Vietnam

3/1/24

Overview

Over seventy years ago, France, under pressure from Soviet-backed forces, ended its colonial control of Vietnam.  Thereafter, the U.S. increased its troop presence in the region, an escalation that led to the Vietnam War. Over half a century after US withdrawal, Vietnam is a very different country with a bustling economy and relatively friendly relations with the United States. Join Active Minds as we take a look back at the evolution of Vietnam with a particular focus on its relationship with its neighbor China.

Key Lecture Points

  • Beginning in 1954, the United States began a two-decade commitment to fighting communist forces in Vietnam.  An integral part of Cold War strategy, the Vietnam War was intended to keep the Asian “dominoes” from falling to communism.  For ten years, the US supported anti-communist forces in Vietnam by sending an increasing number of military aid and advisors.  In 1965, after an incident in the Gulf of Tonkin the previous year, the US escalated engagement in Vietnam, sending ground troops. By 1968, 540,000 US soldiers were committed to the conflict and the American public was becoming increasingly uneasy and angry.  The Vietnam War spanned 4 presidencies (Eisenhower, Kennedy, Johnson, Nixon), 2 decades, and resulted in the loss of 58,000 American lives.  Ultimately in 1975, South Vietnam did indeed fall to the Communist government of the North.
  • From the Vietnamese perspective, the American War (as they call it) was one in a long line of conflicts against foreign powers.  Having fought off the Chinese for centuries and France for 100 years, the war with the US was yet another war for Vietnamese independence.  The spirit of resistance, grown in the Vietnamese population through centuries of opposition to outside control, enabled North Vietnamese Communists to outlast the US in the protracted conflict.  Further, a history of civil war also presaged the 20th century division between North and South.
  • Today, US-Vietnamese relations are relatively friendly, with trade and political ties strengthening.   Vietnam sees the US as a counterweight to Chinese expansionism in the South China Sea.  The US is the largest investor in Vietnam and Vietnam’s largest trading partner. 
  • Much like China, Vietnam has, since the mid-1980s, embarked upon a program of economic reform along capitalist lines.  One of the fastest growing economies in Southeast Asia, Vietnam is predicted to be among the world’s 20 largest economies by 2050 because of its large population, growing consumer class and rich natural resources.  It is attractive to investors because of its low labor costs—50% of China.    Although economic reforms are increasingly forthcoming, Vietnam remains a one-party communist state, where political dissent and religious freedom is suppressed.

Discussion Questions

  • What are the major themes in Vietnamese history? How did they play into the war with the United States?
  • Describe the current relationship between the US and Vietnam.
  • How do you think the Vietnam War changed American society?
  • In what ways were the experiences of US Vietnam veterans similar to the experiences of US veterans in other wars?  In what way were they different?

More to Explore

Books for Further Reading

  • Ninh, Bao (with Phan T. Hao, translator). The Sorrow of War: A Novel of North Vietnam. Riverhead Books, 1996. 240 pages. This novel is the first published about the Vietnam War from the perspective of the North Vietnamese. Critics have hailed it as the best book to come out of the Vietnam War, and perhaps one of the greatest war novels of the 20th century.
  • Marlantes, Karl.  Matterhorn: A Novel of the Vietnam War. Grove Press, 2011.  640 pages. Written by a Vietnam veteran, this novel describes what it is like to be a young man at war, telling a universal story of courage, camaraderie and sacrifice.
  • Appy, Christian G. American Reckoning: The Vietnam War and Our National Identity.  Viking Adult, 2015. 416 pages.  This is a historical examination of the forces that shaped our foreign policy in Vietnam and the consequences of the war.