Question

Describe the closing stages under Nixon.

Answer 1

1. Under President Richard Nixon (1969-1974), the United States started to pull out of the Vietnam War in the last few years.
2. The strategy known as Vietnamisation facilitated the withdrawal. This strategy aimed to gradually withdraw U.S. troops while enhancing the combat roles of the South Vietnamese army (ARVN).
3. Nixon expanded the war into Cambodia and Laos to attack North Vietnamese supply lines, even though troops were being pulled out.
4. This led to large-scale protests in the U.S., including the tragic shootings at Kent State University in 1970.
5. Diplomatic efforts stepped up, and in 1973, the Paris Peace Accords were signed, which ended the fighting and sent U.S. troops home. But fighting kept going on between North and South Vietnam.
6. In 1975, North Vietnamese troops took over Saigon, ending the war for good. This meant that South Vietnam had lost and the country was now unified under communist rule.
7. During Nixon’s presidency, the United States longest war came to an end, but it didn't accomplish its basic goals.