1. No category

The Vietnam War
Why is the study of the Vietnam War
significant for Australians ?
•
•
•
•
•
The study reveals the operation of LiberalLabor politics in the 1960’s and 70’s, with
such significant politicians as Robert
Menzies, Arthur Calwell and the rise of
Gough Whitlam.
Australia’s commitment to Vietnam War
reveals the growth in its foreign policy of
Australia’s alliance with America.
A study of the causes of the Vietnam War
reveals the legacy of post World War 11
power blocs and the subsequent Cold War.
The impact of the war on Australian
citizens is revealed in the growth of political
activism and the Moratorium Movement.
The Vietnam War was the first war fully
exposed by the media. It became known as “
the lounge room war” The power of the
media was shown in its impact on public
opinion.
The Legacy of World War 11
USSR
Fear of US
Need to
Control buffer
states
Marxism
encouraged
revolution
Warsaw
Pact
USA
Development
of
Domino Theory
Truman
Doctrine
Marshall
Plan
NATO
“The Grand Alliance”-Feb 1945
Potsdam July 1945- Churchill, Truman, Stalin
Churchill’s “Iron Curtain” speech
• “I have a strong admiration and regard for the valiant Russian people and for
my wartime comrade, Marshal Stalin. There is deep sympathy and goodwill in
Britain -- and I doubt not here also -- toward the peoples of all the Russias
and a resolve to persevere through many differences and rebuffs in
establishing lasting friendships.
• It is my duty, however, to place before you certain facts about the present
position in Europe.
• From Stettin in the Baltic to Trieste in the Adriatic an iron curtain has
descended across the Continent. Behind that line lie all the capitals of the
ancient states of Central and Eastern Europe. Warsaw, Berlin, Prague, Vienna,
Budapest, Belgrade, Bucharest and Sofia; all these famous cities and the
populations around them lie in what I must call the Soviet sphere, and all are
subject, in one form or another, not only to Soviet influence but to a very
high and in some cases increasing measure of control from Moscow.
• I do not believe that Soviet Russia desires war. What they desire is the
fruits of war and the indefinite expansion of their power and doctrines.
• From what I have seen of our Russian friends and allies during the war, I am
convinced that there is nothing they admire so much as strength, and there is
nothing for which they have less respect than for weakness, especially military
weakness.
Fear of the US
• “ The ruling group of American Imperialists…has
taken the path of outright expansionism, of
ensclaving the weakened capitalist states of
Europe and the colonial and dependent countries.
The clearest and most specific expression of this
policy is provided by the Truman –Marshall
Plan…immitating the Hitlerites, the new
aggressors are using blackmail and extortion.”
• Speech by leading member of the Communist
Government in Sept 1947
Ideology and Terminology
As it was used after 1945 the term ‘Cold War’ described not only a situation of intense mutual
hostility and suspicion, but also a fundamental clash of ideologies and interests. The American
historian, Anders Stephanson, has defined the Cold War as possessing the following
characteristics:
a) It was essentially a bipolar conflict involving two great blocs that appeared to ‘superimpose’
their rivalry on the rest of the world. Thus, the Cold War spread to the Middle East, Asia, Africa
and South America.
b) It was a struggle carried on by all means short of war. There was a massive arms build up
and nuclear weapons made both sides virtually impregnable. Diplomacy was turned into a kind
of ‘militarised thinking’ that concentrated on building and strengthening alliances.
c) Each side denied the other’s right to exist. The USSR, following Marx’s and Lenin’s teaching, was
convinced that coexistence between Capitalism and Communism was impossible as capitalism
was immoral and doomed to collapse, while the capitalist West saw the USSR in the words
of President Reagan as an ‘evil
empire’.
d) Each side conducted ferocious propaganda attacks against the other and suppressed
internal dissidence. Stalin’s paranoid reaction to opposition is well documented, but a milder
form of repression also took place in the West. In the United States, for example, Senators
Nixon and McCarthy led a campaign against alleged Soviet agents in the US government
forcing President Truman to set up a commission to review the loyalty of American civil
servants.
Domino Theory
Originally coined by President
Eisenhower in 1954 the idea stated that
if one country fell to communism, then
its neighbour would fall ‘ like a row of
dominoes”.
McCarthyism took place during a
period of intense suspicion in the
United States primarily from 1950 to
1954, when the U.S. government was
actively countering American
Communist Party subversion, its
leadership, and others suspected of
being Communists or Communist
sympathizers. During this period
people from all walks of life became
the subject of aggressive "witchhunts," often based on inconclusive
or questionable evidence. It grew out
of the Second Red Scare that began
in the late 1940s and is named after
the U.S. Senator Joseph McCarthy, a
Republican of Wisconsin.
Strengthening of Alliances
• NATO
The core of NATO is Article V of the NATO Treaty, which states:
– “The Parties agree that an armed attack against one or more of them in Europe or North
America shall be considered an attack against them all. Consequently they agree that, if such an
armed attack occurs, each of them, in exercise of the right of individual or collective self-defence
recognised by Article 51 of the Charter of the United Nations, will assist the Party or Parties
so attacked by taking forthwith, individually and in concert with the other Parties, such action as
it deems necessary, including the use of armed force, to restore and maintain the security of the
North Atlantic area.”
•
This provision was intended so that if the USSR and its allies launched an attack
against any of the NATO members, it would be treated as if it was an attack on all
member states. This marked a significant change for the United States, which had
traditionally favoured isolationist policies. However, the feared invasion of Western
Europe never came. Instead, the provision was invoked for the first time in the treaty's
history on September 12, 2001, in response to the 11 September attacks on the United
States the day before.
Divided we Fall- Berlin Blockade
Increasing Polarization
• West Berlin, as an outpost of Western democracy and economic
success deep within the Communist zone, was both a nest of
spies for both sides and a constant challenge to the Soviets.
The Berlin Blockade was an attempt to starve the city into
submission and the Allied airlift signalled the West’s
determination to use all resources to defend Berlin.
Thereafter, it was accepted by both sides that Berlin would act
as the trigger for general war. Any Russian invasion would be
followed by conflict with the considerable Allied forces camped
permanently on the plain of West Germany. Both sides finding
Europe too dangerous a site for confrontation, looked elsewhere
to compete
The Spread of Communism
• Between 1939-1945, Soviet Russia had gained
Latvia, Estonia, Lthuania and Bessarabia. By
1948 it hade control of all the states of Eastern
Europe except Yugoslavia
• The Soviet Union controlled E AST Germany
and the Eastern half of Berlin
• In 1949 China became Communist
• In 1950 communist Nth Korea attacked non
communist Sth Korea
A TENUOUS BALANCE
“Out in the Cold”- The origins of
the Korean War
• Student Internet Site study; Use the following
website to answer the following question in 200
words; What events led to the Korean War and
Australia’s involvement in this conflict?
• www.awm.gov.au/korea/origins/origins/origins.
htm
The Korean War- a proxy war
1950-53
Stalemate
Summary of the Development of Cold War-an
ideological, political , economic and military
conflict
Spread of
communism
Czechoslovakia
China
Alliances
NATO
WARSAW
ANZUS
SEATO
Weaknesses
Of Yalta
And
Potsdam
Churchill’s
Iron Curtain
speech
Cold War
Berlin
Blockade
Marshall
Plan
Truman
Doctrine
FLASHPOINTS OF THE COLD
WAR
Korean
War
1950-53
Flashpoints
Vietnam
1962-72
Cuban
Missile
Crisis
1962
Background History of Vietnam
•
In the mid-nineteenth century, France took over Vietnam and the neighbouring states of
Laos and Cambodia. These countries became French colonies and were collectively
known as French Indo-China. By 1900, Vietnamese nationalists had organised
against the French, whom they saw as exploiting the land and its people. There were
some uprisings, and some harsh French reprisals
• Japan occupied Indo-China during World War II. When Japan was defeated, the
Vietnamese nationalists hoped that the USA and its allies would allow them to be a new
independent nation. But instead, the USA allowed the French to resume control. Between
1945 and 1954, Vietnamese rebels led by Ho Chi Minh fought against the French. Ho
was both a nationalist and a communist. In 1954, the rebels – called the Viet Minh ?
defeated the French army at the battle of Dien Bien Phu. The French realised that they
could no longer keep Indo-China
•
A conference was held in Geneva, Switzerland, to decide Indo-China's fate. Laos and
Cambodia became independent. But Vietnam was divided in two (just as Korea
had been divided in 1953) – South Vietnam and North Vietnam. In the North, the
communist Viet Minh were dominant. In the South, the dominant forces were anticommunist and, in places, pro-French.The agreement was known as the Geneva Accord
and Vietnam was divided along the 17th parallel. The division of the country was
supposed to be temporary, until elections were held for a unified
Vietnam in 1956
Ho Chi Minh 1890- 1969
•
•
•
•
•
Born in 1890, studied in Paris and inspired
by Marx, and the Russian Revolution
Helped organise exiled nationalists into
Vietnamese Revolutionary League, in an
attempt to expel the French
In 1940, French surrendered to the
Japanese. Ho Chi Minh helped form the
Vietminh and fought a guerilla campaign
against the Japanese.
The Vietminh received weapons and
ammunition from Soviet Union and the US.
After the Japanese surrender Ho announced
the formation of the Democratic Republic
of Vietnam. However Roosevelt, Churchill
and Stalin had already decided what would
happen at a summit meeting in Potsdamthe country to be divided into the Chinese
Nth and the British South.
Legacy of Colonialism
• After the war Britain and
China left Vietnam in control
of France
• Fighting soon broke out
between French troops and
the Vietminh. Increasing
public criticism and cost were
proving problematic for the
French
• On May 7th 1954 France
surrendered and the
following month US, Soviet
Union, Britain and France
met at Geneva.
The Geneva Accord
• 1. Vietnam would be divided at the 17th parallel
• 2 Nth Vietnam would be ruled by Ho Chi Minh
• 3. Sth Vietnam would be ruled by NGO Dinh Diem, an
opponent of communism
• 4. French troops would withdraw from Vietnam
• 5. The Vietminh would withdraw from Sth Vietnam
• 6.The Vietnamese could freely chhose to live in the Nth
or Sth
• 7. A general election for the whole of Vietnam would
be held before July 1956, under the supervision of an
international commission
Cold War to Hot War
•
The elections were not held. The USA feared that Ho Chi Minh and his communist
supporters would win the elections. US President Eisenhower admitted that 80 per cent
of the Vietnamese people would probably vote for Ho in an election. So the USA
encouraged South Vietnam not to cooperate in the holding of the elections. This led to
full-scale civil war, with Ho Chi Minh's communist supporters in the South, known as
the Viet Cong, opposing the government of South Vietnam
•
Even before 1960, the USA tried to support South Vietnam by sending supplies and
military advisers to the South. As Viet Cong support grew, and as South Vietnamese
forces experienced more defeats, the USA increased its aid.
On July 31, 1964, the USS Maddox, a navy destroyer, began a reconnaissance mission on
the coast of North Vietnam in the Gulf of Tonkin. On August 2, while the USS Maddox
was not far from Hon Me, a North Vietnamese island being attacked, three North
Vietnamese torpedo boats chased the Maddox off. The attack was unsuccessful, although
torpedoes were launched. The USS Maddox was hit by one heavy machine gun shell from
the torpedo boats.
•
•
The Gulf of Tonkin Resolution passed in August 1964 empowered President
Johnson to “ Take all necessary steps to repel armed attack against US forces” and “ to
take all necessary steps, including force to assist Sth Vietnam and any member of
SEATO”
Breaches of the Geneva Accord
The Response of Australia to the
Threat of Communism
• Internationally Australia had sought to strengthen her security
through alliances ,specifically ANZUS and SEATO
• Australia adopted a foreign policy underpinned by the logic of
“forward defence”
• The Australian voters responded to fear of Communism ,by
electing Robert Menzies who had promoted the platform of
“kicking the communist can”
• Introduced the Communist Party Dissolution Bill in 1950.
Claims that this was unconstitutional led to a referendum in 1951
which was narrowly defeated.
• The Petrov Affair
• Formation of a new political Party –the DLP IN 1957
• Introduction of Conscription for the Vietnam War
What was the purpose of the treaties Australia contracted
during this period?
ANZUS
The treaty came about following the close cooperation of the United States,
Australia and New Zealand during World War II, during which time Australia had
come perilously close to invasion by Japan
The resulting treaty was concluded at San Francisco on 1 September 1951,
and entered into force on 29 April 1952. The treaty bound the signatories to
recognize that an armed attack in the Pacific area on any of them would endanger
the peace and safety of the others. It committed them to consult in the event of a
threat and, in the event of attack, to meet the common danger in accordance with
their respective constitutional processes. Article III STATES
“The Parties will consult together whenever in the opinion of any of them
the territorial integrity, political independence or security of any of the Parties is
threatened in the Pacific.”
What differences exist in language and meaning between NATO and
ANZUS Treaties ?
SEATO , alliance organized (1954) under the Southeast Asia
Collective Defense Treaty by representatives of Australia, France, Great
Britain, New Zealand, Pakistan, the Philippines, Thailand, and the United
States. Established under Western auspices after the French withdrawal
from Indochina, SEATO was created to oppose further Communist gains
in Southeast Asia. The treaty was supplemented by a Pacific Charter,
affirming the rights of Asian and Pacific peoples to equality and selfdetermination and setting forth goals of economic, social, and cultural
cooperation between the member countries. The civil and military
organizations established under the treaty had their headquarters in
Bangkok, Thailand. SEATO relied on the military forces of member
nations and joint maneuvers were held annually. SEATO’s principal role was
to sanction the U.S. presence in Vietnam, although France and Pakistan
withheld support. Unable to intervene in Laos or Vietnam due to its rule of
unanimity, the future of the organization was in doubt by 1973, and
SEATO was ultimately disbanded in 1977.
The Communist Party Dissolution
Bill
• Introduced into the House of Representatives on 27 April 1950, the
Communist Party Dissolution Bill was one of the most contentious pieces of
legislation ever introduced in Australia. Its main provisions made the
Australian Communist Party and associated organisations unlawful, dissolved
them, and appointed a receiver to dispose of their property. Persons who
were members of the Communist Party were to be ‘declared’, making them
ineligible for Commonwealth employment, holding office in a trade union, or
working in certain industries. Although a ‘declared’ person could appeal to the
High Court, the onus of proof would be on such persons to prove their
innocence
• The legality of the legislation was successful challenged in the High Court
and a move to amend the constitution, to grant Parliament powers to ban the
Communist Party, was defeated at a referendum in September 1951.
Thumbs Down- and Up
The Communist Dissolution Bill
Culture of 007
• Espionage was a very important part of the secret conflict
carried out during the Cold War. The Soviet intelligence agency
(KGB and its predecessors) was successful in penetrating some
sensitive areas of the US and other Western governments. This
was usually done with the cooperation of citizens in Western
countries or by Soviet diplomats..
• The Cold War was a time characterised by strongly held
convictions regarding the vast ideological chasm between the
communist and democratic worlds. In this environment,
defectors were often held up as trophies that testified to the
bankruptcy of one system and the virtue of another.
The Affair
While carrying out his spying duties, Petrov soon came to the attention
of the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation (ASIO), Australia’s
recently formed intelligence service. ASIO had been formed in 1949,
primarily to investigate what was known as ‘The Case’. The Case
concerned leaks of information from the Australian Department of
External Affairs to the Soviet Union.
Part-time ASIO agent, doctor, violinist and Polish emigré Michael
Bialoguski was an eccentric yet key player in Petrov’s defection.
Bialoguski met Petrov at the Russian Social Club in Sydney and the two
became friends. Petrov didn’t suspect Bialoguski’s ASIO connection
and confided in him about his troubles at the Soviet Embassy.
Bialoguski was the first person to alert ASIO to the possibility that
Petrov might want to defect
On April 3 1954, Vladimir Petrov defected to Australia under top
secret conditions. He was taken to a safe house on Sydney’s north
shore. Only a few ASIO officers knew of the defection and even his
wife, Evdokia, was unaware of her husband’s decision
Once the Soviet Embassy became aware of Petrov’s defection it
accused Australian authorities of kidnapping him. They quickly took
Evdokia from her house in Lockyer Street, Griffith and effectively
placed her under house arrest at the Soviet Embassy. Two armed
couriers from Moscow arrived to escort her back to Russia (and,
presumably, punishment and possibly death).
By the time Mrs Petrov arrived at the airport a large, enraged crowd
had gathered to ‘save her’
ASIO contacted the pilot by radio and Colonel Charles Spry, DirectorGeneral of ASIO, made arrangements to approach Mrs Petrov in
Darwin so that, if she wished, she could seek asylum in Australia
Russian guards drag the wife of Russian
diplomat Vladimir Petrov to a plane at Sydney
airport to take her back to Russia. The
publication of this photo by the Australian
media helped Menzies win the 1954 federal
election.
‘ Witnesses of Truth”
•
•
•
•
On April 13, the eve of the last Parliamentary sitting day before the 1954 election
campaign, Prime Minister Robert Menzies announced the defection of Vladimir
Petrov. He called for a Royal Commission to investigate evidence of espionage
contained in the documents Petrov brought with him
Leader of the Opposition, H V Evatt came to believe that the Petrov defections were
part of a sinister conspiracy devised by Menzies, ASIO and Catholic anti-communist
elements inside the Labor Party to secure a Coalition victory at the 1954 election.
Members of Evatt’s staff had been named in the Petrov documents. He claimed they
were forgeries sold by Petrov to the government to damage the Labor Party. .
On September 7 1954, after a series of extraordinary outbursts the Commissioners
withdrew Evatt’s leave to appear before the Royal Commission. They argued that he
was representing his own political interests as Leader of the Opposition and not his
clients’ interests. Evatt’s suspicion of a conspiracy deepened as a result of his
dismissal.
The final report of the Royal Commission was released on September 14 1955. It
concluded that the Petrov documents were genuine and that the Petrovs were
‘witnesses of truth’. However no prosecutions were recommended as a result of the
inquiry.
Dr H V Evatt
• Dr Herbert Evatt claimed to
be anti-communist, yet he
acted for the Communist
Party in its High Court
challenge
• Failing to win the next
election, Dr Evatt, made a
scathing attack on the Labor
Party, leading to a split and
the subsequent formation of
the DLP
• The Petrov Affair also
divided the Labor Party
Royal Commission
• The Royal Commission concluded its hearings in
March 1955. In September 1955 the commissioners
released their decision to the parliament. The
following three things were resolved.
• The Petrov Papers were authentic documents and the
Petrovs were truthful witnesses.
• From its establishment in 1943 to its departure in 1954,
the Soviet Embassy in Canberra had been used for
Soviet espionage in Australia
• The only Australians who knowing assisted Soviet
espionage were communists.[
B J Santa Maria
• Evatt’s position on the Petrov Affair inflamed
existing divisions within the Labor Party. The antiCommunist Right of the Party bitterly opposed the
conspiracy theory that Evatt mounted at the Petrov
Royal Commission. They believed his conspiracy
theory amounted to a defence of Communism..
• After a series of dramatic meetings, involving fistfights and wild accusations, disagreement became
violent dissent within the caucus. On October 6 1954
Evatt charged the Catholic group, The Movement,
led by B A Santamaria, with being part of the
conspiracy against him. Evatt believed The
Movement was directing a small group within the
ALP to subvert the Party.
Verdict of History
• In 1984, thirty years after the Affair, the ASIO files on Petrov and the
records of the Royal Commission were made available to historians. In
1987 the historian Robert Manne published The Petrov Affair: Politics
and Espionage, which gave the first full account of the Affair. He
showed that Evatt's suspicions were unfounded, that Menzies and Spry
had been telling the truth, that there had been no conspiracy, and that
Evatt's own conduct had been mainly responsible for subsequent
political events.
• But Manne also showed that although there had been some Soviet
espionage in Australia, there was no major Soviet spy ring, and that
most of the documents given by Petrov to ASIO contained little more
than political gossip which could have been compiled by any journalist.
This included the notorious "Document J" which had been written by
Fergan O'Sullivan, a member of Evatt's staff, and passed to Petrov.
Despite Manne's research, many on the left continue to believe in a
Petrov conspiracy.
Australian Foreign Policy“ Forward Defense ”
• Forward Defence suggested that it was better to face
enemies in battle long before they reach the shores of
Australia.
• Australia had sent troops to fight against the
communist North Korea in the Korean War 1950-53.
• Menzies was a firm believer in the policy of
containment. Menzies told Parliament in 1965;’ The
takeover of South Vietnam would be a direct military
threat to Australia”.
Australia’s relationship with
Indonesia
“Australia's defence and foreign policy during the post war
period cannot be fully understood without reference to
Indonesia." Greg Pembarton1. The Dutch had controlled Indonesia for 300 years, but in 1949, with
Australian support the Independent nation of Indonesia came into
being
2. From 1949-1963 the country was led by President Sukarno, however
economic problems and internal racial and religious conflict caused
chronic instability.
3. In 1963 Indonesia launched a policy of confrontation, to destroy the
newly created state of Malaysia. Australia’s response was to support
Malaysia militarily
4. As well Indonesia had taken control of West Papua New Guinea
5. In 1965 an alleged communist attempt to seize power led to hundreds
of thousands of deaths and the eventual overthrow of Sukarno
Australia’s commitment to the US in Korea and
Vietnam was not just about fulfilling Alliance
commitments but ensuring that America was
drawn into the South East Asian Area. Given the
proximity to Australia of an unstable Indonesia,
with pro Communist elements, Gareth Evans,
future Labor foreign minister said; ‘The Australian
desire to see the United States actively engaged in the security
of South East Asia was ..understandable.”
“ That old arm twister, Lyndon Baines Johnson, did not, as
is the widely held belief, force Australia into the war in April
1965. Indeed, documents in the US archives confirm that,
when America appeared to be wavering early that year on
whether to commit ground troops, Australia applied pressure
to involve the US more heavily in the war.” The National
Times 1975
Politicians and Parties
Domino Theory
• Source: Sydney Morning
Herald, Thursday, 24
November 1966, p. 5
• To what extent was
Vietnam as much about
internal political conflict
as external conflict?
1965
Sir Paul Hasluck, Minister for External Affairs
"What is happening in South East Asia today is not a local, temporary or isolated
situation. It is part of the rivalry of power and the ideological contest
which is taking place throughout the world. It is part of the stream of
events continuing into the future. In both of those contests the most significant
factor in Asia is China".
US State Department; "In Vietnam, a Communist government has set out
deliberately to conquer a sovereign people in a neighboring state..[by a] carefully
planned program of concealed aggression ... as real as that of an
invading army. The war in Vietnam is not a spontaneous and local rebellion
against the established government".
Sir Robert Menzies; “ The Australian government is now in receipt of a request
from the government of South Vietnam for furthur military assistance. We have
decided- and this has been after close consultation with the government of the
US-to provide an infantry battalian….this represents the most useful additional
contribution which we can make to the defence of the region at this time.”
Prime Minister Menzies announces the Australian troop Commitment to the
Vietnam War, 29 April 1965
“The Australian Government is now in receipt of a request from the Government of South
Vietnam for further military assistance.
We have decided – and this has been after close consultation with the Government of the
United States – to provide an infantry battalion for service in South Vietnam ...
There can be no doubt of the gravity of the situation in South Vietnam. There is ample
evidence to show that with the support of the North Vietnamese regime and other
Communist powers, the Viet Cong has been preparing on a more substantial scale
insurgency action designed to destroy South Vietnamese Government control, and to
disrupt by violence the life of the local people – whatever you say about the Government,
the local people matter ...
The takeover of South Vietnam would be a direct military threat to Australia and all the
countries of South and SouthEast Asia.
It must be seen as part of a thrust by Communist China between the Indian and Pacific
Oceans.”
© Extract from The Age, Friday 30 April 1965, p 1
#
In 1995, following the opening of
Cabinet Papers under “the thirty year
rule” much of what Menzies had said
was untrue. Diem had not asked
Australia for help and had in fact tried
to dissuade Australia from becoming
involved.Furthur, the commitment of
advisors was at Menzies strong
insistence
President Johnson’s visit to Australia in 1966
‘ All the Way with LBJ’ -Harold Holt
Reasons for Australia’s Involvement in Vietnam
Fear of
Communism
IDEOLOGICAL
Domino
Theory
reasons
Liberal
Policy of
Anti
Comm.
Policy
of
Forward
Defence
STRATEGIC
Support
of
US
MILITARY
Alliance
Commitments
SEATO
ANZUS
Relationship
With
Indonesia
POLITICAL