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Vietnamisation

President Nixon won the election in 1969 as he promised to end the war in Vietnam, but ensure it wouldn’t fall to the communists. He tried several different methods:

Official peace talks

Official peace talks

  • Official peace talks:
    • Nixon sent representatives to negotiate with North and South Vietnam, as well as the VC.
    • However, this would be a very long and difficult process.
Secret peace talks

Secret peace talks

  • Secret peace talks:
    • Nixon sent Henry Kissinger to negotiate secretly with the leader of North Vietnam, Le Duc Tho.
Troop withdrawal

Troop withdrawal

  • Troop withdrawal:
    • Nixon decreased the number of troops in Vietnam by 25,000 and began to withdraw them from July 1969 onwards.
ARVN training

ARVN training

  • ARVN training:
    • Nixon ordered General Abrams to focus on training the ARVN to carry on the war without American troops.
Secret bombings

Secret bombings

  • Secret bombings:
    • In March 1969 Nixon ordered bombs to be dropped on the Ho Chi Minh trail in Cambodia.

The Nixon Doctrine

On 25th July 1969 Nixon made a speech about the role of the USA in the future of South East Asia. This became known as Vietnamisation.

Vietnamisation

Vietnamisation

  • On 25th July 1969 Nixon made a speech about the role of the USA in the future of South East Asia.
  • This became known as Vietnamisation.
Nixon's speech

Nixon's speech

  • The USA promised to support its allies against nuclear threats by training their troops, but without sending US soldiers.
  • This was like in 1964, when the US gave advice and money but kept its soldiers out.
'Withdraw with honour’

'Withdraw with honour’

  • Vietnamisation would allow the US to ‘withdraw with honour’ in the eyes of the Nixon administration.
  • And South Vietnam would remain an independent, non-communist country.
Divisions

Divisions

  • The US public welcomed Vietnamisation.
  • But the army leadership felt that the US was withdrawing before the ARVN were ready.
  • And that after the Tet Offensive, more troops would give them a chance to fully defeat the VC.
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