17) The US and South East Asia Flashcards
Easter offensive
1972
a response to the expansion of the Viet Nam war
in March General Giap launches an attack on ARVN which lasts until october
estimated death toll of the easter offensive
10,000 southern troops
Linebacker 1
May 1972
US counter offensive to easter
large scale bombing raids on N.Vietnamese troops in the south
cut of supplies by blockading the north
Impact of Easter and Linebacker 1
showed that Vietnamisation had failed, the S.Vietnamese still relied upon the US
However, Linebacker was effective as it led to peace talks
Linebacker II
1972
also know as Christmas bombing
US drop 20,000 tonnes of explosives on N.Vietnam and kill more than 1,000 people
Nixon’s attempt to expedite the end of the war
18th-29th of december
second round of Paris peace talks
1971-72
Kissinger meets secretly with communist advisor Le Duc Tho to preceded these talks, needed both a political AND military solution
USA didn’t want to accept a coalition government and ‘abandon’ the south because they feared its collapse
talks changed in 1972 when the North changed there stance on allowing the Southern leader Thieu to stay
why did peace talks stop in December 1972
Linebacker II and Le Duc Tho’s refuse to return prisoners
these talks soon resumed however in January
1972 presidential elections
November
Nixon took no action in Viet Nam until after the elections
landslide victory for Nixon
Events of watergate took place however
Peace with Honour
What Nixon aimed for in Viet Nam
Used during his 1969 campaign
US removal without their looking like a failure
President Thieu
Leader of S.Viet Nam
Relied on US support
unpopular in the north and it took their leaders a while to negotiate with him- he ultimately only signed the peace accords under pressure from the US
Terms/Timeline of peace talks in Viet Nam
N.Viet Nam was told to negotiate by China, these talks begin in July 1972 (Linebacker I)
Terms are agreed in September but delays
Ceasefire in Jan 1973
60 day US removal of Prisoners of War
free elections
Paris Peace Talks
Peace in Viet Nam
signed January 1973
US had 60 days to remove all troops
US prisoners of war were to be released
ceasefire declared through Viet Nam
territorial integrity would remain, as set out by the 1954 Geneva accords
elections to be held in both north and south
US removal from Viet Nam
March 1973- the final US combatants leave Viet Nam
role of congress in the end of the Viet Nam war
Jan 1973- cut funding for Thieu
August- cut funding for Cambodian bombing
Positive Outcomes for US extension into Cambodia
hindered Viet Cong operations in Cambodia- lost of supplies destroyed
This prevented the possibility of a major N.Vietnamese offensive against the south due losses in Cambodia
Negative outcomes for the US in Cambodia
Intervention caused the North to strengthen their presence and support for the Cambodian communist party led by Pol Pot
no strategic gains made
increased opposition to the war- lots of student protests in May 1972
Senate remove the Gulf of Tonkin resolution
US congress ban US ground troops from entering any country but Viet Nam
Khmer Rouge
Cambodian Communist party who fought against the US backed government of Lon Nol
Leader was Pol Pot
They look power in 1975 and enacted a genocide within Cambodia (~1.5 Million people killed)
Khmer Rouge’s relationship with N.Vietnam
Originally supported the Khmer Rouge- form an alliance in 1970
Paris agreements strained their relationship
Following the Cambodian genocide and the border attacks on Viet Nam, they invade with the backing of the USSR in 1978 to replace the Khmer Rouge with their opponent
American Actions in Cambodia
ground troops invade in 1970 but withdraw at fear of backlash
continued with bombing though- 430,000 tonnes
Sent advisors to Lon Nol’s government
After the US evacuated forces from the capital of Phnom Penh it fell within the week
Heng Samrin
Member of Khmer Rogue until he defected in 1978 and returned to overthrow them with Viet Nam
Actions and Aims of the Khmer Rouge
Take over Cambodia- no one expected them to achieve this
ideological cleansing (which led to genocide)
Role of Lon Nol
Essentially an ineffective leader
welcomed US arms but not their advice
poorly paid his soldiers meaning they were often not very effective
Monetary cost of Cambodia for the US
$1.6 billion
How was Cambodia impacted by US policies
their bombing campaigns made the US very unpopular and thus the governemnt that they backed in Cambodia was also very unpopular- arguably led to increased support for the Khmer Rouge
An example of failed containment
How many ARVN troops were killed
300,000
how many Vietnamese were killed
2.5 million
How many US served in Vietnam
3 million
9% of the population were drafted
46,000 killed in action with another 10,000 being killed through accidents
Allied troops in Viet Nam
South Korea, Australia, Thailand and New Zealand- all suffered looses of troops
How many N.Vietnamese were killed
I million Viet Cong
40,000-60,000 N. Vietnamese
Viet Nam and the Great Society
Viet Nam was the opposite of LBJ’s internal policies, it resulted in his government having no funding to implement these societal reforms
Cost for US soliders
PTSD
Treated as outcasts
physical/mental distressC
Cost for Veitnamese
use of napalm/agent orange resulted in the death/disfiguration of many Vietnamese since most couldn’t afford treatment
Much of their countryside was destroyed and many were killed in later years due to unexploded mines
dislocation- estimated over 1 million Vietnamese fled
Impact of the War on the Vietnamese economy
for the next 20 or so years Viet Nam remained one of the worlds poorest countries
dependent on the USSR
Impact of the War on the US economy
$167 billion spent in Viet Nam, caused inflation in 1973
