Module 3: American Involvement in Vietnam

American Involvement in Vietnam

After the French withdrawal from Vietnam in 1954, the country was divided into two zones at the 17th parallel as a result of the Geneva Accords. The North was controlled by the communist Viet Minh under Ho Chi Minh, while the South became the Republic of Vietnam, led by the capitalist government of President Bao Dai. However, the U.S. was determined to prevent the spread of communism in Southeast Asia, adhering to the "domino theory," which held that if one country in the region fell to communism, others would follow suit. To bolster the South against the communist North, the Eisenhower administration began providing military and economic aid to the government of Bao Dai, who was seen as a weak leader. By 1955, the U.S. helped orchestrate the ousting of Bao Dai in favor of a more assertive leader, Ngo Dinh Diem, who became the president of South Vietnam.

Under Diem's leadership, the U.S. continued its support, hoping that his government could stabilize South Vietnam and combat the growing influence of the communist-led insurgency, known as the Viet Cong, in the southern countryside. However, Diem’s regime became increasingly unpopular due to its authoritarian practices, corruption, and persecution of Buddhists, which eroded his legitimacy and fueled unrest. Despite these challenges, American involvement continued to deepen. Both President Dwight D. Eisenhower and his successor John F. Kennedy believed that the fall of South Vietnam to communism would have a domino effect across Southeast Asia. Kennedy, in particular, increased the number of U.S. military advisors in Vietnam, going from 800 in 1960 to around 16,000 by the time of his assassination in 1963. This escalation was part of a broader commitment to preventing the spread of communism, and it marked a shift from mere financial support to active military involvement, albeit limited at the time.

The situation of the South Vietnamese government continued to deteriorate after Kennedy’s death, with the Viet Cong gaining strength in the South and the North continuing its support for the insurgents. Under President Lyndon B. Johnson, the U.S. significantly expanded its involvement, particularly following the Gulf of Tonkin Incident in August 1964. The incident, in which U.S. Navy ships claimed to have been attacked by North Vietnamese forces in the Gulf of Tonkin, served as a catalyst for deeper U.S. military intervention. Although the details of the incident were later questioned, it provided Johnson with the justification to seek the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution, which granted him broad authority to take military action in Vietnam. The resolution marked the beginning of a large-scale escalation of U.S. military presence in Vietnam, with Johnson deploying combat troops and initiating bombing campaigns against North Vietnam. The incident thus set the stage for the full-scale involvement of American forces in the Vietnam War, significantly altering the course of the conflict and the trajectory of U.S. foreign policy in the region.