War Because… Essay, Research Paper
The U.S.A was unable to win the Vietnam War because they realised too late that the real war in Vietnam was not a military one but a political one.
From the start when Eisenhower first began American involvement. They knew that the only way South Vietnam would win is with the support of the American army. Kennedy, the next President restricted U.S. involvement, but after his assassination in 1963 American policy changed sharply. His successor Lyndon Johnson quickly increased American involvement. Later on the minor incident in the Gulf of Tonkin gave Johnson an excuse to up war efforts even more and then start bombing North Vietnam. The bombing of North Vietnam just made the U.S. look like a ‘bully’ and the Vietnamese people sided with the V.C (Vietcong).
Another reason why the U.S. was unable to win the war was growing war tensions back in the States. Anti-Vietnam demonstration broke out as like the one in New York. Where public opinion turn against the war. With footage coming back to the States from Vietnam of the amount of damage the U.S was doing. Destroying homes and killing countless of thousands of innocent civilians was turning public opinion.
Also the Americans realised too late that the real war in Vietnam was not a military one but a political one. The NLF from the start had won the support of the peasants. The NLF had support from about 40% of the South Vietnamese villages.
Lastly, the VC had the backing of Communist China and Russia who supplied then with arms and equipment. So the U.S. couldn’t do an all out invasion without the involvement of these Super Powers.
Yeah the U.S.A was unable to win the Vietnam War because they were fighting for the wrong reasons. The South Vietnam peasants was won over by the NLF. The people of United States didn’t want in this war. The bad images that shocked the world about the countless thousands of innocent civilians killed. Was just giving the U.S. an even worst reputation with the people they were fighting for.