On January 15, 1973, the US Army and its allies ceased military operations in Vietnam. The peacefulness of the American military was explained by the fact that after four years of negotiations in Paris, the parties to the armed conflict reached a certain agreement. A few days later, on January 27, a peace treaty was signed. According to the agreements reached, American troops, having lost 58 thousand people killed since 1965, left South Vietnam. Until now, historians, military men and politicians cannot unequivocally answer the question: "How did the Americans lose the war if they did not lose a single battle?" RG has collected several expert opinions on this matter.

1. Hellish disco in the jungle. This is what American soldiers and officers called the Vietnam War. Despite the overwhelming superiority in weapons and forces (the number of the US military contingent in Vietnam in 1968 was 540 thousand people), they failed to defeat the partisans. Even carpet bombing, during which American aircraft dropped 6.7 million tons of bombs on Vietnam, failed to "drive the Vietnamese into the Stone Age." At the same time, the losses of the US army and its allies were constantly growing. During the war years, the Americans lost 58 thousand people in the jungle killed, 2300 missing and over 150 thousand wounded. At the same time, the list of official losses did not include Puerto Ricans, who were hired by the American army to obtain United States citizenship. Despite some successful military operations, President Richard Nixon realized that there would be no final victory.

2. Demoralization of the US Army. Desertion during the Vietnamese campaign was quite widespread. Suffice it to recall that the famous American heavyweight boxer Cassius Clay converted to Islam at the peak of his career and took the name Mohammed Ali in order not to serve in the American army. For this act, he was stripped of all titles and suspended from participation in the competition for more than three years. After the war, President Gerald Ford in 1974 offered a pardon to draft evaders and deserters. More than 27 thousand people have surrendered. Later, in 1977, the next head of the White House, Jimmy Carter, pardoned those who fled the United States so as not to be called up.

4. People's war. Most of the Vietnamese were on the side of the guerrillas. They provided them with food, intelligence information, recruits and workers. In his writings, David Hackworth quotes Mao Zedong's dictum that "the people are to the guerrillas what water is to fish: remove the water and the fish will die." "The factor that welded and cemented the communists from the very beginning was their strategy of the revolutionary liberation war. Without this strategy, the victory of the communists would have been impossible. things are irrelevant to the problem, "wrote another American historian, Philip Davidson.

5. Professionals versus amateurs. The soldiers and officers of the Vietnamese army were much better prepared for the war in the jungle than the Americans, as they fought for the liberation of Indochina since the Second World War. First, their adversary was Japan, then France, then the United States. “While in Mai Hiepa, I also met with Colonels Li Lam and Dang Viet Mei. They served as battalion commanders for almost 15 years,” recalls David Hackworth. “The average American battalion or brigade commander served in Vietnam for one six-month period. and Mei were like the coaches of professional football teams playing in the finals each season for the super prize, while the American commanders were like pink-cheeked math teachers, replaced by our professional coaches sacrificed to careerism. Our "players" risked their lives to become generals commanding battalions in Vietnam for six months and America lost. "

6. Anti-war protests and sentiments of American society. America was shaken by thousands of protests against the Vietnam War. A new movement, the hippie, emerged from the youth protesting against this war. The movement culminated in the so-called "March to the Pentagon", when up to 100,000 anti-war youths gathered in Washington in October 1967, as well as protests during the August 1968 convention of the US Democratic Party in Chicago. Suffice it to recall that John Lennon, who opposed the war, wrote the song "Give the World a Chance." Drug addiction, suicide, and desertion have spread among the military. Veterans were persecuted by the "Vietnamese Syndrome", which caused thousands of former soldiers and officers to commit suicide. In such conditions, it was pointless to continue the war.

7. Help from China and the USSR. Moreover, if the comrades from the Celestial Empire provided mainly economic aid and manpower, the Soviet Union provided Vietnam with its most advanced weapons. So, according to rough estimates, the assistance of the USSR is estimated at 8-15 billion dollars, and the financial costs of the United States, based on modern estimates, exceeded a trillion US dollars. In addition to weapons, the Soviet Union sent military specialists to Vietnam. From July 1965 to the end of 1974, about 6.5 thousand officers and generals, as well as more than 4.5 thousand soldiers and sergeants of the Soviet Armed Forces, took part in hostilities. In addition, the training of Vietnamese military personnel has begun in the military schools and academies of the USSR - this is more than 10 thousand people.

This topic is quite broad and philosophical. Many works have been written and many opinions expressed on this matter. It will take a long time to retell and list the essence of each of them, therefore this article objectively describes the Vietnam War reasons briefly.

Now no one doubts that America unleashed this war. Its imperialist manners with a desire to subjugate the whole world have become the cause of tragedies and the outbreak of wars in many countries, not only in Vietnam. But it was in the latter that a total of 14 million tons of explosives were detonated, which is more than in two world wars combined!

Today we can safely say that there were two main reasons for the Vietnam War unleashed by the United States:

1. preventing the spread of the "communist plague" on the geographical map (under the guise of North Vietnam, which was supported by the USSR);
2. desire to enrich themselves large American corporations, the elite of the "black" business, specializing in the sale of weapons.

To ordinary mortal Americans, the reason for the war between the United States and Vietnam was presented in a highly corrected form: according to the official version, it was the need to establish world democracy.

In fact, everything was much more prosaic: politicians wanted to subjugate communist Vietnam and thereby show the unviability of communist states, and the business elite wanted to increase their already considerable fortunes several times over.

It is no secret to anyone that in the United States these economic and political elites interact closely, and the former influences the latter to a greater extent. Having united, they only won, and the beginning of the Vietnam War was not long in coming.

From the United States in South Vietnam, a puppet government headed by Ngo Dinh Diem was represented, through which they tried to dictate their terms. But this did not work out for a long time. Large-scale open warfare began in 1964. North Vietnam fought as best he could, and in the territory controlled by the Americans, partisan detachments operated, which caused a lot of trouble for the Yankees. But despite all the efforts of the Vietnamese, the war did not end as soon as they wanted - only in 1975. And nevertheless ... This war was marked by the victory of Vietnam, which dealt an irreparable blow to the authority of the United States in the world.

But Vietnam suffered no less from it ... The figures about the actual destruction, losses, and murders were simply staggering. But after going through all the trials, Vietnam was able to defend its right to self-determination, to independently resolve internal issues, to choose its own state structure, and in the end - to sovereignty.

What did America get in the end? Tens of thousands of killed, hundreds of wounded, shame on the whole world, but all this did not concern those who sat "at the top." “There” everything was justified, since war is always a way to make money, and someone took advantage of it very well.

Ordinary American soldiers were simply hostages of the situation - torn thousands of kilometers away from home, tired and demoralized - they had only one dream: to return home as soon as possible.

V The war in Vietnam began with shelling of the US destroyer Maddox. This happened on August 2, 1964.
The destroyer was in the Gulf of Tonkin (Vietnamese territorial waters where no one called the United States) and was allegedly attacked by Vietnamese torpedo boats. All torpedoes passed by, but one boat was sunk by the Americans. Maddox fired first, explaining it with warning fire. The event was called the "Tonkin Incident" and was the reason for the outbreak of the Vietnam War. Further, by order of US President Lyndon Johnson, the US Air Force struck at the naval targets of North Vietnam. It is clear for whom the war was beneficial, he is a provocateur.

The confrontation between Vietnam and the United States began with the recognition of Vietnam as an independent state in 1954. Vietnam turned out to be split into two parts. The South remained under the control of France (Vietnam had been its colony since the 19th century) and the United States, while the North was ruled by the Communists with might and main, with the support of China and the USSR. The country was supposed to unite after democratic elections, but the elections did not take place, and a civil war broke out in South Vietnam.

The United States feared that communism could spread to all of Asia on a domino basis.

Representatives of the communist camp waged a guerrilla war on enemy territory, and its hottest focus was the so-called Iron Triangle - an area of ​​310 square kilometers northwest of Saigon. Despite such proximity to the strategic settlement of the South, it was actually controlled by partisans-communists, and their base was the significantly expanded underground complex near the village of Kuti.

The United States provided support to the South Vietnamese government, fearing further expansion of the Communists in Southeast Asia.

In early 1965, the Soviet leadership decided to provide the Democratic Republic of Vietnam (North Vietnam) with large-scale military-technical assistance. According to the Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the USSR Alexei Kosygin, aid to Vietnam during the war cost the Soviet Union 1.5 million rubles a day.

To eliminate the partisan zone in January 1966, the United States decided to conduct Operation Crimp, for which 8 thousand US and Australian troops were allocated. Once in the jungle of the Iron Triangle, the allies were faced with an unexpected surprise: there was, in fact, no one to fight with. Snipers, stretch marks on the trails, unexpected ambushes, attacks from behind, from territories that, it would seem, were already (just now!)

The Vietnamese sat underground and, after the attacks, went underground again. In underground cities, the halls were without additional supports and they were designed for the miniature constitution of the Vietnamese. Below is a schematic diagram of a real underground city explored by the Americans.

Much larger Americans could hardly squeeze through the passages, the height of which was usually in the range of 0.8-1.6 meters, and the width was 0.6-1.2 meters. There was no obvious logic in the organization of the tunnels; they were deliberately built as a chaotic labyrinth, equipped with a large number of false dead-end branches that made orientation difficult.

Throughout the war, the Vietcong guerrillas were supplied through the so-called "Ho Chi Minh Trail", which ran through neighboring Laos. The Americans and the South Vietnamese army tried several times to cut the "path", but failed.

In addition to fire and traps, "tunnel rats" could also wait for snakes and scorpions, which the partisans specially set on. Such methods resulted in a very high mortality rate among the "tunnel rats".

Only half of the personnel returned from the holes. They were even armed with special pistols with silencers, gas masks and other things.

The "Iron Triangle", the area where the catacombs were dug, were eventually destroyed by the Americans with the B-52 bombing.

The battles were fought not only underground, but also in the air. The first battle between anti-aircraft gunners of the USSR and American aviation took place on July 24, 1965. The Soviet MIGIs, on which the Vietnamese flew, have proven themselves well.

During the war years, the Americans lost 58 thousand people in the jungle killed, 2300 were missing and over 150 thousand were injured. At the same time, the list of official losses did not include Puerto Ricans, who were hired by the American army to obtain United States citizenship. The losses of North Vietnam amounted to over a million killed soldiers and more than three million civilians.

The Paris ceasefire agreements were signed only in January 1973. It took several more years to withdraw the troops.

Carpet bombing of the cities of North Vietnam was carried out by order of US President Nixon. On December 13, 1972, the North Vietnamese delegation left Paris, where peace talks were being held. In order to force them to return back, it was decided to launch massive bombing strikes on Hanoi and Haiphong.

A South Vietnamese Marine wears a special bandage among the decomposing corpses of American and Vietnamese soldiers killed during the fighting at a rubber plantation 70 km northeast of Saigon, November 27, 1965.

According to the Soviet side, 34 B-52s were lost during Operation Linebacker II. In addition, 11 other types of aircraft were shot down. The losses of North Vietnam amounted to about 1,624 civilians, the loss of the military is unknown. Aviation losses - 6 Mig 21 aircraft.

"Christmas Bombardment" is the official name.

During Operation Linebacker II, 100 thousand tons were dropped on Vietnam! bombs.

The most famous case of the use of the latter is Operation Popeye, when US transporters sprayed silver iodite over the strategic territories of Vietnam. From this, the amount of precipitation increased three times, the roads were washed out, fields and villages were flooded, communications were destroyed. With the jungle, the US military also acted radically. Bulldozers uprooted trees and topsoil, and herbicides and defoliants were sprayed on top of the rebel stronghold (Agent Orange). This seriously disrupted the ecosystem, and in the long term led to massive diseases and infant mortality.

The Americans hounded Vietnam with everything they could. They even used a mixture of defoliants and herbicides. From what there are still born freaks already at the genetic level. This is a crime against humanity.

The USSR sent to Vietnam about 2,000 tanks, 700 light and maneuverable aircraft, 7,000 mortars and guns, more than a hundred helicopters, and much more. Almost the entire air defense system of the country, flawless and impassable for fighters, was built by Soviet specialists with Soviet funds. There was also a "field training". Military schools and academies of the USSR trained Vietnamese military personnel.

Vietnamese women and children hide from artillery fire in an overgrown canal 30 kilometers west of Saigon, January 1, 1966.

On March 16, 1968, American soldiers completely destroyed a Vietnamese village, killing 504 innocent men, women and children. For this war crime, only one person was convicted, who three days later was "pardoned" by personal decree of Richard Nixon.

The Vietnam War also became a drug war. Drug addiction in the military has become another factor that crippled the combat capability of the United States.

The average American soldier in Vietnam fought 240 days a year! For comparison, an American soldier fought an average of 40 days in 4 years in the Pacific during World War II. Helicopters performed well in this war. Of which the Americans lost about 3500 pieces.

From 1957 to 1973, about 37 thousand South Vietnamese were shot for cooperation with the Americans by the Viet Cong guerrillas, most of whom were minor civil servants.

Civilian casualties are currently unknown - it is believed that about 5 million died, and more in the North than in the South. In addition, the losses of the civilian population of Cambodia and Laos are not taken into account anywhere - most likely, here they also number in the thousands.

The average age of a dead American soldier was 23 years 11 months. 11 465 dead did not reach the age of 20 years, and 5 died before reaching the age of 16! The oldest killed in the war was a 62-year-old American.

The Vietnam War was the longest military clash in modern military history. The conflict lasted for about 20 years: from November 1, 1955 until the fall of Saigon on April 30, 1975.

But Vietnam won ...

Our crimson flag flies proudly
And on it - the stars are a victory sign.
Like surf
Stormy -
The strength of friendship is fighting,
To new dawns we go one step at a time.

This is Lao Dong, our party
We are forward from year to year
Leads!
- Do Min, Lao Dong Party Song

Soviet tanks in Saigon ... this is already the end ... The Yankees do not want to remember this war, they no longer openly fight with the radicals and have generally revised their methods of fighting the "red plague".

The basis of information and photos (C) Internet. Main sources:

Dmitry Boyko

How small Vietnam was able to defeat the United States of America?

Exactly 35 years ago, on March 29, 1973, the Vietnam War ended for the American army. This military campaign became the bloodiest for the United States in the second half of the twentieth century - according to rough estimates, since 1964, the occupation troops have lost 60 thousand killed and 300 thousand wounded, about 2 thousand people are still considered missing. The American Air Force in Indochina lost about 9 thousand aircraft downed, and a little less than a thousand people were captured, mostly pilots. On the part of the army of South Vietnam, allied to the United States, about 250 thousand people were killed, about 1 million were injured.

The losses of North Vietnam and the National Liberation Front of South Vietnam (Viet Cong) amounted to just over 1 million killed and about 600 thousand wounded. The losses among the civilian population are truly colossal - there are no exact data, but according to rough estimates, they amount to about 4 million people. Such huge losses among civilians speak of the nature of the war - war crimes (violation of the rules of hostilities established by international law) by the occupiers were commonplace.

In this conflict, military-technical support to North Vietnam was provided by the USSR (according to conservative estimates, this war cost the Soviet Union about 1.5 million rubles a day), and Soviet military specialists also trained the Vietnamese to use modern weapons. China sent engineering units to rebuild the infrastructure destroyed by the US bombing raids.

This war began in South Vietnam as a civil war. The prerequisites for this were the actions of the pro-American Prime Minister Ngo Dinh Diem, who, after holding rigged elections, removed the legitimate emperor Bao Dai from the leadership of the country, proclaimed the creation of a sovereign Republic of Vietnam and canceled a nationwide referendum on the unification of the country.

Such actions of the prime minister were in line with the foreign policy of the Eisenhower administration, which was afraid of the "domino effect" (if one state in the region becomes communist, then its neighbors follow him). It was obvious that following the unification of Vietnam, the communist North would swallow up the South, since the USSR and China were behind it. At the same time, the Ngo Dinh Diem government tried to implement an unpopular land reform, and the crackdown on communists and religious leaders intensified. All this led to the fact that, with the support of North Vietnam in December 1960, all clandestine groups united into the National Liberation Front of South Vietnam (NLF), also known as the Viet Cong.

The Viet Cong sought the unification of Vietnam on the basis of the Geneva Agreements, the overthrow of the government of Ngo Dinh Diem and the implementation of agrarian reform. Also, the conflict between the people and the government undermined the difference on religious principle. The majority of the population were Buddhists, and Ngo Dinh Diem and his entourage professed Christianity. The strengthening of dictatorial methods and the lack of results in the fight against the rebels discredited the prime minister in the eyes of the Americans, and led to the fact that on November 1, 1963, Ngo Dinh Diem was removed from his post and killed by a junta of army generals, by prior agreement with the United States. It was the first of a series of military coups in South Vietnam.

According to the US Navy, on August 2, 1964, the American destroyer Maddox was attacked by North Vietnamese boats under unclear circumstances, which served as a formal reason for the start of the active phase of hostilities, and by the end of 1965 the number of American soldiers in Vietnam was 185 thousand people. But the strategy of warfare - "find and destroy", developed by the American General William Westmoreland, did not bring tangible results, as it was focused on war between two specific opponents with a real front line. The Vietnam War, on the other hand, was characterized primarily by guerrilla warfare, where local residents behaved like peasants during the day and like resistance fighters at night.

From its impotence in the current situation, the American army resorted to carpet bombing, weapons of mass destruction were used, and the villages in which Viet Cong fighters were seen were mercilessly burned out with napalm. Trying to cut off the supply of the NLF on the Ho Chi Minh trail, the US Air Force began to strike at the territory of neighboring Laos and Cambodia. Also, military operations were carried out on the territory of these countries.

The turning point in the Vietnam War was the joint offensive of the NLF and the North Vietnamese army at the end of January 1968. This offensive was named "Tetsky" - in honor of the Vietnamese New Year, which is celebrated in Vietnam according to the lunar calendar. For this period, throughout the war, an armistice was usually declared. So it was this time, but the Northerners violated it in order to achieve the effect of surprise. Although the offensive ended in defeat for the communist forces, and the losses of the Viet Cong were enormous, but psychologically it had very serious consequences. American troops did not expect such a strong attack on their positions, and the losses incurred by them tipped the balance of the US political elite towards a gradual reduction of their participation in the conflict, and General Westmoreland's request for reinforcements of 206 thousand people in order to “finish off the enemy ”Was never satisfied with the congress.

Among the war crimes of the American army, one cannot fail to note the raid of infantrymen in the Vietnamese village community of Songmi. March 16, 1968 In the villages of Mi-Lai and Mikhe, a total of 504 people aged from 2 months to 82 years old were killed, including 173 children, 182 women (of whom 17 were pregnant), 60 men over 60 years old. Evaluation of the success of hostilities due to the absence of a front line was based on the number of Viet Cong killed. And for accountability, the corpse of a civilian is no different from a resistance fighter, because many of the crimes of ordinary military officers turned a blind eye.

The events in Songmi drew sharp criticism from both the leading world powers and within America itself, where anti-war voices were louder and louder. The war did not bring any visible results, and the increase in the area of ​​the Arlington cemetery caused a sharp condemnation of US foreign policy at home. But American troops could not easily leave the territory of Vietnam, and therefore, in 1969, a process of gradual transfer of responsibility for control over the territory of the South Vietnamese army began, but this process was ineffective.

As a result, since 1972, National Security Advisor G. Kissinger and the representative of North Vietnam Le Duc Tho begin to conduct peace negotiations, and on January 27, 1973, an agreement was signed to resolve the conflict, according to which the US army was to leave the territory of Indochina, which happened in late March 1973. The war between North and South continued further, but without the support of the American army, the Southerners could not resist for a long time and on April 30, 1975, they laid down their arms.

Thus, history “dotted all the i's”, once again proving that the aggression of even a very strong adversary can never prevail over the National Liberation Struggle of a small, but very brave and selfless people. The Vietnam War is one of the clearest examples of this, and the current rulers would not hurt to turn over the pages of their own history once again, so as not to repeat the mistakes made in the past.

The Vietnam War or the Vietnam War is the largest military conflict of the second half of the twentieth century, between North and South Vietnam, in which the USSR, USA, China and a number of other states also participated. The Vietnam War began in 1957 and ended only in 1975.

Causes and prerequisites of the Vietnam War

After World War II in 1954, the territory of Vietnam was divided along the 17th parallel. North Vietnam was under the control of the Viet Minh, and South Vietnam was controlled by the French administration.
After the communists defeated the PRC, the United States began to interfere in the affairs of Vietnam, helping the southern part. The United States regarded China as a threat and, in their opinion, it will soon cast its eyes on Vietnam, which cannot be allowed.
In 1956, Vietnam was to be united into one state. But South Vietnam refused to come under communist rule and abandoned the treaty, declaring itself a republic.

The beginning of the war

North Vietnam saw no other way to unify the state other than conquering South Vietnam. The Vietnam War began with systematic terror against South Vietnamese officials. In 1960, the Viet Cong organization, or NLF, was created, which included all the groups fighting against South Vietnam.
The success of the Viet Cong worried the United States, and they deployed the first regular units of their army in 1961. But so far, the US Army is not yet involved in military clashes. The US military and officers only train the South Vietnamese army and help plan attacks.
The first major collision occurred in 1963. Then the partisans of North Vietnam at the Battle of Apbak defeated the South Vietnamese army. This defeat undermined the position of Diem - the ruler of South Vietnam, which soon led to a coup, and Diem was killed. And North Vietnam, meanwhile, was strengthening its positions, and also deploying its partisan detachments to the territory of South Vietnam, by 1964 their number became at least 8 thousand fighters.
The number of the American military grew rapidly, if in 1959 their number became no more than 800 fighters, then in 1964 their number increased to 25 thousand.

Full-scale intervention by the American army

In February 1965, Vietnamese guerrillas attacked military facilities of the American army. US President Lyndon Johnson announced that the US would soon be ready to retaliate against North Vietnam. US aircraft begin bombing Vietnam - Operation Flaming Spear.
In March 1965, the bombing began again - Operation Rolling Thunder. This bombing was the largest since the Second World War. The number of military personnel in the American army from 1964 to 1965 increased from 24 thousand to 180 thousand.In the next three years, the number of the American military increases to about 500 thousand.
For the first time, the American army entered the battle in August 1965. The operation was dubbed Starlight, where the American army won victory, killing about 600 Viet Cong fighters.
The US military began to resort to a search and destroy strategy. Its goal is the detection of North Vietnamese partisan detachments and their subsequent destruction.
The North Vietnamese army and guerrillas began to infiltrate the territory of South Vietnam, and the American army tried to stop them in the mountainous regions. In 1967, the guerrillas became especially active in the mountainous regions, the US Marines were forced to join the battle. In the Battle of Dacto, the United States managed to hold off the enemy, but the Marines also suffered heavy casualties.

Tet offensive of North Vietnam

Until 1967, the US military had significant success in the war against North Vietnam. And then the government of North Vietnam begins to develop a plan for a full-scale invasion of South Vietnam in order to turn the whole course of the war. The United States knew that North Vietnam was preparing for an offensive, but they were not even aware of its scale.
The offensive begins on an unexpected date - the Vietnamese New Year, Theta Day. In these days, no hostilities were supposed to be carried out, but in 1968 this treaty was violated.
On January 30-31, the North Vietnamese army inflicts massive strikes across the entire territory of South Vietnam, including large cities. In most directions, the offensive was successfully repulsed, but the city of Hue was still lost.
The offensive of the North Vietnamese army was stopped only in March. Then the American and South Vietnamese armies launch a counterattack, where they want to return the city of Hue. The Battle of Hue is considered the bloodiest in the history of the Vietnam War. The army of the United States and South Vietnam lost a large number of fighters, but the losses of the Viet Cong were catastrophic, its military potential was seriously undermined.
After the Tet offensive, a note of protest was heard among the US population, as many began to believe that the Vietnam war would not be won, the forces of North Vietnam were still not exhausted and there was no longer any point in losing American soldiers. Everyone was worried about the fact that North Vietnam was able to pull off a military operation of this magnitude.

The final stages of the Vietnam War

After Richard Nixon assumed the presidency in 1968, he announced that the number of American soldiers in Vietnam would decrease. But aid to South Vietnam continues. Instead of using its own army, the United States will intensively train the army of South Vietnam, as well as supply it with supplies and equipment.
In 1971, the South Vietnamese army undertakes the military operation "Lam Shon 719", the purpose of which was to stop the supply of weapons to North Vietnam. The operation ended in failure. The US military stopped military operations in 1971, looking for Viet Cong guerrillas in South Vietnam.
In 1972, the Vietnamese army made another attempt at a full-scale offensive. It got the name "Easter Offensive". The North Vietnamese army was reinforced with several hundred tanks. The South Vietnamese army managed to stop the offensive only thanks to American aviation. Despite the fact that the offensive was stopped, South Vietnam lost significant territory.
At the end of 1972, the United States began large-scale bombing of North Vietnam - the largest in the history of the Vietnam War. Huge losses forced the North Vietnamese government to start negotiations with the United States.
In January 1973, a peace agreement was signed between North Vietnam and the United States, and the US military began to rapidly leave Vietnam. In May of that year, the entire American army returned to the United States.
Despite the fact that the United States withdrew its army, the position of North Vietnam was disastrous. The forces of South Vietnam numbered about 1 million soldiers, while its opponents had no more than 200-300 thousand soldiers. However, the combat effectiveness of the South Vietnamese army fell due to the absence of the American military, in addition, a deep economic crisis began, and South Vietnam began to lose its territory in favor of North Vietnam.
North Vietnamese forces launched several strikes into South Vietnamese territory to test the US response. Seeing that the Americans will no longer take part in the war, the government is plotting another full-scale offensive against
South Vietnam.
In May, the offensive began, which a few months later ended with the complete victory of North Vietnam. The South Vietnamese army was unable to adequately respond to the offensive, and was completely defeated.

Aftermath of the Vietnam War

Both sides suffered colossal casualties. The United States lost almost 60 thousand soldiers killed, and the number of wounded reached 300 thousand. South Vietnam lost about 300 thousand killed, and about 1 million soldiers were wounded, and this is not counting the civilian population. The number of those killed in North Vietnam reached 1 million, in addition to this, about 2 million civilians died.
The Vietnamese economy suffered such catastrophic losses that an exact figure cannot even be given. Many towns and villages were simply razed to the ground.
North Vietnam completely conquered South Vietnam and united the whole country under a single communist flag.
The US population negatively assessed the military intervention in the hostilities in Vietnam. This sparked the birth of the hippie movement, who chanted that they no longer want a repeat of this.