Starting in 1965, China sent anti-aircraft units and engineering battalions to North Vietnam to repair the damage caused by American bombing, man anti-aircraft batteries, rebuild roads and railroads, transport supplies, and perform other engineering works. China accepted 250,000 people. which intended to find a treatment for malaria to provide the assistance to the PAVN who suffered malaria. The war was central to the 1972 U.S. presidential election as Nixon's opponent, George McGovern, campaigned on immediate withdrawal. At the 1954 Geneva peace conference, Vietnam was temporarily partitioned at the 17th parallel. [169] In the two-year period following Tet, the PAVN had begun its transformation from a fine light-infantry, limited mobility force into a high-mobile and mechanised combined arms force.[169]:189. War inadvertently brings with it this need to create something better, and the need to research new technologies to solve problems, which in turn brings about some very unexpected results and innovations. [A 8]. [134] With this recommendation, Westmoreland was advocating an aggressive departure from America's defensive posture and the sidelining of the South Vietnamese. "[139][verification needed] As a result, training programs were shortened. [348] In 2012, the United States and Vietnam began a cooperative cleaning up of the toxic chemical on part of Danang International Airport, marking the first time Washington has been involved in cleaning up Agent Orange in Vietnam. [303][A 9] However, in the years following the war, a vast number of South Vietnamese were sent to re-education camps where many endured torture, starvation, and disease while being forced to perform hard labor. Most Asian countries were unwilling to accept these refugees, many of whom fled by boat and were known as boat people. [27], The military forces of South Vietnam suffered an estimated 254,256 killed between 1960 and 1974 and additional deaths from 1954 to 1959 and in 1975. By using ThoughtCo, you accept our, Timeline of the Vietnam War (Second Indochina War), Top Essentials to Know About the Vietnam War, Biography of Ho Chi Minh, President of North Vietnam. 4, p. 7. [195] Congress refused. [32]:479 During one battle, Peter Arnett reported an infantry commander saying of the Battle of Bến Tre (laid to rubble by U.S. attacks) that "it became necessary to destroy the village in order to save it. [32]:514 After news reports of American military abuses, such as the 1968 My Lai Massacre, brought new attention and support to the anti-war movement, some veterans joined Vietnam Veterans Against the War. [8] This decision was made at the 11th Plenary Session of the Lao Dong Central Committee. Other aerial campaigns, such as Operation Barrel Roll, targeted different parts of the Viet Cong and PAVN infrastructure. Liked it? [32]:714 After having appealed unsuccessfully to Congress for $700 million in emergency aid for South Vietnam, President Ford had given a televised speech on 23 April, declaring an end to the Vietnam War and all U.S. aid. [32]:649–63 Nixon pressured Thieu to accept the terms of the agreement, threatening to conclude a bilateral peace deal and cut off American aid while promising an air-response in case of invasion. The military revolutionary council, meeting in lieu of a strong South Vietnamese leader, was made up of 12 members.
