Posted on May 21, 2016
Rusk warns North Vietnamese - May 22, 1964 - HISTORY.com
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In a major speech before the American Law Institute in Washington, D.C., Secretary of State Dean Rusk explicitly accuses North Vietnam of initiating and directing the aggression in South Vietnam. U.S. withdrawal, said Rusk, “would mean not only grievous losses to the free world in Southeast and Southern Asia but a drastic loss of confidence in the will and capacity of the free world.” He concluded: “There is a simple prescription for peace–leave your neighbors alone.” In the fall, there was incontrovertible evidence that North Vietnamese regular troops were moviing down the Ho Chi Minh Trail to join the Viet Cong in their war against the Saigon government and its forces.
Elsewhere in Southeast Asia, Thailand mobilized its border provinces against incursions by the communist Pathet Lao forces from Laos and agreed to the use of bases by the U.S. Air Force for reconnaissance, search and rescue, and even attacks against the Pathet Lao. By the end of the year, some 75 U.S. aircraft would be based in Thailand to assist in operations against the Pathet Lao. Eventually, Thailand permitted the United States to use its air bases for operations against the Viet Cong and the North Vietnamese in South Vietnam, and ultimately to launch bombing raids against North Vietnam. In addition, Thailand sent combat troops to South Vietnam, numbering 11,000 at the height of the Thai commitment.
@SMSgt Minister Gerald A. Thomas , Capt Christopher Mueller , CPT (Join to see) , COL Mikel J. Burroughs , Sgt Joe LaBranche , SSgt (Join to see), TSgt Hunter Logan Capt Seid Waddell SrA Christopher Wright LTC Stephen F. PO2 Ed C. PO2 Mark Saffell MSG Tom Earley PVT James Strait Alan K. @po1 william "chip" PO1 William "Chip" Nagel Maj Kim Patterson @SGT John McConnell SGT John " Mac " McConnell
Elsewhere in Southeast Asia, Thailand mobilized its border provinces against incursions by the communist Pathet Lao forces from Laos and agreed to the use of bases by the U.S. Air Force for reconnaissance, search and rescue, and even attacks against the Pathet Lao. By the end of the year, some 75 U.S. aircraft would be based in Thailand to assist in operations against the Pathet Lao. Eventually, Thailand permitted the United States to use its air bases for operations against the Viet Cong and the North Vietnamese in South Vietnam, and ultimately to launch bombing raids against North Vietnam. In addition, Thailand sent combat troops to South Vietnam, numbering 11,000 at the height of the Thai commitment.
@SMSgt Minister Gerald A. Thomas , Capt Christopher Mueller , CPT (Join to see) , COL Mikel J. Burroughs , Sgt Joe LaBranche , SSgt (Join to see), TSgt Hunter Logan Capt Seid Waddell SrA Christopher Wright LTC Stephen F. PO2 Ed C. PO2 Mark Saffell MSG Tom Earley PVT James Strait Alan K. @po1 william "chip" PO1 William "Chip" Nagel Maj Kim Patterson @SGT John McConnell SGT John " Mac " McConnell
Rusk warns North Vietnamese - May 22, 1964 - HISTORY.com
Posted from history.com
American History
Military History
Vietnam War
Warfare
Posted >1 y ago
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Interesting Now how history has been flipped on edge with Communist Vietnam's, US and Filipino interest is focused on slowing down Chinese expansion in the South China Sea. Yesterdays enemy is today's ally.
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Thanks for reminding us that Dean Rusk warned the North Vietnamese and explicitly accused North Vietnam of initiating and directing the aggression in South Vietnam in 1964. He was arguing for keeping our "advisors" in Vietnam. I am glad that unlike North Korea which received direct help from the Chinese Army in the Korean War; since China and Vietnam are enemies they did not assist the North Vietnamese in the Vietnam War. If they had I expect the war would have played out much differently. SP5 Mark Kuzinski
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SGT Philip Roncari
Sir - I must regretfully disagree China did supply arms and equipment to Noth Vietnam even as early as their war with the French, the mining of Haiphong harbor early in the war was a direct action against Chinese arms shipments.
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LTC Stephen F.
SGT Philip Roncari - thanks for prompting me to do further research into Sino-Vietnamese relations.
I was familiar with the "Sino-Vietnamese war ( 中越战争in Chinese) was fought between the People's Republic of China and the Socialist Republic of Vietnam from February 17 to March 16, 1979. The PRC launched the offensive in response to Vietnam's invasion and occupation of Cambodia and persecution of ethnic Chinese, which ended the reign of the PRC-backed Khmer Rouge."
I knew that during the Vietnam War Soviet "advisers" assisted the NVA directly and supplied arms and military materiel at times during the war. I was not aware that CHICOM also assisted the NVA and held back direct support until we would directly invade North Vietnam. I suppose that is why we limited out forays to special operations teams and missions in North Vietnam.
SP5 Mark Kuzinski
I was familiar with the "Sino-Vietnamese war ( 中越战争in Chinese) was fought between the People's Republic of China and the Socialist Republic of Vietnam from February 17 to March 16, 1979. The PRC launched the offensive in response to Vietnam's invasion and occupation of Cambodia and persecution of ethnic Chinese, which ended the reign of the PRC-backed Khmer Rouge."
I knew that during the Vietnam War Soviet "advisers" assisted the NVA directly and supplied arms and military materiel at times during the war. I was not aware that CHICOM also assisted the NVA and held back direct support until we would directly invade North Vietnam. I suppose that is why we limited out forays to special operations teams and missions in North Vietnam.
SP5 Mark Kuzinski
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