Overivew of Vietnam War

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Recommended: Media coverage of the Vietnam war

Between the cessation of the Second World War and the onset of the 21st Century, the United States of America and the Soviet Union were embroiled in a geopolitical standoff known as the Cold War. In this international “game” of strategic maneuvers and incidents, both nations attempted to assert their influence over other states in what was essentially an ideological clash between democracy/capitalism and communism/socialism. Although the Cold War did not involve a full-scale, direct military confrontation between both powers, this notion manifested itself in the form of proxy wars and sub-conflicts. The United States and the Soviet Union backed countries that aligned with their respective interests, and through financial, political, and military support, played these countries against one another. Thus, the Cold War contestants used these alternate methods to combat one another without engaging in a costly war. One of these proxy war battlegrounds was situated in Vietnam as a Communist North Vietnam (USSR ally) contended with a non-communist South Vietnam (US ally). For almost twenty years, the United States and its allies fought a protracted war to defend South Vietnam from what they perceived to be unjust communist aggression. Although their endeavor to do so was futile, and Vietnam was reunified under a Communist regime, the war contained much significance in terms of geopolitical and international contexts.

In light of this, the Vietnam War was a major Cold War incident that propelled the United States into combating communist elements within Southeast Asia. The conflict was associated with the trend of decolonization that occurred following the cessation of the Second World War, aligned itself with the United States’ object...

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...y , Vol. 15, No. 11 (Nov., 1975), pp. 915-939

2) *The Nationalist Dilemma in Vietnam

J. R. Clementin

Pacific Affairs , Vol. 23, No. 3 (Sep., 1950), pp. 294-310

3) *The Second Indochina War

Bernard B. Fall

International Affairs (Royal Institute of International Affairs 1944-) , Vol. 41, No. 1 (Jan., 1965), pp. 59-73

4) *The Cold War and Vietnam

George C. Herring

OAH Magazine of History , Vol. 18, No. 5, Vietnam (Oct., 2004), pp. 18-21

5) Johnson, Lyndon B. “President Johnson’s Message to Congress (Tonkin Gulf Incident).” PBS. PBS, 29 Mar. 2005. Web 10 Dec. 2013

6) Johnson, Lyndon B. “Speech on Vietnam (September 29, 1967).” Millercenter.org. University of Virginia, n.d. Web. 6 Dec 2013

7) Murray, Stuart. Vietnam War. New York: DK, 2005. Print.

8) “Battlefield: Vietnam Timeline.” PBS. PBS, n.d Web. 08 Dec. 2013.

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