Vietnam: 2

Vietnam: 2

1. What made the Vietcong successful?

   • Tunnel systems - vast tunnel network spanning around 240 kilometres, it was effective because of it avoided the worst effects of American airpower, it also made it easier to ambush US troops
   • Guerrilla tactics - they retreated when the enemy attacks, raid when the enemy camps, attack when the enemy retires and pursues the enemy when they retreat, it was effective because it wore down the US and they have no known basecamp or uniform also they were hard to tell apart from the peasants
   • Tactics and relationships with the local population as well as their relationship with the local population – Viet Minh Directive 1960
   • Booby traps - simple devices such as tripwires or pits filled with sharpened bamboo stakes, caused 11% of US casualties, it caused terrible injuries Ambushes- unexpected attacks, small arms fire, napalm, caused 51% of US casualties, it was unexpected and so the US troops weren't prepared Close quarter fighting - closely fighting with Americans, US air power or artillery couldn't be used because of the danger of hitting their own troops
   • Don't buy or borrow from people who aren't willing to sell or lend
   • Don't speak contemptuously about the locals
   • Don't break promises
   • Don't damage crops houses or belongings
   • Help them in their daily work
   • Tell short stories useful to the resistance but not betray secret
   • If possible buy commodities for those who live far from the market
   • Teach the population the national script and elementary hygiene

2. Why were US tactics ineffective?

   • Bombing - between 1965 to 1970 the US launched Operation Rolling Thunder which involved extensive bombing raids on military and industrial target in North Vietnam, bombs were also dropped in Laos, Cambodia and along the Ho Chi Minh trail, it was very ineffective as it damaged North Vietnam war effort and disrupted supply routes, enabled USA to strike at Communist forces even when reducing US ground forces in 1969, intense bombing between 1970 to 1972 forced the North Vietnamese to the negotiating table, US power couldn't defeat Communists, Communists still able to launch assault on the South, the cost of air attack was high the cost to kill one Viet Cong fighter was $400,000 with 75 bombs and 400 artillery shells
   • Chemical weapons - Agent Orange, a highly toxic weed killer was used, it destroyed the jungles where the Vietcong lived, 82 million litres was sprayed on thousands of square km of jungle, napalm was also widely used, it destroyed jungles and burned through skin to the bone, civilians and soldiers also killed by the chemical weapons
   • Strategic Hamlets - USA tried to setup protected hamlets were civilians would not have contact with the Vietcong or Communists, this was carried out even if it meant moving the peasants, it was ineffective because the peasants resented it, when Diem (South Vietnamese corrupt leader) was killed support for this policy waned
   • Search and destroy- bombing couldn't defeat guerrilla army bases, launched raids from helicopters, they decided on a village and destroyed any Vietcong forces they faced, raids based on inadequate information, unexperienced US troops walked into traps, innocent villages mistaken for Viet Cong strongholds, civilian casualties were very high, for every Viet Cong weapon that was captured there was a body count of 6 (mostly civilians) it made for US and South Vietnamese very unpopular with peasants so they supported the Vietcong instead

3. Tactics used by both sides

   • Trained soldiers - neither Viet Cong or USA soldiers well trained
   • Effective tactics e.g. Vietcong – guerrilla warfare, USA- hamlets, bombing, napalm, ineffective as it lost civilian support
   • Appropriate technology e.g. US - air power, Vietcong – tunnels, booby traps Reliable supplies e.g. Vietcong - Ho Chi Minh trail, USA – no reliable supplies as surrounding countries were Communist
   • Strong morale - Vietcong soldiers a high morale ,USA low morale
   • Support from the local population - Vietcong has lots of support whereas USA had none

4. Problems in the US troops

   • Soldiers drafted were very young, the average age was 19. The soldiers knew very little about Vietnam and often cared little about the ideological war between democracy and Communism
   • Most combat troops were from poor and immigrant families, wealthier families were able to use that influence to avoid the draught all together
   • There were tensions between officers and troops, many officers were professional soldiers who wanted to get promoted, this meant killing as many Vietcong as possible on the other hand most ordinary soldiers just wanted to say alive, 3% of officer deaths were due to fragging when troops killed their own officers
   • Large numbers of soldiers sold food, drugs and equipment on the black market, many soldiers turned to drugs when they were not fighting, 18% of casualties were due to non-combat situations for example car crashes, illness, suicide, murder or abuse,
   • There was 500,000 cases of desertion, to tackle soldiers could go home after a year but this meant that as soon as soldiers gained experience they were sent home
   • Neighbouring countries were sympathetic to the Viet Cong, political considerations meant the US did not dare send troops into North Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos, this gave the Viet Cong a huge advantage, the Ho Chi Minh trail runs through these countries and Viet Cong could retreat to them to get new soldiers, supplies and equipment
   • The American strategy was based on a tradition of killing the Viet Cong in large numbers and winning support from civilians, the problem was the search and destroy missions killed large numbers of civilian as well as the Vietcong e.g. the My Lai massacre, this in turn led the Vietnamese to supporting the Viet Cong

5. My Lai Massacre

   • On 16th of March 1968 estimated 300 to 400 civilians were massacred by the Charlie Company, a unit of young American soldiers
   • Young experienced and badly organised American soldiers were ordered to destroy all houses, dwellings and livestock, under the impression that they had to kill everyone they found in the village, the soldiers stayed up all night smoking and drinking, they killed 95% of the village including humans and animals with firearms grenades and bayonets, one of the officers in charge ordered his men to enter the village firing even though there was no evidence of opposing fire, around 500 villagers were killed or mown down by machine gun fire as they were herded by the soldiers into an irrigation ditch, some were shot in their homes or in the back of the head, one soldier shot down over 100 civilians and at the time the operation was written up as a success