, with many people being for the war, however many people in the United States were also against the war. The Vietnam War was the longest lasting war in the United States history, before the Afghanistan War, in which most people felt strongly about, be them United States citizens, Vietnamese citizens, or just the global population. In order to better understand the ideas of those American citizens that are either for or against the war, one would have to look at the reasons that the United States was involved in the war, the impact of the Vietnam war on the American society, and the impact on the United States foreign policy.
Exploring the Reasons for United States' Involvement in Vietnam 1. US involvement in Vietnam The US wanted to stop communist expansion into South Vietnam after successfully stopping them from capturing South Korea but President Eisenhower could not get the support of the
The Vietnam War was one of the worst wars in the United States history. The reason for the United States involvement was due to the start of communism in North Vietnam. The citizens in South Vietnam feared the control of North Vietnam and were worried that the north would take control of the south. The communist North Vietnam had support from the Soviet Union and China, making the South Vietnamese vulnerable to the north. In their time of struggle the South Vietnamese were able to receive aid from the United States. The North Vietnamese had set up a series of radar stations along bays and islands on the Gulf of Tonkin. On August 1, 1964 the U.S.S. Maddox was posted on a surveillance mission to study the North Vietnamese defenses
US should not have been involved in the Vietnam War. For one, the US should not have been involved in the Vietnam war because protest were turning violent. They started peaceful and then they turned violent. Movements and protest are now violent because the American Society feels as if their opinions are being ignored or do not matter. Another reason that people don't trust the government now is because of the propaganda and false advertising. The president is telling the people of the US that everything is okay and the war is almost over when it is nowhere near being over. Lastly, war is very costly. The money going to cover the cost of war could be given to innovations, welfare, housing, and many other beneficial things to the people of the US.
United States' Involvement in the Vietnam War There are many reasons for American intervention in Vietnam whether it is political causes, economic causes or military causes. The Americans want to secure capitalism all over the world and get rid of communism. The
The U.S. involvement in the Vietnam War helped for the South Vietnamese for a while,
The Vietnam War is thought of as one of the most significant events in United States history. It was fought over the course of two decades and three United States presidencies. American involvement in the Vietnam War is one of the most highly debated topics discussed today. The United States began their involvement by supporting the French with one billion dollars per year to assist in containing the chaos in Vietnam. Once the French failed, the United States continued to supply money, firearms, and military advisors to aid the South Vietnamese. Americans remembered their promise to support any country fighting against the spread of communism. That promise was hard to keep when government lies were exposed, the number of American graves grew, and the matter of draft issues became too overwhelming to ignore.
The Vietnam War was a grousing, costly battle that drained our nation morally and psychologically. The war lives infamously with the unpopularity received by America and its people. Many believed that we had no business joining arms with South Vietnam to try and defeat a communist regime of North Vietnam and the Viet Cong. With the war begining in 1954 due to the rise of the North Vietnamese and their leader Ho Chi Minh, an advocate for communism, which put a target on North Vietnam due to America’s pursuit to end communism around the world. By 1969 and the Wars 15th year of existence, more than half a million American soldiers had been involved. Many returning veterans and a large portion of the American public felt bitter about our involvement
America's involvement in Vietnam was rooted in the containment policies of the Cold War. President Eisenhower and Truman believed that if Southern Vietnam fell to the Communists that all Southeast Asia would be next (The Domino Theory). Starting with the fall of China in 1949, which turned a local nationalist struggle against the French rule in Indochina into a world wide strategic battleground. As far back as World War II, FDR had supported the Vietnamese forces led by Ho Chi Minh a communist, and had called for an end to French Colonial rule. However after Jiang’s Failure, American policy changed. Fears of a communist victory in Indochina caused the United States to abandon its position of neutrality and openly endorse French policy
Lyndon B. Johnson inherited the war from Kennedy in 1963 and it was his responsibility to lead America through the Vietnam war and stop communism, he planned was to escalate the war. The Gulf of Tonkin resolution was what really involved the US in the war and made them a big part of it. The alleged attacks of North Vietnam on the USS Maddox angered America and it was a way for Johnson to organise attacks on North Vietnam. He now had an excuse and his main view on the war was to escalate it. Although he had a lot of support from US citizens, there were some people protesting against his approach towards the war later on.
As well as taking office in 1969, U.S. President Richard Nixon introduced a new strategy to office called Vietnamization that was aimed towards finally ending American involvement in the Vietnam War (1954-75) by moving all military responsibilities to South Vietnam. This increasingly unpopular war had made deep division in American society, so Nixon believed his Vietnamization strategy, which involved building up South Vietnam’s military strength in order to create a slow building withdrawal of all U.S. troops, would prepare the South Vietnamese government to take responsibility for their own defense. In 1973, the U.S. negotiated a treaty with North Vietnam, withdrew American fighting troops and then declared the Vietnamization process complete.
The United States became involved in Vietnam to halt the advancement of the Chinese and Soviet Union revolution throughout Asia. America was defending Vietnam from the rest of Asia in hopes to prevent the spread of communism and secure American interests and democracy (p. 714, Brinkley). The U.S. first supported Diem, but soon the South Vietnamese leadership was in turmoil, allowing the communist party in North Vietnam to increase in strength and power. The United States wanted to impose imperialism in an attempt to establish economic and political order, as well as motivate the economy at home with war stimulated production. American destroyers endured attacks in the Gulf of Tonkin, as well as the American military base was at Pleiku, resulting
During 1954 the Vietnamese government was struggling. The country needed a new leader so Ngo Dinh Diem filled that spot for them becoming the Prime Minister of South Vietnam. During his struggle to fight off communism he had to battle warlords and eventually the Vietcong. By 1956 The United States had stepped in to back Diem’s rule.