HIS344Y1 Chapter 13: Regional Conflicts
Document Summary
South had not actually signed - diem didn"t think he had to follow. 1960 - north vietnam wants to overthrow regime. Set up nlf - national liberation front ("viet cong") 1961 thompson arrives in south vietnam as british military adviser. Usa thought that diem could emulate the successful counterinsurgency campaigns. Didn"t know what was going on in reality. Usa violated this - arms shipments to coalition government in. North vietnamese troops patrolled ho chi minh trail in eastern laos. Civil war between catholic minority in power and restive buddhist majority. Americans tried to get diem to make concessions to appease war. Conspiracy in white house to remove diem from power - murdered. Drastic increase of military power from usa in south. Used gulf of tonkin as pretext for increase. Operation rolling thunder did not much to damage north. North attack using conventional - were not a match for american artillery. Lost tons of men - suffered for years.
