Vietnam War: Difference between revisions

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Daniel Ellsberg contends that U.S. participation in Vietnam had begun in 1945 when it gave support to a French effort to reconquer its colony in Vietnam, a nation which had just declared independence in August 1945.

==Background==

Indochina was a French colony during the 19th century. When [[Imperial Japan]] invaded during World War II, the Viet Minh opposed them with support from the US, the Soviet Union and China. They received some Japanese arms when Japan surrendered. The Viet Minh, a Communist-led common front under the leadership of [[Hồ Chí Minh]], then initiated an insurgency against French rule. Hostilities escalated into the First Indochina War (beginning in December 1946). By the 1950s, the conflict had become entwined with the Cold War. In January 1950, China and the Soviet Union recognized the Viet Minh's Democratic Republic of Vietnam, based in Hanoi, as the legitimate government of Vietnam. The following month the United States and Great Britain recognized the French-backed State of Vietnam in Saigon, led by former Emperor Bảo Đại (and later by [[Ngô Đình Diệm]]), as the legitimate Vietnamese government. The outbreak of the [[Korean War]] in June 1950 convinced many Washington policymakers that the war in Indochina was an example of communist expansionism directed by the Soviet Union, with North Korean premier [[Kim Il-sung]] providing support to his communist allies in North Vietnam, while the anti-communist South Korean regimes of [[Syngman Rhee]] and his successor [[Park Chung Hee]] backed South Vietnam.

Indochina was a French colony during the 19th century. When [[Imperial Japan]] invaded during World War II, the Viet Minh opposed them with support from the US, the Soviet Union and China. They received some Japanese arms when Japan surrendered. The Viet Minh, a Communist-led common front under the leadership of [[Hồ Chí Minh]], then initiated an insurgency against French rule. Hostilities escalated into the First Indochina War (beginning in December 1946). By the 1950s, the conflict had become entwined with the Cold War. In January 1950, China and the Soviet Union recognized the Viet Minh's Democratic Republic of Vietnam, based in Hanoi, as the legitimate government of Vietnam. The following month the United States and Great Britain recognized the French-backed State of Vietnam in Saigon, led by former Emperor [[Bảo Đại]] (and later by [[Ngô Đình Diệm]]), as the legitimate Vietnamese government. The outbreak of the [[Korean War]] in June 1950 convinced many Washington policymakers that the war in Indochina was an example of communist expansionism directed by the Soviet Union, with North Korean premier [[Kim Il-sung]] providing support to his communist allies in North Vietnam, while the anti-communist South Korean regimes of [[Syngman Rhee]] and his successor [[Park Chung Hee]] backed South Vietnam.

Military advisors from the [[Communist Party of China]], under orders from [[Mao Zedong]], began assisting the Viet Minh in July 1950. Chinese weapons, expertise, and laborers transformed the Viet Minh from a guerrilla force into a regular army. In September 1950, the United States created a Military Assistance and Advisory Group (MAAG) to screen French requests for aid, advise on strategy, and train Vietnamese soldiers. By 1954, the United States had spent US$1 billion in support of the French military effort, shouldering 80 percent of the cost of the war.

@@ Line 10: / Line 10: @@
 Daniel Ellsberg contends that U.S. participation in Vietnam had begun in 1945 when it gave support to a French effort to reconquer its colony in Vietnam, a nation which had just declared independence in August 1945.
 ==Background==
-Indochina was a French colony during the 19th century. When [[Imperial Japan]] invaded during World War II, the Viet Minh opposed them with support from the US, the Soviet Union and China. They received some Japanese arms when Japan surrendered. The Viet Minh, a Communist-led common front under the leadership of [[Hồ Chí Minh]], then initiated an insurgency against French rule. Hostilities escalated into the First Indochina War (beginning in December 1946). By the 1950s, the conflict had become entwined with the Cold War. In January 1950, China and the Soviet Union recognized the Viet Minh's Democratic Republic of Vietnam, based in Hanoi, as the legitimate government of Vietnam. The following month the United States and Great Britain recognized the French-backed State of Vietnam in Saigon, led by former Emperor Bảo Đại (and later by [[Ngô Đình Diệm]]), as the legitimate Vietnamese government. The outbreak of the [[Korean War]] in June 1950 convinced many Washington policymakers that the war in Indochina was an example of communist expansionism directed by the Soviet Union, with North Korean premier [[Kim Il-sung]] providing support to his communist allies in North Vietnam, while the anti-communist South Korean regimes of [[Syngman Rhee]] and his successor [[Park Chung Hee]] backed South Vietnam.
+Indochina was a French colony during the 19th century. When [[Imperial Japan]] invaded during World War II, the Viet Minh opposed them with support from the US, the Soviet Union and China. They received some Japanese arms when Japan surrendered. The Viet Minh, a Communist-led common front under the leadership of [[Hồ Chí Minh]], then initiated an insurgency against French rule. Hostilities escalated into the First Indochina War (beginning in December 1946). By the 1950s, the conflict had become entwined with the Cold War. In January 1950, China and the Soviet Union recognized the Viet Minh's Democratic Republic of Vietnam, based in Hanoi, as the legitimate government of Vietnam. The following month the United States and Great Britain recognized the French-backed State of Vietnam in Saigon, led by former Emperor [[Bảo Đại]] (and later by [[Ngô Đình Diệm]]), as the legitimate Vietnamese government. The outbreak of the [[Korean War]] in June 1950 convinced many Washington policymakers that the war in Indochina was an example of communist expansionism directed by the Soviet Union, with North Korean premier [[Kim Il-sung]] providing support to his communist allies in North Vietnam, while the anti-communist South Korean regimes of [[Syngman Rhee]] and his successor [[Park Chung Hee]] backed South Vietnam.
 Military advisors from the [[Communist Party of China]], under orders from [[Mao Zedong]], began assisting the Viet Minh in July 1950. Chinese weapons, expertise, and laborers transformed the Viet Minh from a guerrilla force into a regular army. In September 1950, the United States created a Military Assistance and Advisory Group (MAAG) to screen French requests for aid, advise on strategy, and train Vietnamese soldiers. By 1954, the United States had spent US$1 billion in support of the French military effort, shouldering 80 percent of the cost of the war.