Communism During The Vietnam War
At the advent of the conclusion of the Second World War came an advancement in arms, mortality rates in the millions, and a collective will of a long lasting peace. In virtue of this, it was a time of treaties and unions; with wounded nations ensuring support in case of future conflicts. Subsequently the seed of a new European union was planted in the Treaty of Brussels, a pledge of mutual defense of Britain, France and Benelux lest the Nazis ever return. As the dust settled it was clear that Germany was no longer a threat, but the massive manpower and nuclear weapons of the soviets were another story. Nobody was more concerned with the rise of Communism than the United States and thus the North Atlantic Treaty was drafted; extending the zone
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The U.S. sought to both dominate the air and ground of Vietnam with the latter contradicting the former as the American military valued policies of attrition and kill count rather than conventional means of securing territory like in previous major conflicts. Because of the America’s unfamiliarity with the foreign country, the Vietnam War grew more and more complex as there were no front lines due to both the unfamiliar terrain and temporary enemy presence, differing enemy forces, and military operations. As mentioned before the U.S. government adopted new policies of attrition rather than securing enemy territory, because of this there were no official front line to fight from as enemy units would prolong a area before liquefying elsewhere. Another contributing factor was the different unit sizes of the two warring factions; the U.S. readily had soldiers move in larger formations performing patrols and search and destroy type missions, whilst the North Vietnamese had units that were ill-equipped but were smaller and therefore more nimble and mobile than their American counterparts causing a discrepancy between the two. One last factor was differing military operations; as the Americans made their establishment known in Vietnam they were challenged by the harsh jungle conditions and the mere geography of the terrain. Because of this they were easily prone to enemy engagement from various angles, most engagements however were intended to harass the American G.I.s as they would not last in a full skirmish. Likewise the Americans sought to destroy any enemy resistance they would encounter in hopes of winning the war by kill count, however as the North Vietnamese often avoided any full confrontation with American forces this ideal was
The U.S. sought to both dominate the air and ground of Vietnam with the latter contradicting the former as the American military valued policies of attrition and kill count rather than conventional means of securing territory like in previous major conflicts. Because of the America’s unfamiliarity with the foreign country, the Vietnam War grew more and more complex as there were no front lines due to both the unfamiliar terrain and temporary enemy presence, differing enemy forces, and military operations. As mentioned before the U.S. government adopted new policies of attrition rather than securing enemy territory, because of this there were no official front line to fight from as enemy units would prolong a area before liquefying elsewhere. Another contributing factor was the different unit sizes of the two warring factions; the U.S. readily had soldiers move in larger formations performing patrols and search and destroy type missions, whilst the North Vietnamese had units that were ill-equipped but were smaller and therefore more nimble and mobile than their American counterparts causing a discrepancy between the two. One last factor was differing military operations; as the Americans made their establishment known in Vietnam they were challenged by the harsh jungle conditions and the mere geography of the terrain. Because of this they were easily prone to enemy engagement from various angles, most engagements however were intended to harass the American G.I.s as they would not last in a full skirmish. Likewise the Americans sought to destroy any enemy resistance they would encounter in hopes of winning the war by kill count, however as the North Vietnamese often avoided any full confrontation with American forces this ideal was