Cold War and American Involvement in Korea and Vietnam

The Vietnam War

• The Gulf of Tonkin incident in 1964 led to a significant escalation of US involvement in the war
• The US dropped more bombs on Vietnam than during World War II and used chemical weapons like Agent Orange, causing widespread environmental and health damage
• The war was marked by a growing distrust between the US government and the American people, with the Pentagon Papers scandal in 1971 revealing government deceit about the war's progress

Consequences of the Vietnam War

• The war resulted in the deaths of over 58,000 American soldiers and millions of Vietnamese civilians
• The war was a significant blow to the United States' international reputation and led to a decline in trust in government
• The war marked a turning point in American foreign policy, with the United States becoming increasingly cautious in its military interventions abroad

Introduction to the Cold War

• The Cold War was a global conflict between the United States and the Soviet Union that lasted from 1945 to 1991
• The conflict was characterized by ideological, political, and economic rivalries between the two superpowers

The Korean War

• The Korean War was the first major conflict of the Cold War, lasting from 1950 to 1953
• The war was sparked by North Korea's invasion of South Korea, with China and the Soviet Union supporting the North
• The United States, led by President Harry Truman, intervened on behalf of South Korea, along with the United Nations
• The war resulted in the deaths of over 33,000 American soldiers and millions of Korean civilians
• The Korean War marked the beginning of the United States' involvement in Asia, setting the stage for future conflicts