Carter on Vietnam: “The Destruction Was Mutual”
The President’s News Conference, March 24, 1977 Ed Bradley [CBS News]: Q. Mr. President, on the subject of Vietnam, if you feel the United States is not obligated to uphold the terms of the Paris Peace Accords because of the North Vietnamese offensive that overthrew the South Vietnamese Government, do you feel, on the other […]
NSC-124: US Objectives in Southeast Asia
Hi! Here’s an interesting document from the Foreign Relations of the United States, 1952-1954, East Asia and the Pacific, Volume XII, Part 1. NSC-124 – Report to the National Security Council by the Executive Secretary, Top Secret, Washington, June 25, 1952 Statement of Policy by the National Security Council on United States Objectives and Courses […]
The Cruelty Behind the Truman Doctrine
The Truman Doctrine was an American foreign policy whose stated purpose was to counter Soviet geopolitical expansion during the Cold War. It was announced to Congress by President Harry S. Truman on March 12, 1947, and further developed on July 4, 1948, when he pledged to contain threats in Greece and Turkey. Here are the […]
Pentagon Papers – Gulf of Tonkin Resolution and U.S. War Aims
Hi. I promise, this should be my last article on the Pentagon Papers. I wanted to make note of something which I found to be very interesting. The Gulf of Tonkin Resolution was a joint resolution that the United States Congress passed on August 7, 1964, in response to the Gulf of Tonkin incident. It […]
Ho Chi Minh Falls for U.S. Propaganda
From 1945-1946, Ho Chi Minh and his government reached out to the United States on numerous occasions to ask for help in resolving the problem of Indochina. Ho forwarded to the Secretary of State the DRV Declaration of Independence, Bao Dai’s abdication rescript, general DRV foreign policy declarations, and its expressed position on the war […]
Pentagon Papers: Vietnam’s Declaration of Independence
Pentagon Papers, Volume 1, B-33 – B-34: On 26 August in a ceremony at Hue, the Emperor Bao Dai relinquished his power to Ho Chi Minh’s representatives. He spoke of “mighty democratic forces in the north of Our Realm,” and of apprehension that “conflict between the North and the South should be inevitable.” To avoid […]
The Pentagon Papers – A Detailed Summary of the First Three Volumes
Hi. I wanted to share some of the key statements from the first three volumes of the Pentagon Papers. This will give you a strong foundation when discussing the Vietnam War. MEMORANDUM FOR THE SECRETARY OF DEFENSE DATE: 15 January 1969SUBJECT: Final Report, OSD Vietnam Task Force On June 17, 1967, Secretary Robert S. McNamara directed […]