Korea and Vietnam

The 38th Parallel During WWII Korea was occupied by the Japanese. Korea became a divided nation along the 38th Parallel ● North of the 38th Parallel the Japanese surrendered to the Soviets ● South of the 38th Parallel the Japanese surrendered to the US

The Korean War: 1950-1953 Backed by the USSR, North Korea swept into S. Korea in a surprise attack, June 25 1950. Truman came to S. Korea’s defense, as did the UN (Soviet Security Council members were absent and unable to veto) By September N. Koreans occupied most of the peninsula except the area around Pusan

“Pincer Action” US troops moving north from Pusan met with MacArthur’s surprise attack troops from Inchon. ½ the North Korean troops surrendered, the rest retreated

Chinese Enter the War As the US pushed further north, the Chinese sent 300,000 troops and pushed the UN and US troops south The Chinese then captured the South Korea capital of Seoul.

Truman Fires MacArthur MacArthur asked Truman to use an atomic bomb against China Truman refused saying “We are trying to prevent a world war, not start one.” MacArthur went around Truman and spoke to the press and talked to Congress Truman removes MacArthur from duty

End of the Korean War By 1952 UN and US forces had regained South Korea In July 1953 the UN and N. Korea signed a cease fire. The border was set at the 38th parallel ● A demilitarized Zone still exists today

Aftermath of Korea N. Korea is communist, has nuclear weapons and a failing economy S. Korea is prosperous and democratic US troops are still stationed there Known as the “Forgotten War”

Background to Vietnam French Indochina consisted of Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia Nationalist Ho Chi Minh “He who Enlightens” sought assistance from the communists. Ho Chi Minh and his followers led revolts against the French in the 1930s

Tensions Increase During WWII the Japanese seized Vietnam Ho and other nationalist founded the Vietminh (Independence) League. After the Japanese surrendered Ho thought independence would follow, the French wanted their colony back. The Vietnamese Nationalists and Communists fought the French together

Domino Theory Thailand Laos Vietnam In 1954 the French (who had been supported by the US surrendered to Ho President Eisenhower was concerned with what he termed the “Domino Theory” – this became the justification for US foreign policy during the Cold War era. Vietnam was divided at the 17th parallel, to the north were the communists led by Ho and to the south the French and US set up an anti-communist government led by Ngo Dinh Diem

Problems for South Vietnam Diem ruled as a dictator The Vietcong (communist guerrillas in the south) grew. They eventually took over and Diem was assassinated Appeared the Vietcong would takeover S. Vietnam

Ia Drang Valley: “Valley of Death” The first conventional battle of the Vietnam war takes place as American forces clash with North Vietnamese units in the Ia Drang Valley. The U.S. 1st Air Cavalry Division employs its newly enhanced technique of aerial reconnaissance to finally defeat the N.V.A., although heavy casualties are reported on both sides. Grandeur

Gulf of Tonkin In August 1964, North Vietnam attacked two US ships in the Gulf of Tonkin. One occurred on August 2nd, the other one supposedly took place on August 4th President Lyndon Johnson used the attacks to ask for broader war power The Gulf of Tonkin Resolution, passed both the House and Senate and within a year there were more than 185,000 US troops in Vietnam. By 1968 there were 500,000.

Truman Doctrine United Nations Vietcong Ho Chi Minh Domino Theory Containment NATO Warsaw Pact Tet Offensive “Cold War” 38th Parallel Berlin Airlift Douglas MacArthur Mao Zedong Iron Curtain John F. Kennedy Korean War (38th Parallel) Nikita Kruschev Vietminh and Vietcong Castro Bay of Pigs Invasion The four “actions” that the Super Powers used against one another during the Cold War List of Presidents from WWII to the present…in order!

Problems for US Troops US soldiers were unfamiliar with the jungle terrain and not used to guerrilla warfare The South Vietnamese government was becoming more and more unpopular Support and military supplies continued to grow in the Vietcong

The Tet Offensive January 31 1968 the North Vietnamese Army (NVA) and Vietcong launched a large-scale offensive during the Vietnamese holiday of Tet. They attacked 36 provincial capitals and five of the six major cities, including Saigon Graphic film footage of the fighting created American public outcry

My Lai Massacre: March 16, ‘68 Lt. William Calley, entered My Lai and ordered his men to begin firing on civilians Up to 300 unarmed civilians (mostly women, children and the elderly) were brutally massacred Word of the atrocities did not reach the American public until November 1969. Calley testified that he was ordered to kill everyone in the village. Calley was convicted and sentenced to life in prison, but was released in 1974.

General William Westmoreland General William Westmoreland commanded U.S. military operations in Vietnam from 1964-68. His highly publicized, positive assessments of the American military prospects were shattered by the Tet offensive of 1968. Westmoreland later served as the Army's chief of staff.

War Continues LBJ does not seek a second term in office and Richard Nixon is elected in 1969. Nixon initiates a plan called Vietnamization Nixon orders massive bombing campaigns in N. Vietnam and neighboring Laos and Cambodia

President Nixon, as part of Vietnamization, began withdrawing U. S President Nixon, as part of Vietnamization, began withdrawing U.S. troops from Vietnam. Late History Overview: 1970s, 1980s, 1990s

Opposition at Home The war was becoming increasingly unpopular Protests occurred across the nation Men would burn their draft cards Kent State University Massacre May 4, 1970 Ohio National Guardsmen open fire on protesting college students against the American invasion of Cambodia killing four

The End of Vietnam The last Americans left Vietnam in 1973 In 1975 the North Vietnamese overran South Vietnam. Saigon was renamed Ho Chi Minh City 1.5 million Vietnamese and 58,000 Americans died during the war Vietnam is still Communist, but US normalized relations with them in 1995

Ho Chi Minh Trail The major supply route for Communist forces stretching from Vinh, North Vietnam, through Laos and Cambodia, into South Vietnam. The Ho Chi Minh Trail was the target of numerous U.S. bombing and napalm attacks throughout the war.

% Vietnam combat death by ethnicity. Source: National Archives Late History Overview: 1970s, 1980s, 1990s