How did the nature of global conflict change during the 20th century?

(Communism, the Cold War and Australia)

1

Communism, the Cold War and Australia
Under the Menzies government (19491966), Australias foreign policy was based on two
main principles. The first was support for Britain and the USA in wars in Asia, especially
where communists were attempting to take power. The second was participation in treaty
organisations that appeared to increase Australias security. In 1951, a treaty was signed by
Australia, New Zealand and the USAthe ANZUS Pact. The pact was a military alliance that
committed the three nations to helping each other in terms of defence. In September 1954,
the South-East Asian Treaty Organisation (SEATO) was formed between the USA, Britain,
France, Australia, New Zealand, Pakistan, Thailand and the Philippinesall anti-communist
states. Like ANZUS, this was essentially a Cold War pact based on fear of communism.


Source 1: Australian Prime Minister Robert Menzies was a strong supporter of the fight against the
spread of communism.
Because of these foreign policy principles, Australia was directly involved in a number of other
conflicts in South-East Asia in the 1950s and 1960s.



How did the nature of global conflict change during the 20th century?
(Communism, the Cold War and Australia)
2

Vietnam:
Since the mid-19th century, Vietnam had been part of the French Empire. During World War
II, however, Japan invaded Vietnam and treated the Vietnamese very badly. During this time,
Ho Chi Minh led a mainly communist resistance group to fight both the Japanese and the
French occupation. In May 1941, the Viet Minh was formed as a united front against Japan.
After Japans surrender in 1945, the Viet Minh formed a government and declared
Vietnams independence. However, British forces sent to Vietnam to accept the Japanese
surrender were ordered by the Allies to restore French rule. The Viet Minh saw this as a
betrayal, as they had supported the Allies during World War II and now expected
independence. By December 1946, the French and the Viet Minh were involved in a war
that would last for another nine years.













Source 2: The Viet Minh led by Ho Chi Minh fought for Vietnamese independence and a map of North
and South Vietnam.

By 1952, Vietnam had become divided. The Viet Minh had control of the north, and the
French had set up a rival government in the south under the Vietnamese Emperor Bao Dai.
The Soviet Union and China offered support and recognition to the Viet Minh in the north,
while the USA and Britain did the same for Bao Dai in the south. With the election of
Eisenhower in the USA in November 1952, the war was no longer regarded as a colonial war
by the USA, but as a war between the free world and communism.

Bai Dai was ousted from power in the south by Ngo Dinh Diem, a corrupt landowner who
had little support from within Vietnam. However, because he was an anti-communist, he
had the support of the USA. Diems police tortured and killed peasants suspected of
supporting the Viet Minh.
In December 1960, the National Liberation Front (NLF) of South Vietnam was formed in
How did the nature of global conflict change during the 20th century?
(Communism, the Cold War and Australia)
3

opposition to Diems government. It became known as the Viet Cong by its opponents and
included both communists and non-communists. They began to wage guerrilla warfare
against Diems South Vietnamese government from the start of the 1960s.

The domino theory
US military involvement in the Vietnam War increased from 300 military advisers in 1955 to
over 500 000 US troops by 1968. To justify this level of intervention, US President
Eisenhower, and presidents following him, declared that if one country in South-East Asia
fell to communism, this would lead to the fall of all countries in the region. This was the
called the domino theory.

Australian involvement
In 1964, the Menzies government announced that it was introducing military conscription.
The system chosen was conscription by lottery, so that each year, all fit 20-year-old men
whose birthdays fell on the chosen dates were conscripted into the army. In May 1965,
Menzies announced the commitment of a battalion of Australian troops to South Vietnam.
He represented the decision as one that would make Australia more secure against the
threat of communism by strengthening its alliance with the USA. Public opinion polls at this
time indicated that most Australians supported the governments decision. This would
change dramatically in the coming years. By 1970, there were mass demonstrations held in
the major capitals of Australia to demand a moratorium (suspension of the war to allow
negotiations to take place).

Further Australian battalions were committed in 1966, including many conscripts as well as
professional soldiers. By 1968, there were 8000 Australian troops in Vietnam, 40 per cent of
whom were conscripts. When the USA began withdrawing troops from 1969, Australia
followed suit. Between 1970 and 1972, all Australian combat troops were withdrawn. On 27
December 1972, the newly elected Labor government ended all Australian military aid to
South Vietnam.

Source: Oxford Big Ideas Year 10 History Text Book, 2013












How did the nature of global conflict change during the 20th century?
(Communism, the Cold War and Australia)
4




Questions:

1. Why do you think the Soviet Union and China supported the Viet Minh in the Vietnam
War?




2. Why did the USA support Ngo Dinh Diem?




3. Explain what is meant by the domino theory.




4. What factors gave the Viet Cong an advantage over the USA and its allies?




5. How did the USA respond to the threat form the Viet Cong?




6. What proportion of Australian soldiers in the Vietnam War were volunteers?