Truman DoctrineEssay Preview: Truman DoctrineReport this essayAll things in history have a place and time. In fact we are history. Had it not been for the previous events in world history, our existence could have been questionable. What would have happened if Hitler did take over the world? Would we be alive today? What if the cold war turned hot at some point? All these doubts tend to help an individual realize that everything in world history happens for a specific reason and therefore everything has its own time and place. One significant event in United States history had been the Vietnam War. However, the Vietnam War that I speak of didnДЃ─≥t last from the mid 1960ДЃ─≥s to early 1970ДЃ─≥s. Rather, the events that had lead up to the proceedings of the situation in Vietnam began on March 12, 1947 with the creation of the Truman Doctrine.
The Truman Doctrine
The first president to take a bold stand for the rights of the Vietnamese people involved in the Vietnam war was President Ronald H. Reagan in 1983. He issued the first executive order directing the U.S. military to provide assistance to the Vietnamese people, and issued regulations which made clear that the military would be provided with the military forces needed to support that effort. President Reagan also authorized additional military assistance for the U.S. if required by law, and provided he sought a bilateral agreement with Vietnam. This policy was carried into effect from 1985 through 1994 and, although the details of these regulations and the order are still being debated with both American and Vietnamese leaders (see http://www.defense.gov/reports/military-initiatives-into-the-national-security-of-the-united-states/s20-en) it is clear they were an important initiative in that direction.
The order also provided for additional civilian and military support for the U.S.
The first draft of the directive issued in January, 1986 created the Department of Defense for Support of the People and Places of the Vietnamese People. This was a “military assistance” order, and was later amended by additional orders and authority. The original memorandum contained little new regulation for the Secretary of Defense, but provided that military assistance would be provided to the Vietcong in a way that would be “cooperative, cooperative, and fair to all parties. … Assistance will be provided pursuant to applicable law, in consultation with the military, civilian authorities, and U.S. organizations, to ensure the complete independence of the Government of the United States and to assist in achieving the objectives referred to in the order. … No additional military assistance requirements shall be added to this order.”
The order followed from the beginning the practice of having the military help Vietnam if required by law. This included a requirement that U.S. Government forces in the country participate in the country’s defense. Further, in 1986, the “Civilian Assistance Provision Act of 1986” established the Department of Defense for Assistance to the People and Places of the Vietnamese People (DHPA). The DHPA established that the government of the United States would be “cooperative, cooperative, and fair” with the Vietcong, as such government were to carry out its responsibilities. This meant that all American military assistance obligations and training provided by the Department of Defense would be under the United States’ control and could not be used in a manner contrary to the Constitution of the United States.
Although there are some inconsistencies in the documents and instructions on this topic, the primary reason why the memorandum was created was to comply with the terms of the original memorandum. It was established that the military assistance is needed because the government of Vietnam was “cooperative, cooperative, fair to all parties,” and that the government of the United States would be “cooperative, cooperative, fair to all parties.” Further, this means that while the military assistance can be taken by the government of the United States if requested by the Vietcong, the U.S. military cannot take military aid on a humanitarian basis unless the president desires authorization from the Senate, as long as the President is in good standing.
The original memorandum, which included the term “military assistance” and all its language from the 1961 memo and
Proceeding World War II, the threat of communism had been particularly high. In fact, the US feared the spread of communism within many undeveloped regions throughout the world. Therefore, within the Truman Doctrine incorporated the policy of containment. The policy guaranteed immediate aid to Greece in Turkey, which had been in danger of falling under communistic influences. Within such, the policy stated they would provide military and economic help to a country that was underdeveloped and being endangered. In reality, the policy was designed to secure countries that would easily fall to a communistic regime. President Truman had established this to create a sense of security not for the US, but the world as a whole. Truman believed that Russia was out to spread the sphere of influence in the east. In return, the US had been there to prevent such occurrences. Each country battled for its own beliefs. The policy of containment could be argued to be an initial yet distant spark for a happening in Vietnam. Nonetheless, President Truman left his imposing mark on the world history with his Doctrine and policy. Many still continue to argue that all post 1945 US Foreign Policies were in some way or shape related to the tactics of containment.
In 1954, the Presidential tide was turned and the US was fresh out of a 3-year war campaign in Korea. The threat of communism had been rather high. The fear that life in the US might never be the same hit the hearts of many Americans. No American was prepared to give up their rights that had been fought for so hard in not one, but two devastating World Wars. In fact, no American was prepared to let anything or anyone between him and the American-Lifestyle. The average Joe had wanted to live a carefree life, in which he was protected. After the completion of the Korean War (1950-1953), President Eisenhower was quite concerned with communistic influences throughout the world. In fact, Eisenhower was reasonably apprehensive about communistic rule within Indochina particularly. On April 7, 1954, Eisenhower presented his views and thoughts on communism within Indochina to the people of the United States of America. What Eisenhower had theorized had been what is known today as the Domino Theory. Eisenhower believed that if one region in Indochina fell under communistic rule, the others would be pressed to do so as well. In turn, this would cause a tumbling effect, which would cause all the countries in Indochina to fall under a communistic regime. This so called Domino Theory would be the driving force throughout the Vietnam War.
Precisely a month after Eisenhower brought forth his views on communistic influences within Indochina, the Vietminh (north Vietnamese communist resistance forces) had taken control of Dien Bien Phu (central base with an airstrip) on May 7, 1954. With Dien Bien Phu at hand, The Vietminh were able to take a controlling force at the Geneva Convention the following day. With Dien Bien Phu at hand, the Vietminh were able to create secure their own country north of the seventeenth parallel. This seventeenth parallel split Vietnam into a north and south region. With communistic influences in the North, the south had pretty much been subjected to rule from the Prime Minister Ngo Dinh Diem. With full support from Eisenhower, Diem went ahead and declared himself the president of Vietnam in 1955. In addition, he organized the Republic of Vietnam as an independent nation. However, the Vietminh had also agreed to a Vietnam-wide election in 1956. Nevertheless, the Vietnamese leader Diem refused to hold the 1956 Vietnam-wide election.
With EisenhowerДЃ─≥s Domino theory effect, America had been shook and frightened. Many believed that communism should be avoided at any cost, even if it meant war. However, Eisenhower knew what war was and what war brought. Eisenhower once said, ДЃ─ÐoДЃ─╕.I hate war as only a soldier who has lived it can, only as one who has seen its brutality, its futility, its stupidity.ДЃ─² With thus in mind, Eisenhower knew what lied ahead if he was to follow through with force. Therefore, he chose to take a less hostile perspective. In addition, Eisenhower finished off his presidency with little instigation. The same could not be said for John F. Kennedy.
Theodore J. Eisenhower
As a young U.S. military officer at the dawn of WWII, Eisenhower became a popular figure for a number of reasons. After he became president, his administration suffered a very disappointing first quarter of the war in Germany. His decision to take command over the war effort and to abandon the U.S. military for the United Kingdom created an uncertain situation. With Eisenhower heading in the direction of a world war that was already underway, the U.S. and Allied armies were faced with the choice of attacking Germany. Despite Eisenhower’s efforts to do things the right way he also was left in a position of uncertainty about if he would try to accomplish what he had set out to do. In 1945 the Japanese government, after making a treaty that gave their prime minister the right to use force the Allies were unable to make any political settlement, so it was Eisenhower who would come across as the greatest threat.
It was with this uncertainty as a military force was beginning to take shape that, as the two campaigns progressed, Eisenhower decided to start a new effort to counter the Japanese military force in the United States that was so hostile it had already been established, known as the American Nationalist Army. That effort eventually turned into a direct attack on Okinawa where Japanese forces broke through the defenses of three of the island’s islands and established a front against the American naval base, the USS Enterprise.
Since the invasion of Japan, the United States was increasingly reliant on the Japanese navy and planes. The U.S. also had significant naval assets at its disposal, but had not the capability to attack Japan on its own. The U.S. military was divided into three divisions – the U.S. Pacific Fleet, the Fleet of the United States Navy, and the Seventh Fleet. Each division had its own strategy to respond to the threat posed by the invasion of Japan. This was largely based on the notion that its best and only plan might not be to break any of those walls and retreat. The U.S. Strategic Command would lead a strike force and attack at all costs, making every effort necessary to neutralize the allied fleets. In this way, every effort to break the enemy’s defenses would be a major strategic threat to the entire American system of government.
To counter the threat of American forces from foreign countries, Eisenhower turned to the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), which was now an independent government. Under Eisenhower’s leadership, the U.S. was
On January 21, 1961, John F. Kennedy took office. Immediately, it had been evident that JFK was more of a risk taker than Eisenhower had been. In the following month, the US military began a buildup in Vietnam. Furthermore, JFK followed up by saying that troops will respond if fired upon. With such hostility, JFK is considered by many to be the starter of the physical conflicts in the region. In fact, many have held him in charge for the Vietnam War in its entirety.
JFK believed