Essay about Vietnam War final

Submitted By thatkidkathy
Words: 2234
Pages: 9
Open Document
91232 Vietnam War and New Zealand’s involvement Kathryn Butcher
The New Zealand’s contribution of military personnel and the involvement in the Vietnam War caused a significant division amongst the nation’s people with people having opposing opinions on whether New Zealand’s response was justified. The Vietnam War was essentially a civil war between the divided South Vietnam and North Vietnam and the two political views that the nation was categorised as; Southern Vietnam primarily being non-communists and the Northern communists. It was the Northern communists whom wanted to conquer the South reuniting Vietnam as a unified communist nation. As this was a civil war foreign nations did not interfere however New Zealand and the United States were amongst the few that had decided to intervene. America was the instigator in joining the Vietnamese civil war which led into New Zealand’s contribution of military personnel to assist there American allies in the fight against communism. It was this military and economic assistance from New Zealand’s government that provoked the nation’s division causing opposing views throughout the country about whether this involvement was a justified response to Vietnam’s civil war.
New Zealand being a democracy led country was highly opposed to communism which was shown by the government’s decision to provide military and monetary assistance in the hope of defeating North Vietnam and their communist views. New Zealand’s response was considered as justifiable due to the importance of the ANZUS pact, the ‘Domino theory’, the Truman doctrine and the SEATO organisation.
The ANZUS treaty the primary source for New Zealand’s involvement in the Vietnam War making the nation’s response justifiable as there was binding alliances that had to be considered before the decision for intervention. The ANZUS a mutual defence pact that bound New Zealand, Australia and America into defending the Pacific Ocean through co-operation creating collective security amongst the three signing countries. As Vietnam was located in the Pacific Ocean New Zealand was pressured into conforming to the ANZUS agreement by assisting America in defending South Vietnam from the Northern threat of communism. New Zealand was obliged to follow the ANZUS policies otherwise they would risk damaging their alliance with America as their co-operation had already been agreed upon in the ANZUS treaty. The alliance with America was vital for New Zealand as it gave a collective security providing the nation with protection from the ever increasing threat that communism posed on the country which is why appeasing America by contributing this assistance was necessary. Britain was also pulling out of her Eastern colonies, which included New Zealand, which made this alliance with America even more important as Britain would not provide protection the country with the required defence which led to the government’s decision of becoming involved in Vietnam as doing otherwise would jeopardise the vital alliance with America. 1“The parties will consult together whenever, in the opinion of any one of them, the territorial integrity, political independence or security of any of the Parties is threatened in the Pacific.” an excerpt from the ANZUS pact shows that New Zealand only needed to “consult” on Vietnam’s situation rather than intervene like the American’s had insisted. The New Zealand government knew this intervention wasn’t required of them in the agreement yet they still conformed to America’s pressures which show how important their continued alliance was to the country. New Zealand’s contribution was justified by the need to follow the ANZUS to keep an alliance with the Americans intact, New
Show More

Related Documents: Essay about Vietnam War final

What Are Domestic Political Factors That Influence Lyndon Johnson's Final Decision?

Johnson's final decision to initiate full-scale US intervention in the confrontation between Northern and Southern Vietnam; now the external factors for the adoption of such a decision should be considered. The discussion should start with the historical background of Vietnamese conflict, how the confrontation between the two rivals had been formed and which role the United States played in it. Before World War II Vietnam was the colony of Indochina, which at the final stage of the war was occupied…

Words 1697 - Pages 7

Traveling Vietnam Wall Essay

Essay Contribution for Traveling Vietnam Wall Can you imagine coming back from the war and having people booing and hating you for serving your country? That’s what it was like for many soldiers returning from Vietnam. The Vietnam War was one of the most important wars in United States history. Although we lost and many soldiers died, our country learned how important it is to respect and love our soldiers who return from fighting for the United States. The war lasted for about twenty years…

Words 534 - Pages 3

Why Did Australia Join The Vietnam War

journalist during the Vietnam War, as I did not fight in the war my views on the topic will be different to those who did, but I’ll tell you what I know anyway. The Vietnam War was a conflict between nationalist forces trying to turn the government of Vietnam into a communist government and the United States with help from the South Vietnamese, who were against this idea and fought to take down communism all together. This war was also known as, the American War in Vietnam, Vietnam Conflict, Second Indochina…

Words 391 - Pages 2

Martin Luther King Jr.'s Involvement In Vietnam

In this passage, Martin Luther King Jr. justifies his objection to American involvement in the Vietnam war by providing us with several reasons for his position. His first and foremost explanation is his belief that the Vietnam war is unjust. Firstly, Martin Luther King Jr. makes a clear connection between the Vietnam war and the struggle that people have been carrying out in America. By giving an example of a malfunctional poverty program, he points out that this kind of program used to be thought…

Words 606 - Pages 3

Bernard B. Fall's Street Without Joy

smell, and sound of the war. The effort from the French was not enough to successfully support the efforts of the Vietnamese insurgency from the Communist forces, which led to the involvement of the United States of America. The French forces could not defend themselves or the insurgency from the Communist gorilla warfare style tactics that included ambushes, booby traps, and nighttime attacks. The French forces were more organized militarily than the Communist back Vietnam forces. This would give…

Words 418 - Pages 2

Essay on Vietnam: Cahh Vietnam Anti-war

2014 CAHH Vietnam Anti-War Movement During the Vietnam War the United States took an anti-war stance. This approach caused the United States to protect their public image, forced them to sign a peace treaty, and withdraw its remaining forces. In 1950, the United States became directly involved in Vietnam when President Harry Truman began to underwrite the costs of France’s war against Viet Minh. During the year of 1964, senators had begun to criticize American involvement in Vietnam which led…

Words 668 - Pages 3

Strength Of Feelings During The Vietnam War

Throughout the Vietnam War, the strength of feelings from the United States were portrayed thoroughly. This portrayal of emotion became so widespread that they were eventually translated into stories, movies, songs, and more. There are countless stories about the Vietnam War, whether they’re told from the account of real Vietnam War veterans or what the media saw the Vietnam War as. Although it may seem as if every story is told from the same account since it’s all about the same war, these stories…

Words 676 - Pages 3

Richard Nixon Essay

powers his presidency was cut short. The Vietnam War was the major obstacle for the new president. Even before his inauguration, Nixon had Kissinger speak in secret with North Vietnam in hopes of having a speedy American withdrawal from the country. Nixon announced replacement of American forces with South Vietnamese, planning to have all American troops out of Vietnam by the end of 1970. He pledged not to back down and in early 1970 escalated the war by authorizing bombings on North Korea and…

Words 529 - Pages 3

Middle East Mistakes Not Learned In Vietnam

final Cody Horton Final paper Middle east mistakes not learned in Vietnam Com/220 As most Americans, one could find themselves asking questions like, why are we still at…

Words 1823 - Pages 8

Cambodia: Vietnam War and Indochinese War Essay

the second Indochinese war. To focus solely on the military strategies of the second Indochinese war is to limit one’s understanding of the complicated and unconventional nature of a war not open to purely military solutions. As discussed below, it seems apparent that it was the ability of the Communists, under consistent and unified leadership, to effectively combine their strategic and tactical efforts in the political, military, and diplomatic dimensions of the war which lead to their eventual…

Words 2071 - Pages 9