Evaluate the effectiveness of the strategies and tactics used by both sides in Vietnam between 1960 and 1975.

The Vietnamese communists and the United States used different strategies to win the Indochina War. The communists fought a military and political campaign, while the US concentrated only on defeating the NVA/NLF on the battlefield.

1. The North Vietnamese and NLF strategy: 1960-65

  • Win over the rural population of South Vietnam, then establish ‘liberated zones’.
  • Wear the ARVN down in a prolonged guerrilla campaign.
  • By 1965, the strategy was on track to achieve victory.

2. US strategy: 1965-68

  • The arrival of US troops put an end to these gains, but did not achieve victory.
  • The US strategy was three pronged.
  • Bomb North Vietnam, to force its leaders to accept a peace settlement.
  • Bomb the Ho Chi Minh Trail, to stem the flow or arms to the South.
  • Launch a series of search and destroy operations in the South, to wipe out the VC. This did kill many guerrillas, but the VC recruited replacements.

3. The VC/NVA response to the arrival of US forces:

  • The VC retreated when the Americans approached and only attacked when the fight was on their terms.
  • Their aim was to hold out until public opinion in America changed.

4. The Tet Offensive:

  • In January 1968, the communist leaders launched a spectacular attack, to try to convince Americans that the war could not be won. This was the Tet Offensive.
  • The VC attacked targets all across South Vietnam.
  • The campaign failed militarily. The US killed or captured 50,000 VC.
  • Tet was a political victory for the NVA/VC, showing the war was far from won.
  • As US troops continued to die, more and more Americans turned against the war.

5. After-Tet:

  • The VC retreatedunderground and into Cambodia,to rebuild. Fighting became less intense, allowing President Nixon to begin the process of Vietnamisation.
  • In 1973, the Paris Peace Agreement was signed. US forces were withdrawn. The VC were given official recognition and control of 40 percent of the countryside.
  • In 1975, the NVA launched an attack, cuttingSouth Vietnam in two.
  • Panic now set in and the ARVN collapsed. The communists were soon in Saigon.

Hence, the NVA and the VC defeated the Americans and the South Vietnamese by wearing them downto the point where they lost their will to fight. The Second Indochina War was won as much on the American home front as on the battlefields of Vietnam.