Intervention in Vietnam: President Eisenhower's Foreign Policy,
Abstract
For a period of thirty years, from 1945 to 1975, the United States employed countless numbers of financial, material, and human resources toward Vietnam in an effort to shape and control that country's political destiny. Large scale American military involvement effectively began in March of 1965, with the landing of U.S. Marines to defend DaNang airfield. By March of 1969, the number of U.S. forces alone deployed to prosecute the Vietnam War exceeded 600,000. By war's end, more than 3.5 million (estimated) combat casualties were sustained by the U.S., South, and North Vietnamese forces. How did the United States come to be involved in this Southeastern Asian nation? What political forces were in action that caused American leaders to view the fate of Vietnam as a critical national security interest? Who was responsible for the 46,000 Americans killed in action during this unpopular war? This paper will analyze American involvement during the Eisenhower years (1954-1960). The focus will be on the foreign policy decisions made with regard to our ensuing intervention. The argument made is that the steadfast anti-colonial and anti-Communist views held by Eisenhower dictated the direction American policy would follow during the crisis at Dienbienphu, the conference at Geneva, and the establishment of the government in South Vietnam under Ngo Dinh Diem. his anti-colonial views kept the U.S. from providing critical direct military assistance to the French during Dienbienphu, even though strong pressure was being applied from many directions. But his persistent anti-Communist approach kept America involved, even if long standing American principles needed to be overlooked. By the end of Eisenhower's second term, his policies resulted in the U.S. not having yet committed combat forces into the region, but firmly entrenching America in the fate of South Vietnam.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Apr 01, 1995
- Accession Number
- ADA328884
Entities
People
- James F. Slaton
Organizations
- Air War College