Vietnam

12 Pages 3057 Words

bombers and air force mechanics to help the French in their fight against the Viet Minh. Eisenhower knew that the French could not lose hold of Vietnam and made it a priority to aid the French in anyway to stop the war machine of the communists. So when the Viet Minh defeated the French in 1954 they saw this as not only defeating those who tried to rule them but also as defeating the United States.
After seeing that victory was impossible the French attempted to reach a peace agreement at the Geneva Conference in 1954. The Geneva Agreement provided for the withdrawal of French troops to the south of Vietnam. Viet Minh forces moved to the north. Vietnam was temporarily divided at the 17th parallel and Cambodia and Laos were created as neutral states. Elections were to be held and Vietnam was to be reunited. The U.S. did not agree with the accords because they did not want to allow the Communists to control Vietnam.
In 1955, the U.S. picked Ngo Dinh Diem as head of the anti-Communist regime in South Vietnam. With U.S. enco...