Conflict in Vietnam, 1964-68 Flashcards
What tactics did the Vietcong use? (state 4)
- ambushing
- simple, but deadly traps
- Didn’t wear military uniform, so integrated with rural peasants
- Stayed close to US deployments of soldiers so they couldn’t be bombed easily
- Sabotaged roads and bridges to make it difficult for the enemy to move around
- Avoided open battles
- blended in with local population (could be male, female, young or old)
What was Operation Rolling Thunder?
A bombing campagne that targeted the Ho Chi Minh trail, to stop supplies being taken south, and North Vietnams small industrial base
What was the US tactic of search and destroy?
Where small groups of US soldiers tacked down Vietcong camps then called in helicopters to spray chemicals on them, or bomb them
How did the vietcong respond to US search and destroy tactics?
By leaving traps to kill or injure US soldiers
What made the US unpopular with locals?
Their use of chemical sprays, and bombing of crops and homes
Who was the Tet Offensive led by?
The North Vietnamese and Vietcong
When was the Tet Offensive?
January-February 1968
What was the Tet Offensive?
Where the Vietcong used the cover of the Vietnamese New Year (known as Tet) celebrations to change tactics and launch a massive attack on US-held areas across South Vietnam, including the US embassy in Saigon.
What was the outcome of the Tet Offensive?
It was overall a (tactical) success for the Vietcong, although ultimately driven back by the US army
How did the American public view the Tet Offensive?
They saw it as a terrible failure for the US
What was agent orange?
A herbicide used by the US
What did the US use agent orange for?
To destroy the environment that the opposition used for cover, and to attempt to uncover the Ho Chi Minh trail
What were negatives of the tactic of rolling thunder?
- It cost the US $400 000 to kill one Vietcong soldier
- It killed many innocent citizens
How long was the tactic of operation rolling thunder used?
1965-1972
What are the negative outcomes of the use of agent orange?
Following the war it caused many birth defects because it got into the water supply
