This study examines the origins of the Vietnam War itself, going back to the nature of French colonial rule in the early 20th century. It investigates the original conflict between France, as well as the United States, and the forces of Vietnamese nationalism and communism.
It argues that it was probably a mistake for the United States to internationalize the war in 1954 and it discusses the American commitment to the war, directed as much against China as against North Vietnam and the ideological hostility to communism.
Author(s): A. Short
Series: Origins Of Modern Wars
Publisher: Routledge
Year: 1989
Language: English
Pages: 363
City: New York
Cover
Half Title
Title Page
Copyright Page
Table of Contents
Editor's Foreword
Preface and Acknowledgements
Map
Prologue
Chapter 1. Ho Chi Minh and the French: National Communism? 1920-1946
The nature of French colonial rule
The influence of Japan and China on Vietnamese nationalism
Ho Chi Minh
Abortive revolution
Patriotism and the peasantry
China and the United States: sponsors of Vietnamese independence
The Japanese coup
The August revolution
Conflict in the south
Freedom and the French Union
Agreement or disagreement?
Flashpoints
Chapter 2. Acheson and the entangling alliance: 1946-1952
The inclination to intervene: hope of a negotiated settlement
The French connection
Division in the State Department?
A communist offensive in South-East Asia?
The Chinese connection
No alternative: the Bao Dai solution
Aid to Indo-China
The Melby-Erskine Mission
The Chinese shadow
One war?
De Lattre's comet
Chapter 3. Dulles at the brink: 1952-1954
Replacing the French
Identifying the target
Visions of victory
Congressional interests
War plans
Dien Bien Phu and the question of intervention
Bluff?
China: the sufficient cause?
The British obstacle
The case for intervention
No acceptable settlement
Chapter 4. The Ashes of Geneva: 1954
Intervention still an option
The United States v. China
Mendès France arrives
A salvage operation
Seven conditions for a settlement
Ngo Dinh Diem
An imposed agreement
Curiosities of the Final Declaration
Elections and responsibilities
Chapter 5. Diem and the National Liberation Front: 1954-1960
The status of South Vietnam
Sponsored opportunity
Sympathy for Diem
Doubts and commitment
The Collins mission
'A synthetic strong man'
Diem on the rocks
A reprieve
Advisers and critics
South Vietnam as an American dependency
'Adverse trends'
Emergence of the NLF
Decision in Hanoi
Chapter 6. Kennedy's Frontier: Wars of National Liberation: 1961-1963
Laos
Khrushchev's challenge?
Kennedy's commitment
Johnson goes to Vietnam
Pragmatic resolve and limited partnership
Rusk and McNamara agree
Kennedy's doubts
Counter-insurgency
Strategic hamlets
Irreducible optimism
The problem of Diem
The coup
Chapter 7. Johnson's Choice: 1963-1965
The Khanh coup
Debate and decision in Hanoi
'The most critical situation'
War plans
Tonkin Gulf
How to help the South
'Off to the races'
Was the US at war?
The point of no return
Consensus
Conclusion
Sources and Further Reading
Index
