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Korea and Viet Nam

Korea and Viet Nam. LTC Joel Johnston, US Army. Rules of Engagement. I am not a recruiter. A Soldier’s political opinion ends with “GO.” Disagreement is not disrespect. All material obtained Open Source: nothing classified.

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Korea and Viet Nam

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  1. Korea and Viet Nam LTC Joel Johnston, US Army

  2. Rules of Engagement • I am not a recruiter. • A Soldier’s political opinion ends with “GO.” • Disagreement is not disrespect. • All material obtained Open Source: nothing classified. • After the presentation, you will have a chance to ask me questions on Homeland Security, War on Terror, the Army, etc. etc.

  3. The Korean War

  4. “Power Vacuum” left after WWII. US and Soviet border at 38th Parallel. North Korean Attack 25 JUN 50. Communism vs. Democracy. UN Resolution 82; US and 20 Allies. Terrain of Korea: Mountainous Many choke points at bridges and mountain passes Most forest vegetation cut down by Japanese during WWII. Extreme weather The Korean War 1950-53

  5. South Korea United States Australia Belgium Canada, Columbia Ethiopia France Greece Luxembourg Netherlands New Zealand Philippines South Africa Thailand Turkey England Denmark (Medical) Italy (Medical) Norway (Medical) Sweden (Medical) Participants in Korean War • North Korea • China • Soviet Union Total 1,139,518 Total: 1,066,000

  6. Korean War in a Nutshell • 5 Phases of the War: • North Korean Invasion • Pusan Perimeter & Inchon Landing • Chinese Direct Intervention • Struggle for the boundary • Cease Fire at the DMZ

  7. Korean War LegacyDid We Win? • The first of many engagements in the “Cold War” • Superpower “Limited War” • Communist Threat Motivates Western Europe to Re-Arm and form NATO. • Continued US Presence in Korea. • Split of China and Soviet Union • Communism Containment

  8. The Human Cost of the Korean War South Korea: 673,000 USA: 36,516 England 1,078 Turkey 721 North Korea: 200,000 China: 171,687 USSR 315 Total: 711,315 Total: 372,002 Civilians: 1,271,244 Civilians: 1,858,000

  9. DMZ TF Smith Operation Chromium Pusan Perimeter Inchon Landing T-34 ROK Army 38th Parallel Yalu River DPRK F-80 and F-86 Chosin Reservoir MiG-15 Operation Paul Bunyan MiG Alley “police action” Truman Doctrine Integrated Combat Units Korean War Lexicon Test

  10. War in Viet Nam

  11. Vietnam War Era Timeline 1954- French defeated Dien Bien Phu 1959- First US casualties 1963- Escalation--US sends 15,000 military advisors (up from 700 in 1962) 1968- US troop numbers reach peak of 540,000; Tet Offensive 1969- Troop numbers reduced to under 500,000; 1971- Troop numbers reduced to 140,000 1973- Cease-fire signed; last US troops withdrawn 1974- Communists build up power in South Vietnam; 1975- Last Americans are evacuated as communist forces capture Saigon Terrain: Conducive for Guerilla War Stanley Karnow, Vietnam: A History

  12. US South Korea Thailand Australia New Zealand Phillipines Not Involved Britain Canada Democratic Republic of Vietnam (North Vietnam) National Liberation Front (Viet Cong) USSR People’s Republic of China Vietnam War Participants

  13. Did We Win? • Failure to achieve a war’s political objective(s)— which may not mean military defeat. The United States was never militarily defeated in Vietnam, but nonetheless lost the war because it failed to achieve its declared political objective: the preservation of an independent, non- Communist South Vietnam.

  14. 4 Ways to Slay Goliath # 1. Stronger Political Will (Andrew Mack, “Why Big Nations Lose Small Wars,” World Politics, 1975). # 2. Superior Strategy (Ivan Arreguin-Toft, How the Weak Win Wars, 2005). # 3. Regime Type (Gil Merom, How Democracies Lose Small Wars, 2003). # 4. Access to External Assistance (“Why the Strong Lose,” Parameters, 2006)

  15. Recipe for Upset • North Vietnam manufactured no military goods (except helmets). • China, Soviet Union, & other Communist Bloc states supplied all of North Vietnam’s military hardware. • Chinese & Soviets constructed & operated North Vietnam’s integrated Air Defense system. • 170,000 Chinese logistics troops operated & maintained North Vietnam’s RR system. • North Vietnam conducted a guerilla war. • Vietnamese jungle conducive for hit and run tactics. • An unarmed North Vietnam could have defeated neither the United States nor South Vietnam.

  16. Bottom Line: The Will to Win The Vietnam War • Military Dead / % of Total Population: US: 58,000/194,000,000 = 0.02% VC: 1,100,000/ 20,000,000 = 5.50% • (5.5% of U.S. population today: 16,000,000+) • US Civil War: 600,000/31,000,000 = 1.9% • French losses in World War I: 1,400,000/42,000,000 = 3.4%

  17. Rolling Thunder Linebacker Ho Chi Mihn Trail Armalite Agent Orange Hanoi Hilton Vietnamization SAM Tet Offensive SKS Foo Gas Claymore My Lai Kmer Rouge Fragging Dien Bien Phu 7.62 FMJ Thud BLU-82 Daisy Cutter Punji stick Viet Nam War Lexicon Test

  18. QUESTIONS?

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