The Cold War in Southeast Asia

1. The Cold War in Southeast Asia Were U.S. Actions in Southeast Asia consistent with American values?

2. An Overview • 1899 Open Door Notes (China) • 1940 Japan invaded France’s colonies in Indochina (Laos, Cambodia & Vietnam) • 1945 Japan surrendered WWII, ended Japan’s colonial rule over Korea and Indochina • 1945 Korea divided at 38th parallel • 1949 Mao Zedong declared People’s Republic of China – ¼ of world’s population now “communist” • 1954 Geneva Accords split Vietnam into Communist North Vietnam and US backed South Vietnam • 1954 SEATO established • 1964 Gulf of Tonkin Resolution passed and US combat troops arrived in Vietnam • 1975 Ceasefire in Vietnam after Communist Victory

3. Imperialism in Asia (1914)

4. Japanese Imperialism (1931-1942)

5. Decolonization and Independence WWII ends Japanese empire in Korea and Indochina The Soviet Union and the United States vie for power and influence in these regions In Korea: the Soviet Union and U.S. agree to partition Korea at the 38th parallel (1945) In Vietnam: the Geneva Accords partitioned the country into the communist North, led by Ho Chi Minh and the South, led by Ngo Dinh Diem

6. Decolonization in Korea Kim Il-Sung Syngman Rhee

7. The Korean War[1950-1953]

8. The Shifting Map of Korea[1950-1953]

9. Southeast Asia Treaty Organization (SEATO) • Regional military alliance created in 1954 • Created to block communist expansion • Successful? • Dissolved in 1977

10. Domino Theory • Justified U.S. intervention in Asia (and elsewhere) from the 1950s-1980s • First used by Eisenhower in 1954 in the context of the 1st Indochina War: “You have a row of dominoes set up, and you knock over the first one, and what will happen to the last one is the certainty that it will go over very quickly. So you have the beginning of a disintegration that would have the most profound influences”

11. Decolonization in Vietnam Ho Chi Minh Democratic Republic of Vietnam Ngo Dinh Diem Republic of Vietnam 1955

12. Decolonization in Vietnam • 1941 Viet Minh movement sought independence from France and Japanese occupation • 1946-1954 First Indochina War between France and Viet Minh • U.S. supported France ($3 billion) • By 1954 Viet Minh defeat the French. The Geneva Accords agreed to divide Vietnam at the 17th parallel. The U.S. supported Ngo Dinh Diem. Elections were never held. • By 1957 guerilla warfare by Viet Congagainst Diem. • 1964 Congress passed the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution which authorized U.S. military action in Vietnam

13. U.S. Involvement Escalates • Truman, Eisenhower and Kennedy sent “military advisors” to South Vietnam • Lyndon Johnson sent first combat troops in 1965 • By 1968, there were over 500,000 U.S. combat troops in Vietnam, leading to anti-war protests at home • 1973 last U.S. troops withdraw from Vietnam • 1975 N. Vietnam captured South Vietnam’s capital, Saigon, and re-united the nation under communist rule; millions of South Vietnamese refugees flee

14. U.S. Values, Goals, and Actions in SE Asia Values Goals Actions *Freedom *Capitalism *Individualism *Democracy *Containment of communism *Search for trading partners *Establishment of representative democracies *Treaties/alliances *International organizations *Trade agreements *Development projects *Wars and interventions

15. US Assumptions • Communism Monolithic • Sino-Soviet Split (1960) • Vietnam-Chinese War (1979)