Vietnam War Essay

The Vietnam War was the longest and most divisive conflict in American history. To avoid getting lured into the Vietnam War, the US became involved in order to avoid slipping into a communist trap. Countless lives were lost on both sides of the conflict. The Vietnam War also caused many problems for the United States, since Americans no longer supported the war, resulting in a loss for the Americans. North Vietnam defeated the Americans thanks to Communist assistance, a greater understanding of the terrain, and a stronger will to win the war. America lost the Vietnam war because the North Vietnamese overpowered the Americans in several ways. With communist support, the North Vietnamese were able to overwhelm the Americans. Because of this

Jeffery Lydic a professor from Shippensburg University stated that “The United States and South Vietnamese military commanders had to defend a border approximately seventeen hundred miles long that the North Vietnamese used to move men and material into the country to launch assaults into the country and support an insurgency. Combined with the thick vegetation, mountainous terrain, and extreme weather conditions the coalition forces had to use new technology and tactics to defend South Vietnam. Thus the terrain in Vietnam dictated the position of forces, the tactics military commanders used, and the eventual outcome of the war.” The North Vietnamese were fighting on their home ground, and they were intimately familiar with the terrain. This provided them an advantage in organizing military operations since they could anticipate American movements and use the terrain to their advantage. Furthermore, the North Vietnamese were able to utilize the dense jungle and diverse terrain to their advantage, making it difficult for the Americans to locate and fight them in their great desire to win the war. The Soviet Union and China sent military experts to the North Vietnamese, who assisted them in planning and executing their military strategy. In the Close-up of the Viet Cong in Their Jungle states that, “The Viet Cong could almost never match American firepower, so Triet and his men relied on a combination of stealth and surprise, as well as their knowledge of the countryside. The Viet Cong dug elaborate tunnel complexes to use as safe bases, conducted hit-and-run attacks on Americans, and tried to avoid large-scale battles.” The North Vietnamese were also able to outmaneuver the Americans with their tactics and plan. The North Vietnamese employed guerilla tactics, which included small-scale hit-and-run strikes against American forces. This technique was