Historical Security Council

Topic: Vietnam War (1940s-1970s)

Chair: Joo Victor Omena
Vice-Chair: Martina Vasconcelos












Index
Background Information page 3
Key Terms... page 5
Guiding Questions... page 6
Useful Links.... page 7


















Background Information
Roots of the Vietnam War
After much argument between France and its colony, Vietnam, about a possible
independence for Vietnam, a conference at Geneva, Switzerland, in 1954 was arranged.
The agreements made there established that there would exist two Vietnams, North
Vietnam and South Vietnam, independent from France. That did not fully satisfy the
Vietnamese, though. Even though there were cultural differences between these two
countries, the people wanted to be united as a single country. Elections, then, were
proposed by Ho Chi Minh to see if South Vietnam would like to join North Vietnam.
Vehemently, Ngo Dinh Diem, now president of South Vietnam since the U.S. was
afraid that South Vietnam would become communist, said that any proposals from Viet
Minh were out of question.

U.S. Intervention
In 1963 U. S. leaders, judging Diem ineffective, sanctioned his overthrow by his
own military officers, who killed him. As the situation deteriorated and the United
States started fearing an invasion into South Vietnam from North Vietnam, the U.S. was
ready for action for any kind of action. The country,then, set up patrols to look out for
any North Vietnamese attacks.

The Gulf of Tonkin Incident
In August 2, 1964, during LJBs government, The Maddox, a U.S. Navy
warship, was patrolling the Gulf of Tonkin, when it was suddenly faced with three
North Korean warships. The Americans sent three warning shots to make the North
Koreans back away. The three boats kept approaching and then started firing. The
American badly severed at least one ship and left with only one bullet damaging its
own.
The next day, the U.S. destroyer Turner Joy was sent to aid The Maddox. In
August 4, the American ships reported that they were ambushed. President LJB then
ordered air strikes against North Vietnamese boat bases and requested for a meeting
with the Congress to propose a resolution.
Delegates, it is now August 5, 1964, during the middle of the Vietnam War.
The fate of millions of lives lies in your hands.









Key Terms:
North Vietnam: A country founded in 1954 due to the Geneva Accords with a
communist government and led by Ho Chi Minh.
South Vietnam: A country also founded in 1954 due to the Geneva Accords with a
capitalist government and led by Ngo Dinh Diem.
Ho Chi Minh: Former leader of North Vietnam, Minh tried to unify both Vietnams.
Although unable to do so, he was a symbol of unification for the North Vietnamese.
Ngo Dinh Diem: An anticommunist and longtime U.S. resident, Diem was installed
president of South Vietnam with the help of the United States and believed that, if
South Vietnam did not sign the Geneva Accords, then it had the rights not to abide by it.
National Liberation Front (NLF): Also known as the Viet Cong, a communist-led
revolutionary movement in South Vietnam that resisted American intervention in the
American-Vietnamese War.
Viet Minh: A communist-led army.
Lyndon Johnson (LBJ): Lyndon B. Johnson (1908-73) became the 36
th
American
president after the assassination of John F. Kennedy. The president was best known for
being the leader of country during the Gulf of Tonkin Incident.




Guiding Questions:
1) How will the United States proceed after the attack? Should it take any military
action?
2) How will the events following the Gulf of Tolkin Incident affect the relations
between the United States and North Vietnam?
3) How will the events of this conflict affect countries relations with North Vietnam?
4) How will the incident affect communism in the Vietnams?
5) How will this conflict affect the future of American foreign policy?
6) How will North Vietnam proceed? How will South Vietnam?













Useful Links:

http://www.history.com/topics/vietnam-war/vietnam-war-history
http://www.history.com/topics/vietnam-war/gulf-of-tonkin-resolution/videos/lbj-gulf-
of-tonkin-incident (Video)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y2IcmLkuhG0 (Video; start from minute 4:11)
http://www.cnn.com/2013/07/01/world/vietnam-war-fast-facts/ (Timeline)
http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/628478/Vietnam-War
http://www.history.com/topics/vietnam-war/gulf-of-tonkin-resolution
http://www.history.com/news/the-gulf-of-tonkin-incident-50-years-ago