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Vietnamese History (1973-1975), by Group 2, class 8/3

I. Exit of Americans
- The U.S. began drastically reducing their troop support in South Vietnam during the
final years of “Vietnamization”. Many U.S. troops were removed from the region, and on 5 March 1971,
the U.S. returned the 5th Special Forces Group, which was the first American unit deployed to South
Vietnam, to its former base in Fort Bragg, North Carolina.
- Under the Paris Peace Accord, between North Vietnamese Foreign Minist Nguyen
Duy Trinh and U.S. Secretary of State William Roger, and reluctantly signed by South Vietnamese
President Thieu, U.S. military forces withdrew from South Vietnam and prisoners were exchanged.
North Vietnam was allowed to continue supplying communist troops in the South, but only to the
extent of replacing materials that were consumed.
- The communist leaders had expected that the ceasefire terms would favor their
side. But Saigon, bolstered by a surge of U.S. aid received just before the ceasefire went into
effect, began to roll back the Vietcong. The communists responded with a new strategy hammered
out in a series of meetings in Hanoi in March 1973, according to the memoirs of Tran Van Tra.
II. Campaign 275 (in Tay Nguyen):
- On 10 March 1975, General Thao launched Campaign 275, a limited offensive into
the Central Highlands, supported by tanks and heavy artillery. The target was Ban Me Thuot, in
Daklak Province. If the town could be taken, the provincial capital of Pleiku and the road to the coast
would be exposed for a planned campaign in 1976. The ARVN proved incapable of resisting the
onslaught, and its forces collapsed on 11 March. Once again, Hanoi was surprised by the speed of their
success. Thao now urged the Politburo to allow him to seize Pleiku immediately and then turn his
attention to Kontum. He argued that with two months of good weather remaining until the onset of
the monsoon, it would be irresponsible to not take advantage of the situation.
• - ARVN General Phu abandoned Pleiku and Kontum and retreated toward the coast,
in what became known as the "column of tears".
• As the ARVN tried to disengage from the enemy, refugees mixed in with the line of
retreat. The poor condition of roads and bridges, damaged by years of conflict and neglect, slowed
Phu's column. As the North Vietnamese forces approached, panic set in. Often abandoned by the
officers, the soldiers and civilians were shelled incessantly. The retreat degenerated into a
desperate scramble for the coast. By 1 April the "column of tears" was all but annihilated. It marked
one of the poorest examples of a strategic withdrawal in modern military history
• On 20 March, Thieu reversed himself and ordered Hue, Vietnam's third-largest
city, be held at all costs. Thieu's contradictory orders confused and demoralized his officer corps. As
the North Vietnamese launched their attack, panic set in, and ARVN resistance withered. On 22
March, the VPA opened the siege of Hue. Civilians flooded the airport and the docks hoping for any
mode of escape. Some even swam out to sea to reach boats and barges anchored offshore. In the
confusion, routed ARVN soldiers fired on civilians to make way for their retreat.
• On 31 March, after a three-day battle, Hue fell. As resistance in Hue collapsed,
North Vietnamese rockets rained down on Da Nang and its airport. By 28 March, 35,000 VPA troops
were poised to attack the suburbs. By 30 March, 100,000 leaderless ARVN troops surrendered as the
VPA marched victoriously through Da Nang. With the fall of the city, the defense of the Central
Highlands and Northern provinces came to an end.

III. Final North Vietnamese offensive:


• On 7 April, three North Vietnamese divisions attacked Xuan Loc, 40 miles
(64 km) east of Saigon. The North Vietnamese met fierce resistance at Xuan Loc from the ARVN
18th Division. For two bloody weeks, severe fighting raged as the ARVN defenders made a last stand
to try to block the North Vietnamese advance. By 21 April, however, the exhausted garrison
surrendered.
• - An embittered and tearful President Thieu resigned on the same day, declaring
that the United States had betrayed South Vietnam. In a scathing attack on the US, he suggested
U.S. Secretary of State William Roger had tricked him into signing the Paris peace agreement two
years ago, promising military aid which then failed to materialise.
• "At the time of the peace agreement the United States agreed to replace
equipment on a one-by-one basis," he said. "But the United States did not keep its word. Is an
American's word reliable these days?" He continued, "The United States did not keep its promise to
help us fight for freedom and it was in the same fight that the United States lost 50,000 of its
young men."He left for Taiwan on 25 April, leaving control of the government in the hands of General
Duong Van Minh. At the same time, North Vietnamese tanks had reached Bien Hoa and turned toward
Saigon, brushing aside isolated ARVN units along the way.
• By the end of April, the Army of the Republic of South Vietnam had collapsed on all
fronts. Thousand of refugees streamed southward, ahead of the main communist onslaught. On 27
April, 100,000 North Vietnamese troops encircled Saigon. The city was defended by about 30,000
ARVN troops. To hasten a collapse and foment panic, the VPA shelled the airport and forced its
closure. With the air exit closed, large numbers of civilians found that they had no way out.
IV. Fall of Saigon:
Chaos, unrest, and panic broke out as hysterical South Vietnamese officials and civilians scrambled to
leave Saigon. Martial law was declared. American helicopters began evacuating South Vietnamese, U.S.,
and foreign nationals from various parts of the city and from the U.S. embassy compound. Operation
Frequent Wind had been delayed until the last possible moment, because of U.S. Ambassador Graham
Martin’s belief that Saigon could be held and that a political settlement could be reached.
Schlesinger announced early in the morning of 29 April 1975 the evacuation from Saigon by helicopter
of the last U.S. diplomatic, military, and civilian personnel. Frequent Wind was arguably the largest
helicopter evacuation in history. It began on 29 April, in an atmosphere of desperation, as hysterical
crowds of Vietnamese vied for limited seats. Martin pleaded with Washington to dispatch $700 million
in emergency aid to bolster the regime and help it mobilize fresh military reserves. But American public
opinion had soured on this conflict halfway around the world.
In the U.S., South Vietnam was perceived as doomed. President Gerald Ford gave a televised speech on
23 April, declaring an end to the Vietnam War and all U.S. aid. Frequent Wind continued around the
clock, as North Vietnamese tanks breached defenses on the outskirts of Saigon. The song "White
Christmas" was broadcast as the final signal for withdrawal. In the early morning hours of 30 April, the
last U.S. Marines evacuated the embassy by helicopter, as civilians swamped the perimeter and poured
into the grounds. Many of them had been employed by the Americans and were left.
On 30 April 1975, VPA troops overcame all resistance, quickly capturing key buildings and installations.
A tank crashed through the gates of the Presidential Palace, and at 11:30 a.m. local time the NLF flag
was raised above it. Thieu's successor, President Duong Van Minh, attempted to surrender, but VPA
officers informed him that he had nothing left to surrender. Minh then issued his last command,
ordering all South Vietnamese troops to lay down their arms.

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