Did America lose the Vietnam War?
The US did not lose in Vietnam. This is a peculiar myth.
Wars start with a declaration of war or in the case of the United States, sometimes with a Congressionally issued “authorization for the use of military force.” Wars end when a peace treaty is signed.
War for the United States was formally declared (in the form of an AUMF) following the Gulf of Tonkin incident.[1] There are many who suggest this was a “false flag” or just an outright lie designed to bring the US to war. However, I would counter with two points:
- the conspiracy itself appears to be little more than the government not admitting that they discovered *after* the fact that there was no engagement on that night…not that the US Navy intentionally set out to drum up a war by claiming to have been attacked…they thought they were under attack, they reported it as such, and when they discovered the error they reported it (with less enthusiasm) and the Administration failed to publicize this correction.
- This was the *second* night of engagements with the first night being undisputed. The North Vietnamese Navy did engage the US Navy. It was a completely one-sided affair and the US Navy was hardly in danger but it doesn’t change the facts of the matter. Furthermore, most accounts of the Gulf of Tonkin “conspiracy” ignore the fact that the North Vietnamese had already sunk a US “aircraft carrier” (and were so proud of that fact, they put it on their stamps).[2]
The United States Congress authorized the use of military force, fulfilling their requirements for the declaration of war. (Gulf of Tonkin Resolution)
However, the AUMF allows for a more restricted boundaries on how far the war can go and what actions can be taken.[3] [4] In this case, the intent was only to defend South Vietnam and not to actually conquer or destroy North Vietnam. There was considerable fear that as in Korea, an attack on Vietnam would result in direct involvement by the Chinese and/or Soviets. Having already played that game once in Korea, the decision was made to minimize the overall objectives of the conflict to just a defensive one.
It was a form of restraint on the part of the US and an intent to minimize the potential for an escalation in what was now a fully nuclear world. Remember, China tested its first nuclear weapon in 1964, just one year prior to the Gulf of Tonkin resolution. There was no longer a place in the world for open ended war. Congress chose the best possible option which was to limit the conflict to a defensive struggle over a fixed boundary.
Nine years later, the war ended.
On January 27, 1973, the United States, South Vietnam, and North Vietnam signed the Paris Peace Accords.[5] The lead negotiators for the US and North Vietnam were awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for their efforts.
After the 1968 Tet Offensive, the Viet Cong in the South had been crushed. Tet was intended to be a popular uprising, inspiring the People to rise up against their corrupt government. This did not happen. Instead, the VC were hunted down and eliminated. For the next two years, the insurgency was targeted and eliminated. By 1970, all of the population centers of the South were in the control of the South Vietnamese government, villages were protected by the RUF/PUF, and there was very little danger travelling even in the country-side. The insurgency had been defeated. There was no question. Every metric supported it. (Civil Operations and Revolutionary Development Support, http://www.au.af.mil/au/awc/awcg...)
In 1972, North Vietnam attempted to seize the south via the “Easter Offensive.” This was after all major US ground units had re-deployed from the country. Vietnamization had taken over as the primary policy and the ARVN was on their own on the ground. They were, however, supported by US air and naval gun fires. The North Vietnamese invasion was stopped in its tracks. They were beaten so badly they had no choice but to withdrawal and to sue for peace. It would be THREE years, during which time they were not being bombed by the US, before they would be able to mount another attack. (North Vietnamese Army’s 1972 Eastertide Offensive, The Enemy Spring Offensive of 1972)
The North Vietnamese had agreed to some of the principles in 1972 but as the formal signing approached, they balked. The North Vietnamese position had always been that the South Vietnamese government was illegitimate and that South Vietnam as a country had no right to exist. So they refused to go to Paris to sign the final accords.
The US launched Operation Linebacker II in December of 1972. Within weeks, the North Vietnamese not only agreed to return to Paris but they completely backed off their demands. They formally recognized the South Vietnamese government. They acknowledge the South Vietnamese state’s right to exist. They agreed to halt all military actions in and against the South and they agreed to allow the South Vietnamese people to choose their own future. All of these were demands they were compelled to agree to. They had no ability to force their own demands on the US or South Vietnam. Their insurgency had been crushed. Their conventional invasion had been halted. There was nothing more for them to do.
So on 27 JAN 1973, the war ended. Which means, the draft also ended. Which means Congress was no longer funding a war in South Vietnam. That’s how wars work. Once you sign the peace treaty, all the money and resources committed to the war are by definition ended. So the US withdrew its military forces with the understanding that North Vietnam was not going to attack South Vietnam.
To monitor all parties’ adherence to the Paris Peace Accords, the International Commission of Control and Supervision was created. It was made up of four neutral nations, two from communist states: Hungary and Poland and two from non-communist states: Indonesia and Canada.
Despite frequent protests by Canada regarding North Vietnam’s violations of the accords and their apparent preparations to invade South Vietnam, the international community took no actions. Frustrated by the impotence of the ICCS, Canada resigned and was replaced by Mexico. Despite continued violations including North Vietnam’s invasion beginning in December 1974, the international community took no action. They leveraged no complaints. They did nothing to enforce the internationally recognized peace treaty.
In December 1974, North Vietnam launched a “third” Indochina war, invading South Vietnam. In violation of their formally recognized peace agreement. Without any implications from the international community.
There were NO US military forces in South Vietnam. There were no air strikes. There was no naval gunfire. The US war with North Vietnam ended on 27 JAN 1973. They were no longer belligerents. The US was not fighting in this war.
So how did the US lose a war it was not party to? It is the equivalent of saying France lost to Israel in the 6 Day War since it had at one time been involved in that region.
The South Vietnamese absolutely lost their war with North Vietnam. The US was not a party to that war. The war the US fought ended with a peace treaty in which the North Vietnamese gave into US demands. In which the US had achieved its objective and in which the North Vietnamese did not.
In a sports analogy, the final whistle blew. The points on the score board showed the US had won the game. The US players went to the locker room. They changed into their street clothes. They drove home. The North Vietnamese waited until they were gone and then started scoring goals again. Except the game was already over.
In February 2016, the Denver Broncos won the Super Bowl. This does not change the fact that the Pittsburgh Steelers beat the Broncos on December 20th. The Broncos ultimately went on to beat the Panthers to be the Super Bowl champions but on the Steelers win/loss chart, it shows a win against the Broncos.
North Vietnam ultimately achieved their objectives. They defeated South Vietnam and re-unified their country by force (in a blatant violation of an internationally recognized peace treaty).
They still did not defeat the US.
This isn’t a matter of semantics. This isn’t “moving goal posts.” The US was not at war with North Vietnam in 1975. They had signed a peace treaty which was entirely in the US’s favor. The war was over and the US won. The 1975 war was separate from the US’s involvement from 1964 to 1973.
In 1974–1975, the President of the US was being impeached for Watergate. His replacement was unelected. Ford became President because he was Vice President. He became Vice President because the Vice President had to resign over criminal allegations. So he was a President who was not elected, who had no mandate from the electorate and he did not feel he had the right to execute his War Powers. Given the troubles of the Executive Branch at the time, there was little incentive for Congress to support anything he asked for and the US public was generally unsympathetic to the plight of the Vietnamese at this point.
This was also the end of the oil problems in the Middle East as prices began finally began to drop. Terrorism in Europe was becoming a big concern.CIA was being investigate for domestic issues. So America had many other focuses at this time.
Add to this, there was some expectation that the international community would do something about the North Vietnamese invasion beginning in December 1974 and yet nobody did anything. The entire world was tired of the war and was ready to abandon the South Vietnamese.
Technology did defeat North Vietnam. The more advanced military did prevail.
North Vietnam defeated South Vietnam only *after* South Vietnam ran out of ammo. Until then, the South held the North at bay. While North Vietnam was resupplied for two years by the Soviets and the Chinese, the South was not resupplied at all.
As for the rest of your drivel, you still don’t understand the question.
Did the US win the Vietnam War? Yes. It did. There is no question of that. The US did not fight North Vietnam in the third iteration of the war when it only fought South Vietnam. There was no loss there.
“At the end” only counts if you mean when the US was no longer involved. In which case, your argument makes no sense. The US forced North Vietnam to the negotiation table. It forced North Vietnam to agree provisions that they did not want.
The US did not “chicken out.” North Vietnam violated an peace treaty that was being enforced by the international community. The President at the time, had no authority to send the US back to war base on his estimate given that he was never elected to the presidency. Congress doesn’t send the military to war, it only declares war at the request of the President.
Here were the Objectives for both sides
- US Objective: The Tonkin Gulf Resolution stated that “Congress approves and supports the determination of the President, as Commander in Chief, to take all necessary measures to repeal any armed attack against the forces of the United States and to prevent any further aggression.” (Tonkin Gulf Resolution (1964)). (1) The United States of America is joined with the people and Government of Vietnam to prevent aggression. This is the purpose of the determined effort of the American armed forces now engaged in Vietnam. (The Declaration of Honolulu.)
- North Vietnamese Objective: The goals of the North Vietnamese in South Vietnam are summarized in Ho Chi Minh’s three-point battle cry: “Defend the North, Free the South, and Unite the Country.” (Analysis of North Vietnamese Goals and Failures)
- Result: North Vietnam, South Vietnam and the United States signed the Paris Peace Accords on 27 January 1973 which recognized South Vietnam’s government as legitimate, agreed to allow the South Vietnamese people to decide their own fate, and sought a peaceful resolution for the potential of re-unification. The US achieved its objective. North Vietnam did not achieve its objective. (In violation of this peace agreement, the North Vietnamese initiated a new war against South Vietnam, to which the US was not party, and forcibly seized Saigon. This was a separate war from the one which the three nations signed a peace treaty to end.) The US and its allies won.
Sources:
Re-printed with permission by original author BK Price
