morales_p_b

=B. Summary of Evidence (500-600 words) Tips]=


 * 1) Summary of Evidence

With the end of the Second World War in Europe in 1945, the problems started in Indochina. The French had controlled the region since 1887 when they annexed it during the 3rd republic[1]. The War had left severe sequels in France and the French couldn’t hold on to their overseas colonies (especially Indochina which was half a globe away) [quote]. In 1945, the Vietminh[2] (after defeating the Japanese invaders) seized the northern capital Hanoi and proclaimed the independence of Vietnam (North). The French however with their pride under threat were not willing to give up so easily, and in 1946 a civil war of independence was fought between the Vietminh and the French colonial forces. After eight years of fighting it was clearer to the French that victory was impossible against a guerrilla based opponent and at such a high economic, human and political cost [quote]. After the Dien Bien Phu battle[3], General Henri Delteil[4] was forced to accord the Geneva Agreement with Ho Chin Minh[5]. In the Geneva agreements the two sides agreed on a permanent ceasefire, on the independence of Laos and Cambodia, and on the temporary division of Vietnam at the 17th Parallel between North and South.

The US didn’t see the 1954 conference with good eyes[6] and were very unsatisfied with its outcome. The South of Vietnam was left under the control of the Bao Dai[7], but was soon handed to the statesman Ngo Dinh Diem[8]. As it was expectable, the US transferred all its support to the South Vietnamese government in the hope to avoid the spread of communism to the neighbouring countries [quote]. President Eisenhower was determined to undertake a more hard-line foreign policy than his predecessor Truman. As it had been done in the past during the French occupation, Eisenhower decided to pour vast amounts of money into the Asian Nation[9] but refused to send any US troops. J.F. Kennedy, his successor, stayed in the same lines as Eisenhower but decided to go further and sent military advisers to Vietnam in order to stand up against the Guerrilla Warfare in the North. When Kennedy was assassinated, Lyndon Johnson used the Gulf of Tonkin Incident[10] in 1964 in the congress to obtain permission to declare war to North Vietnam. By 1966[11], 1,213 million dollars were spent on economic aid, and 631.5 million dollars were spent on military aid. When Nixon’s administration took over the country, the White House faced the same problems[12] as Johnson. In order to resolve these last in the measure of possible, Nixon put forward the “Vietnamisation” policy. This was a policy introduced in 1969 of handing over the fighting of the communists to the army of South Vietnam. With the policy of “Vietnamisation” Nixon was able to reduce his troops from 415,000 to 47,000 in only two years[13]. In 1972, after the North’s Easter Offensive, the two sides finally agreed to sit down to the negotiation table[14].

The two main negotiators during the Peace Talks were Henry Kissinger[15] and Le Duc Tho[16]. During three years of secret negotiations, the North Vietnamese government demanded the removal of Nguyen Van Thieu[17], without which no agreement could be reached. However, Kissinger remained firm and refused to overthrow the government in Saigon. It was not until 1972, when the Easter Offensive failed that Tho radically changed his position and Kissinger was able to entail the path through the development of a final settlement. Less than two weeks later, a final draft was established, and Kissinger held a press conference in Washington. However, Thieu had not been informed about the Peace Talks, and was outraged by it. In a radio broadcast, Thieu announced that he refused to accept the Accords, as a result, the Hanoi government was scandalised by the affair and broke all the negotiations. Back at home, US domestic support for war had worsened, and Nixon was put against the chords by the congress to end the War. In the early 1973 the US put a great amount of pressure on the Saigon government to sign the Paris Accords. On January 23 1973, Kissinger and Tho met again to sign of the Treaty who would later be signed by the Leaders of both countries in the Paris Majestic Hotel on January the 27th 1973.

[Word Count: 1101]

[1] The **3rd Republic** was the political regime established in France by … in 1871 that succeeded Napoleonic 2nd Empire. [2] The **Vietminh** was a communist founded organisation of nationalist Vietnamese militiaman lead by Ho Chi Minh that fought to rid their country from foreign rule. [3] The **Dien Bien Phu Battle** was one of the last and bloodiest battle during the Vietnam War of independence that took place from March 13th to May 7th 1954 where more than 16000 French soldiers were killed. [4] The **General Henri Delteil** represented the government of Mendès-France under the presidency of René Coty who didn’t attend to the 1954 Geneva agreement. [5] **Ho Chin Minh** was the founder and first president of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam, he was also a fervent communist [6] The US only attended to Geneva as spectator because they didn’t recognize the People Republic of China and said that although they would not upset the treaty, they made some form about future involvements [7] The emperor **Bao Dai** soon dismissed his responsibilities towards his country and was replaced [8] **Ngo Dinh Diem** was catholic capitalists that had served for the French administration in Vietnam during their occupation before becoming the president of South Vietnam. [9] From 1953 to 57, the American Giant spent 823.3 million dollars on economic aid in Vietnam [10] The **Gulf of Tonkin Incident** occurred in 1964 when a North Vietnamese patrol fired at a US destroyer named Maddox [11] Figures from the year 1964 to 66 [12] The main problems where: The public opinion didn’t want a war thousands kilometers from home. The war was being too onerous for the US and was giving no result. The SEATO (South East Asian Organization) failed. The Army was starting to become misbehaved and unprofessional. The war was giving too much bad press to the US in the rest of the World, and mainly, Communists where winning over the US in Vietnam. [13] From 1970 to 72 [14]Officially, the negotiations started (and ended) in 1972, but Kissinger and Tho had been entailing secret talks to find a common field of agreement since 1969 (if not earlier during Johnson administration) [15]**Dr. Henry Kissinger** was the United States Security Advisor during Nixon’s presidency [16]**Le Duc Tho** was a North Vietnamese politburo member [17]**Nguyen Van Thieu** was the South Vietnamese President in Saigon