France Occupation in Vietnam and Cold War between US and USSR

Introduction

The occupation of France in the state of Vietnam has provided ways for the start of the cold war between the two superpowers of the world. The democratic and the communist forces have devised their plan to protect their interest in the region. The involvement of the United States in Vietnam began in the years of the nineteen fifty and reached its heights in the nineteen sixty. Countering the increasing influence of US the Soviet Union also got involved in saving its interest in the region. The Moscow was mostly concerned about its credibility, and as a superpower, it was necessary to apply the national and international legitimacy. The war in Vietnam had led to the cold war between the two democratic and communism forces from America and Russia.

Discussion

The Vietnamese were consistently demanding independence from the colonization of France. They prepared their cruel forces to achieve separation from the land of France. During the years of nineteen forty-five after the bloody war when France formally surrendered before the Allies one of the famous leader Ho Chi Minh announced the independence of Vietnam (Appy, 2016).^[1] With the realignment of the Allies, it was the unbearable situation for France to continue the war with opponents. The state was also unable to combat the internal anti-French resistance war and hence prefer to surrender before the Allies.

Conflict of Vietnam was not national, or between the two allies, it was an international dispute where the number of actors involved. China also play its role as it also has certain interest^[2]. The chaotic atmosphere of Vietnam around the Second World War has brought the attention of China, US, France and the Russian States (Asselin, 2016). Every state was fighting for their interest. In the same way, France was consistently losing its control as the guerrilla forces of the Viet Minh have taken control over major parts of the territory. The United States observing the situation became furious, and chief of joint staff of American forces have proposed nuclear strike in the Vietnam^[3] (Boyle, 2015). The massive Viet artillery barrage had attacked the French forces to which they cannot afford, and the tide of the battle was the move against France.

Around sixteen hundred soldiers were killed by the guerrilla forces of the Viet Minh. The same number of soldiers were missing, and five thousand were injured in the war. The war at the Dien was the last involvement of France in the affairs of the Southeast Asia (Fear, 2017). The financial and the military humiliation was unbearable for the French^[4]. The complete surrender of France came out in the Geneva Convention in the years of the nineteen fifty-four. However, during the war, France has sought the number of time the help of the US. The appeal made by South Vietnam and the Nixon policy of containment to the ideology has invited the US to play its role.

Drive by the human nature of suppressing and containing other the US has faced severe loss in the war of Vietnam. It was the guilt of the US to provide the communism and those ideas that belonged to socialist Russia. The breaking out of the communist through sending military forces in Vietnam was considered by the advisors a big mistake (Hartman, 2015). After the independence of Vietnam, the US despite it had defeat continuously assist the rebels against the communist governments^[5]. The surrender of the North Korea towards the south has further aggravated the situation and bound the US forces to bear the unfulfilled loss. The basic fear that overwhelms in the minds of Americans was the increasing spread of the communist ideas and the thought around the globe.

Before the official announcement for the war in Vietnam, there was the significant effect over the nationals of the US. The American was systematically educating about all the dangers that might influence the ideologies of the US. However after the detail discussion and the negotiation between Vietnam and the America Paris peace accord was signed (Jones, 2014). The agreement was not fulfilled initially by the South Vietnam to which President Nixon had ordered for the massive bombing and assure that they will protect the North region of Vietnam. After the agreement with the senior advisors of the US, the north area surrendered their forces but consistently receive the aid form the states of Russia and the China^[6].

For the military and the defensive capability of the North, Vietnam soviet have provided them the large-scale training along with the increase arms. The communist block also helps them in promoting political and the economic strength (Nguyen, 2016). Similarly, after the signing of the Geneva agreement, Vietnam was required assurance regarding its political and the independence^[7]. The Vietnamese after observing the situation again initiated talk with the western states for further correspondence in the agreement and other negotiation. They decided to end the war with the US by implying the diplomatic means in nineteen seventy-two. They successfully negotiated with the American and made it assure that the outcomes and the struggle for revolution will not spare.

The hostility was remained in the relation of the US and Vietnam because of the factor that the later does not want to surrender arm struggles (Nye 2015). The conflict ultimately ended until the time the South was liberated completely. On the other hand, the administration in the United States was also not wise and mature^[8]. The calculation regarding the skills came out as the war, and the negotiation came through the diplomatic measures that require highly professional leadership. The president of the US was not able to realize the ground situation for the winning of the war. The Nixon administration has put the loss of the war over the citizens and arm forces of America.

Nixon was one of the controversial and the problematic president in the history of US^[9]. The number of the supporters lauded his foreign policy initiatives. Those are the relationship building with the china launching of the defensive strikes against the Soviet Union. They also hail him for the end of the war with Vietnam and his ending of the American participation in the war. Many supporters also applaud the ideological and the pragmatic approach of the president supporters. The playing of the China card to interact with Russia for smooth and the valuable relations. All the services and the contribution of the president vanished away with the emergence of one of the worst political scandal of the American history (Page, 2016). His policies might be a great lesson for the next generation of leaders but went away before recorded in the history.

The policies and the decisions of the president are good but not relevant with nature and the manner in which he can bargain much more^[10]. Certain dealing reveals that he just gave up on the agreement of the strategic arms limitations. Moreover, the anti-war sentiment was persisting at that time in the US. It was the national voice to focus on home and not to indulge in the war of Vietnam. The opposition to the Vietnam War was there in the nineteen sixty-four which progressively became a national movement (Paterson, 2014). With the play cards of the getting the hell out of Vietnam the demonstrator demanded the getting out of the hell of the war.

The movement against the war has shaped the polarized and the vigorous debate in the country. Many people including the anti-establishment hippies along with mothers and the students have participated in the opposition of war. The unions of the African American, Chicano, women movements and other sectors of the organized labor have also contributed in restraining the administration not to indulge in the war^[11]. The Tet offensive and the rising of the Tet Mau Than in nineteen sixty-eight have provided an opportunity to the American forces to take part in the war (Reynolds, 2018). South Vietnam and the US regrouped and made the heavy loss to the North. The forces have also use the NAPLAM which is a mixture of the gelling agent and gasoline. It was one of the dangerous liquid that was applied in the war of Vietnam. Other than these dangerous war tools the US military has also use the Agent Orange. There is the number of people affected by the attack of Agent Orange.

The chemical is such a destructive element that it possesses certain material which destroys the genes of a human body. The red cross of Vietnam has calculated that around one million people were disabled due to the attack on US forces by implying the Agent Orange. The role was of the media highly important in the war of Vietnam. The intensive coverage of the graphics and relations of those issues with the opinion of the public was a great contribution. The US media has increased its value by progressing in the research base reporting of the news along with the professional style of interviews^[12]. They learn certain new tactics to cover the real story during the war of Vietnam (Robertson, 2017). The policy decisions of the Nixon administration was the force to follow the opinion of the public.

The United States after a massive loss from the Vietnam War began to withdraw its forces. However, the withdrawal does not bound America to get out of Vietnam completely. They left the fragile state with the proper plan. For fighting with the communist, they assign the task and the power to the South Vietnamese. Despite the signing of the Paris peace accord, the fighting continued. Similarly, in the US there was a significant movement that was in action as a counterculture and the evolution of anti-Vietnam war^[13]. The war thus changes the situation and created new gaps and relations between the south and the north (Rydstrom, 2015). The anger came from the South Vietnamese over the injustices and the unequal treatment by the occupied and influential forces. There was the number of reason which mounted the relation between the south and the northern regions. The angriness remains lasted for many decades, and people instigate the injustices in their minds. The Soviet Union was the winner, and France along with its allies were defeated by the Vietnamese.

Conclusions

Concluding the discussion, the occupation of France in Vietnam had led to the cold war between the Russia and America. The unusual and the fail occupation of France over Vietnam has invited the two superpowers of the time to confront each other. In the same way, China and the other powerful states had interest in Vietnam. The multi-power conflict among various countries on the land of Vietnam has destroyed numerous precious lives of the Vietnamese.

End Notes

Appy, Christian G. American Reckoning: The Vietnam War and Our National Identity. Penguin Books, 2016.

Asselin, Pieere. “The 1954 Geneva agreement on Vietnam and the 1973 paris agreement: diplomacy and the triumph of the vietnamese revolution.” VNU Journal of Science: Social Sciences and Humanities 22, no. 5E (2016).

Boyle, Brenda M., ed. The Vietnam War: Topics in Contemporary North American Literature. Bloomsbury Publishing, 2015.

Fear, Sean. “Saigon Goes Global: South Vietnam’s Quest for International Legitimacy in the Age of Détente.” Diplomatic History (2017).

Hartman, Andrew. A war for the soul of America: A history of the culture wars. University of Chicago Press, 2015.

Jones, Matthew. “The End of the First Indochina War: A Global History by James Waite.” Journal of Cold War Studies16, no. 1 (2014): 231-233.

Nguyen, Duong T. The United States, and Vietnam Relationship: Benefits and Challenges for Vietnam. US Army Command and General Staff College Fort Leavenworth United States, 2016.

Nye Jr, Joseph S. “The decline of America’s soft power.” In Paradoxes of Power, pp. 39-44. Routledge, 2015.

Page, Caroline. US official propaganda during the Vietnam War, 1965-1973: the limits of persuasion. Bloomsbury Publishing, 2016.

Paterson, Thomas, J. Garry Clifford, Robert Brigham, Michael Donoghue, and Kenneth Hagan. American Foreign Relations: Volume 2: Since 1895. Vol. 2. Cengage Learning, 2014.

Reynolds, Phil W. “Long Wars: Demonstrating the Corrosive Effects of Irregular Wars on the Dominant States.” Social Sciences 7, no. 1 (2018): 43-54.

Robertson, Mitchell AJ. “Richard Nixon and the Conservative Revolt against the Legal Services Program.” Australasian Journal of American Studies 36, no. 1 (2017).

Rydstrom, Helle. “Politics of colonial violence: Gendered atrocities in French-occupied Vietnam.” European Journal of Women’s Studies 22, no. 2 (2015): 191-207.

1. Appy, Christian G. American Reckoning: The Vietnam War and Our National Identity. Penguin Books, 2016. ↑
2. Asselin, Pierre. “The 1954 Geneva agreement on Vietnam and the 1973 Paris agreement: diplomacy and the triumph of the Vietnamese revolution.” VNU Journal of Science: Social Sciences and Humanities 22, no. 5E (2016). ↑
3. Boyle, Brenda M., ed. The Vietnam War: Topics in Contemporary North American Literature. Bloomsbury Publishing, 2015. ↑
4. Fear, Sean. “Saigon Goes Global: South Vietnam’s Quest for International Legitimacy in the Age of Détente.” Diplomatic History (2017). ↑
5. Hartman, Andrew. A war for the soul of America: A history of the culture wars. University of Chicago Press, 2015. ↑
6. Jones, Matthew. “The End of the First Indochina War: A Global History by James Waite.” Journal of Cold War Studies16, no. 1 (2014): 231-233. ↑
7. Nguyen, Duong T. The United States and Vietnam Relationship: Benefits and Challenges for Vietnam. US Army Command and General Staff College Fort Leavenworth United States, 2016. ↑
8. Robertson, Mitchell AJ. “Richard Nixon and the Conservative Revolt against the Legal Services Program.” Australasian Journal of American Studies 36, no. 1 (2017). ↑
9. Page, Caroline. US official propaganda during the Vietnam War, 1965-1973: the limits of persuasion. Bloomsbury Publishing, 2016. ↑
10. Paterson, Thomas, J. Garry Clifford, Robert Brigham, Michael Donoghue, and Kenneth Hagan. American Foreign Relations: Volume 2: Since 1895. Vol. 2. Cengage Learning, 2014. ↑
11. Reynolds, Phil W. “Long Wars: Demonstrating the Corrosive Effects of Irregular Wars on the Dominant States.” Social Sciences 7, no. 1 (2018): 43-54. ↑
12. Robertson, Mitchell AJ. “Richard Nixon and the Conservative Revolt against the Legal Services Program.” Australasian Journal of American Studies 36, no. 1 (2017). ↑
13. Rydstrom, Helle. “Politics of colonial violence: Gendered atrocities in French-occupied Vietnam.” European Journal of Women’s Studies 22, no. 2 (2015): 191-207. ↑