Long Term Effects Of Vietnam War

The Vietnam War, also known as the Second Indochina War, was a conflict that lasted from 1955 to 1975. During this time, the United States and its allies fought against North Vietnam and its communist allies in South Vietnam. The Americans had to invade Vietnam to prevent the rise of communism, which brought heavy difficulties in guerrilla warfare, leading to an atrocious use of weapons. This conflict had a profound impact on Vietnam's land destroying farmland, and stability, and causing ecological damage. The people of Vietnam suffered large casualties, and political instability, and were forced to become refugees. The Vietnam War had extensive and lasting detrimental effects on Vietnam's land and people.

The U.S. invaded Vietnam for several

Forests, villages, and towns were destroyed by the U.S. military's use of bombs and artillery, leaving widespread damage to industries. Carpet Bombing was excessively used to fight the guerilla tactics and it destroyed large areas of land causing long-term ecological damage. An estimated 20,000 tons of explosives were dropped in North Vietnam from Operation Linebacker. Additionally, the use of chemical weapons contaminated Vietnam's soil and water sources for decades to come. Napalm and incendiary weapons were widely used during the war. They caused fires that destroyed large areas, leaving nothing but scorched earth, inflicting destruction by starting widespread fires and causing extensive damage to the land. Operation Ranch Hand was an operation that sprayed chemicals such as Agent Orange on around 5 million acres of Vietnamese land and mangrove forests. The chemicals continue to remain in the land still harming the environment. The impact of the war on agriculture was also severe. The destruction of farms and the reduced rice exportation led to widespread starvation due to the war. The people in the damaged rural parts of Vietnam were forced to flee to more industrialized and urban cities. This led to rapid urban growth, which caused a large strain on the cities' infrastructure and resources. The war devastated the country's economy and led to widespread poverty, leaving many people with few options other than

The war caused massive casualties with an estimated 2 million civilian deaths on both sides and around 1.1 million Viet Cong and North Vietnamese soldiers killed. The loss of life on such a scale left deep psychological and physical scars on the Vietnamese people that are still felt today. Mental health issues were exacerbated from the war with an increase in stress, PTSD, suicides, and more. The country's people also faced different forms of violence, including torture, rape, and other atrocities committed by soldiers. Incidents such as the My Lai Massacre on 1968 March 16, caused the deaths of around 300-500 unarmed civilians by an American platoon. These incidents caused irreparable damage to the people of Vietnam. Terrible weapons such as Agent Orange left drastic effects on the citizens as it still lingers on the land. It caused deaths and health issues from exposure such as skin and blood pressure diseases, cancers, mobility disabilities, birth defects and many others. An estimated 150,000 children were born with birth defects and 3 million Vietnamese affected by Agent Orange. The people during the war were caught in the crossfire between two opposing forces-the Viet Cong and the U.S. soldiers-which forced them to choose sides or risk losing their lives. They sided with one side or the other for a variety of reasons, but many Vietnam War combatants also had to fight against fellow Vietnamese.