Ho Chi Minh Creates Provisional Government
Following the surrender of Japan to Allied forces, Ho Chi Minh and his People's Congress create the National Liberation Committee of Vietnam to form a provisional government. Japan transfers all power to Ho's Vietminh.

President Franklin Roosevelt Dies

U.S. Drops Atomic Bombs on Japan
Making good on his threat to unleash "a rain of ruin the like of which has never been seen on earth," President Harry Truman authorizes the dropping of two atomic bombs on Japan -- one on Hiroshima on August 6, and a second on Nagasaki on August 9. The Japanese will surrender within days.

Ho Declares Independence of Vietnam

British Forces Land in Saigon, Return Authority to French

First American Dies in Vietnam
Lt. Col. A. Peter Dewey, head of the American O.S.S. mission, is killed by Vietminh troops while driving a Jeep to the airport. Reports will later indicate that his death was due to a case of mistaken identity -- he had been mistaken for a Frenchman.

French and Vietminh Reach Accord
France recognizes Vietnam as a "free state" within the French Union. French troops replace Chinese in the North.

Negotiations Between French and Vietminh Breakdown

Indochina War Begins
Following months of steadily deteriorating relations, the Democratic Republic of Vietnam launches its first concerted attack against the French.

Vietminh Move North of Hanoi

Marshall Plan Announced
Speaking at Harvard commencement exercises, Secretary of State George C. Marshall lays out the details of a Truman administration plan to assist Europe in rebuilding in the aftermath of World War II.

Valluy Fails to Defeat Vietminh
French General Etienne Valluy attempts, and fails, to wipe out the Vietminh in one stroke.

Elysée Agreement Signed
Bao Dai and President Vincent Auriol of France sign the Elysée Agreement. The French pledge to assist in the building of a national anti-Communist army.

NATO Formed

George Orwell's 1984 Published

Chinese, Soviets Offer Weapons to Vietminh

Truman Commits U.S. Troops to Korea
When Communist forces from North Korea invade the Republic of South Korea on June 25, President Truman appeals to the United Nations to take action. The U.N. quickly brands North Korea the aggressor, and Truman immediately follows up by sending U.S. air and naval support to Korea.

U.S. Pledges $15M to Aid French
The United States sends $15 million dollars in military aid to the French for the war in Indochina. Included in the aid package is a military mission and military advisors.

Ho Chi Minh Creates Workers' Party

Truman Dismisses General Douglas MacArthur

France Grants Laos Full Independence

Vietminh Forces Push into Laos

Battle of Dienbienphu Begins
A force of 40,000 heavily armed Vietminh lay siege to the French garrison at Dienbienphu. Using Chinese artillery to shell the airstrip, the Vietminh make it impossible for French supplies to arrive by air. It soon becomes clear that the French have met their match.

Eisenhower Cites "Domino Theory" Regarding Southeast Asia
Responding to the defeat of the French by the Vietminh at Dienbienphu, President Eisenhower outlines the Domino Theory: "You have a row of dominoes set up. You knock over the first one, and what will happen to the last one is the certainty that it will go over very quickly."

Senate Condemns McCarthy for Misconduct

French Defeated at Dienbienphu

Geneva Meeting Begins
Delegates from nine nations convene in Geneva to start negotiations that will lead to the end of hostilities in Indochina. The idea of partitioning Vietnam is first explored at this forum.

Geneva Agreements Announced
Vietminh General Ta Quang Buu and French General Henri Delteil sign the Agreement on the Cessation of Hostilities in Vietnam. As part of the agreement, a provisional demarcation line is drawn at the 17th parallel which will divide Vietnam until nationwide elections are held in 1956. The United States does not accept the agreement, and neither does the government of Bao Dai.

Diem Rejects Geneva Accords, Refuses Nationwide Elections

China and Soviet Union Pledge Additional Financial Support to Hanoi

Diem Urged to Negotiate with North
Britain, France, and United States covertly urge Ngo Dinh Diem to respect the Geneva accords and enter discussions with the North.

Diem Becomes President of Republic of Vietnam

French Leave Vietnam

U.S. Training South Vietnamese
The U.S. Military Assistance Advisor Group (M.A.A.G.) assumes responsibility from the French for training South Vietnamese forces.

Khrushchev Warns, "We Will Bury You!"
Cold War tensions between the United States and the Soviet Union heat up as Nikita Khrushchev announces to Western ambassadors, "History is on our side. We will bury you!"

Election Deadline Passes
The deadline for nationwide elections in Vietnam that was set at the Geneva meeting passes. No elections are held.

Communist Insurgency in South Vietnam
Communist insurgent activity in South Vietnam begins. Guerrillas assassinate more than 400 South Vietnamese officials. Thirty-seven armed companies are organized along the Mekong Delta.

Terrorist Bombings Rock Saigon
Thirteen Americans working for M.A.A.G. and the U.S. Information Service are wounded in terrorist bombings in Saigon.

Soviets Launch Sputnik I

Communist Forces Settle Along Mekong Delta

First U.S. Earth Satellite Launched

Weapons Moving Along Ho Chi Minh Trail
North Vietnam forms Group 559 to begin infiltrating cadres and weapons into South Vietnam via the Ho Chi Minh Trail. The Trail will become a strategic target for future military attacks.

Vice-President Nixon Engages Khrushchev in "Kitchen Debate"

U.S. Servicemen Killed in Guerrilla Attack
Major Dale R. Buis and Master Sergeant Chester M. Ovnand become the first Americans to die in the Vietnam War when guerillas strike at Bienhoa.

Diem Orders Crackdown on Communists, Dissidents

North Vietnam Imposes Universal Military Conscription

Soviets Shoot Down U.S. Spy Plane, Capture Pilot
On the eve of a U.S.-Soviet summit, U2 pilot Frances Gary Powers is shot down while flying a spy mission over the Soviet Union. Powers is taken prisoner, the Eisenhower administration is forced to own up to the mission, and Khrushchev cancels the summit.

Kennedy Elected President
John F. Kennedy narrowly defeats Richard Nixon for the presidency. In his inaugural address, Kennedy declares that Americans will be ready to "...bear any burden, meet any hardship, support any friend, oppose any foe to assure the survival and the success of liberty."

Diem Survives Coup Attempt

Vietcong Formed
Hanoi forms the National Liberation Front for South Vietnam. The Diem government dubs them "Vietcong."

Battle of Kienhoa Province
Four hundred North Vietnamese guerrillas attack a village in Kienhoa Province, and are defeated by South Vietnamese troops.

Peace Corps Program Launched

Bay of Pigs Debacle
A plot to invade Cuba and overthrow Fidel Castro goes miserably wrong when air support at the Bay of Pigs fails to materialize. Kennedy's leadership skills are called into question, and Kennedy himself develops doubts about heeding the advice of the military.

Kennedy Meets Khrushchev in Vienna

Vice President Johnson Tours Saigon
During a tour of Asian countries, Vice President Lyndon Johnson visits Diem in Saigon. Johnson assures Diem that he is crucial to U.S. objectives in Vietnam and calls him "the Churchill of Asia."

Kennedy Authorizes Green Berets
President Kennedy authorizes the "Green Berets" -- a Special Forces operation activated at Fort Bragg, NC. They will specialize in counterinsurgency.

U.S. Military Employs Agent Orange
The U.S. Air Force begins using Agent Orange -- a defoliant that came in metal orange containers-to expose roads and trails used by Vietcong forces.

U.S.-Soviet Showdown Over Cuban Missile Crisis
Photos taken from a U.S. spy plane reveal the Soviets placing offensive missiles on Cuban soil. Sensing a direct challenge to U.S. resolve, Kennedy orders a naval quarantine around Cuba to prevent the Soviets from delivering additional missiles. In the tense days of the Cuban Missile Crisis, the world comes the closest it's ever been to nuclear annihilation.

Richard Nixon tells the press, "You won't have Nixon to kick around anymore."

Diem Palace Bombed in Coup Attempt

Mansfield Voices Doubt on Vietnam Policy
Ngo Dinh Diem defeats Bao Dai in a rigged election and proclaims himself President of the Republic of Vietnam.

Senate majority leader Mike Mansfield reports back to President Kennedy from Saigon that, in his opinion, Diem has wasted the two billion dollars America has spent there.

Battle of Ap Bac
Vietcong units defeat the South Vietnamese Army (A.R.V.N.) in the Battle of Ap Bac.

President Kennedy Assassinated in Dallas
Kennedy's death puts the problem of how to proceed in Vietnam on the shoulders of his vice president, Lyndon Johnson.

Buddhists Protest Against Diem
Tensions between Buddhists and the Diem government are further strained as Diem, a Catholic, removes Buddhists from several key government positions and replaces them with Catholics. Buddhist monks protest Diem's intolerance for other religions and the measures he takes to silence them. In a show of protest, Buddhist monks start setting themselves on fire in public places.

Diem Overthrown, Murdered
With the tacit approval of the United States, operatives within the South Vietnamese military overthrow Diem. He and his brother Ngo Dinh Nhu are shot and killed.

General Nguyen Khanh Seizes Power in Saigon
In a bloodless coup, General Nguyen Khanh seizes power in Saigon. The South Vietnamese junta leader, Major General Duong Van Minh, is placed under house arrest, but is allowed to remain as a figurehead chief-of-state.

Gulf of Tonkin Incident
On August 2, three North Vietnamese PT boats allegedly fire torpedoes at the U.S.S. Maddox, a destroyer located in the international waters of the Tonkin Gulf, some thirty miles off the coast of North Vietnam. The attack comes after six months of covert U.S. and South Vietnamese naval operations. A second, even more highly disputed attack, is alleged to have taken place on August 4.

Debate on Gulf of Tonkin Resolution
The Gulf of Tonkin Resolution is approved by Congress on August 7 and authorizes President Lyndon Johnson to "take all necessary measures to repel any armed attack against forces of the United States and to prevent further aggression." The resolution passes unanimously in the House, and by a margin of 82-2 in the Senate. The Resolution allows Johnson to wage all out war against North Vietnam without ever securing a formal Declaration of War from Congress.

Vietcong Attack Bienhoa Air Base

LBJ Defeats Goldwater
Lyndon Johnson is elected president in a landslide over Republican Barry Goldwater of Arizona. During the campaign, Johnson's position on Vietnam appeared to lean toward de-escalation of U.S. involvement, and sharply contrasted with Goldwater's more militant views.

Operation "Rolling Thunder" Deployed
Sustained American bombing raids of North Vietnam, dubbed Operation Rolling Thunder, begin in February. The nearly continuous air raids will go on for three years.

Marines Arrive at Danang
The first American combat troops, the 9th Marine Expeditionary Brigade, arrive in Vietnam to defend the U.S. airfield at Danang. Scattered Vietcong gunfire is reported, but no Marines are injured.

Heavy Fighting at Ia Drang Valley
The first conventional battle of the Vietnam war takes place as American forces clash with North Vietnamese units in the Ia Drang Valley. The U.S. 1st Air Cavalry Division employs its newly enhanced technique of aerial reconnaissance to finally defeat the N.V.A., although heavy casualties are reported on both sides.

U.S. Troop Levels Top 200,000

Vietnam "Teach-In" Broadcast to Nation's Universities
The practice of protesting U.S. policy in Vietnam by holding "teach-ins" at colleges and universities becomes widespread. The first "teach-in" -- featuring seminars, rallies, and speeches -- takes place at the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor in March. In May, a nationally broadcast "teach-in" reaches students and faculty at over 100 campuses.

1966

B-52s Bomb North Vietnam
In an effort to disrupt movement along the Mugia Pass -- the main route used by the N.V.A. to send personnel and supplies through Laos and into South Vietnam -- American B-52s bomb North Vietnam for the first time.

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South Vietnam Government Troops Take Hue and Danang

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LBJ Meets With South Vietnamese Leaders
President Lyndon Johnson meets with South Vietnamese premier Nguyen Cao Ky and his military advisors in Honolulu. Johnson promises to continue to help South Vietnam fend off aggression from the North, but adds that the U.S. will be monitoring South Vietnam's efforts to expand democracy and improve economic conditions for its citizens.

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Veterans Stage Anti-War Rally
Veterans from World Wars I and II, along with veterans from the Korean War, stage a protest rally in New York City. Discharge and separation papers are burned in protest of U.S. involvement in Vietnam.

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C.O.R.E. Cites "Burden On Minorities and Poor" in Vietnam
The Congress of Racial Equality (C.O.R.E.) issues a report claiming that the U.S. military draft places "a heavy discriminatory burden on minority groups and the poor." The group also calls for a withdrawal of all U.S. troops from Vietnam.

1967

Operation Cedar Falls Begins
In a major ground war effort dubbed Operation Cedar Falls, about 16,000 U.S. and 14,000 South Vietnamese troops set out to destroy Vietcong operations and supply sites near Saigon. A massive system of tunnels is discovered in an area called the Iron Triangle, an apparent headquarters for Vietcong personnel.

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Bunker Replaces Cabot Lodge as South Vietnam Ambassador

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Martin Luther King Speaks Out Against War
Calling the U.S. "the greatest purveyor of violence in the world," Martin Luther King publicly speaks out against U.S. policy in Vietnam. King later encourages draft evasion and suggests a merger between antiwar and civil rights groups.

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Dow Recruiters Driven From Wisconsin Campus
University of Wisconsin students demand that corporate recruiters for Dow Chemical -- producers of napalm -- not be allowed on campus.

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McNamara Calls Bombing Ineffective
Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara, appearing before a Senate subcommittee, testifies that U.S. bombing raids against North Vietnam have not achieved their objectives. McNamara maintains that movement of supplies to South Vietnam has not been reduced, and neither the economy nor the morale of the North Vietnamese has been broken.

1968

Sihanouk Allows Pursuit of Vietcong into Cambodia

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North Vietnamese Launch Tet Offensive
In a show of military might that catches the U.S. military off guard, North Vietnamese and Vietcong forces sweep down upon several key cities and provinces in South Vietnam, including its capital, Saigon. Within days, American forces turn back the onslaught and recapture most areas. From a military point of view, Tet is a huge defeat for the Communists, but turns out to be a political and psychological victory. The U.S. military's assessment of the war is questioned and the "end of the tunnel" seems very far off.

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Battle for Hue
The Battle for Hue rages for 26 days as U.S. and South Vietnamese forces try to recapture the site seized by the Communists during the Tet Offensive. Previously, a religious retreat in the middle of a war zone, Hue is nearly leveled in a battle that leaves nearly all of its population homeless. Following the U.S. and A.R.V.N. victory, mass graves containing the bodies of thousands of people who had been executed during the Communist occupation are discovered.

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Westmoreland Requests 206,000 More Troops

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My Lai Massacre
On March 16, the angry and frustrated men of Charlie Company, 11th Brigade, Americal Division enter the village of My Lai. "This is what you've been waiting for -- search and destroy -- and you've got it," say their superior officers. A short time later the killing begins. When news of the atrocities surfaces, it will send shockwaves through the U.S. political establishment, the military's chain of command, and an already divided American public.

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LBJ Announces He Won't Run
With his popularity plummeting, and dismayed by Senator Eugene McCarthy's strong showing in the New Hampshire primary, President Lyndon Johnson stuns the nation and announces that he will not be a candidate for re-election.

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MLK Slain in Memphis

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Paris Peace Talks Begin
Following a lengthy period of debate and discussion, North Vietnamese and American negotiators agree on a location and start date of peace talks. Talks are slated to begin in Paris on May 10 with W. Averell Harriman representing the United States, and former Foreign Minister Xuan Thuy heading the North Vietnamese delegation.

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Robert Kennedy Assassinated

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Upheaval at Democratic Convention in Chicago
As the frazzled Democratic party prepares to hold its nominating convention in Chicago, city officials gear up for a deluge of demonstrations. Mayor Richard Daley orders police to crack down on antiwar protests. As the nation watches on television, the area around the convention erupts in violence.

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Richard Nixon Elected President
Running on a platform of "law and order," Richard Nixon just barely beats out Hubert Humphrey for the presidency. Nixon takes just 43.4 percent of the popular vote, compared to 42.7 percent for Humphrey. Third-party candidate George Wallace takes the remaining percentage of votes.

1969

Nixon Begins Secret Bombing of Cambodia
In an effort to destroy Communist supply routes and base camps in Cambodia, President Nixon gives the go-ahead to "Operation Breakfast." The covert bombing of Cambodia, conducted without the knowledge of Congress or the American public, will continue for fourteen months.

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Policy of "Vietnamization" Announced
Secretary of Defense Melvin Laird describes a policy of "Vietnamization" when discussing a diminishing role for the U.S. military in Vietnam. The objective of the policy is to shift the burden of defeating the Communists onto the South Vietnamese Army and away from the United States.

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Ho Chi Minh Dies at Age 79

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News of My Lai Massacre Reaches U.S.
Through the reporting of journalist Seymour Hersh, Americans read for the first time of the atrocities committed by Lt. William Calley and his troops in the village of My Lai. At the time the reports are made public, the Army has already charged Calley with the crime of murder.

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Massive Antiwar Demonstration in DC

1970

Sihanouk Ousted in Cambodia
Prince Sihanouk's attempt to maintain Cambodia's neutrality while war wages in neighboring Vietnam forces him to strike opportunistic alliances with China, and then the United States. The vacillating weakens his government, leading to a coup orchestrated by his defense minister, Lon Nol.

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Kent State Incident
National Guardsmen open fire on a crowd of student antiwar protesters at Ohio's Kent State University, resulting in the death of four students and the wounding of eight others. President Nixon publicly deplores the actions of the Guardsmen, but cautions: "when dissent turns to violence it invites tragedy." Several of the protesters had been hurling rocks and empty tear gas canisters at the Guardsmen.

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Kissinger and Le Duc Begin Secret Talks

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Number of U.S. Troops Falls to 280,000

1971

Lt. Calley Convicted of Murder for My Lai

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Pentagon Papers Published
The New York Times publishes the Pentagon Papers, revealing a legacy of deception concerning U.S. policy in Vietnam on the part of the military and the executive branch. The Nixon administration, eager to stop leaks of what it considers sensitive information, appeals to the Supreme Court to halt the publication. The Court decides in favor of the Times and the First Amendment right to free speech.

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Nixon Announces Plans to Visit China
In a move that troubles the North Vietnamese, President Nixon announces his intention to visit the People's Republic of China. Nixon's gesture toward China is seen by the North Vietnamese as an effort to create discord between themselves and their Chinese allies.

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Thieu Re-elected in South Vietnam

1972

Nixon Cuts Troop Levels by 70,000
Responding to charges by Democratic presidential candidates that he is not moving fast enough to end U.S. involvement in Vietnam, President Nixon orders troop strength reduced by seventy thousand.

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Secret Peace Talks Revealed

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B-52s Bomb Hanoi and Haiphong
In an attempt to force North Vietnam to make concessions in the ongoing peace talks, the Nixon administration orders the heavy bombing of supply dumps and petroleum storage sites in and around Hanoi and Haiphong. The administration makes it clear to the North Vietnamese that no section of Vietnam is off-limits to bombing raids.

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Break-In at Watergate Hotel

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Kissinger Says "Peace Is At Hand"
Henry Kissinger and Le Duc Tho reach agreement in principle on several key measures leading to a cease-fire in Vietnam. Kissinger's view that "peace is at hand" is dimmed somewhat by South Vietnamese president Nguyen Van Thieu's opposition to the agreement.

 

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President Nixon Wins Reelection

1973

Cease-fire Signed in Paris
A cease-fire agreement that, in the words of Richard Nixon, "brings peace with honor in Vietnam and Southeast Asia," is signed in Paris by Henry Kissinger and Le Duc Tho. The agreement is to go into effect on January 28.

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End of Military Draft Announced

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Last American Troops Leave Vietnam

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Hearings on Secret Bombings Begin
The Senate Armed Services Committee opens hearing on the U.S. bombing of Cambodia. Allegations are made that the Nixon administration allowed bombing raids to be carried out during what was supposed to be a time when Cambodia's neutrality was officially recognized. As a result of the hearings, Congress orders that all bombing in Cambodia cease effective at midnight, August 14.

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Kissinger and Le Duc Tho Win Peace Prize
The Nobel Peace Prize is awarded to Henry Kissinger of the United States and Le Duc Tho of North Vietnam. Kissinger accepts the award, while Tho declines, saying that a true peace does not yet exist in Vietnam.

1974

Thieu Announces Renewal of War

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Report Cites Damage to Vietnam Ecology
According to a report issued by the National Academy of Science, use of chemical herbicides during the war has caused long-term damage to the ecology of Vietnam. Subsequent inquiries will focus on the connection between certain herbicides, particularly Agent Orange, and widespread reports of cancer, skin disease, and other disorders in individuals exposed to them.

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Communists Take Mekong Delta Territory

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Nixon Impeachment Hearings Begin
In May, the House Judiciary Committee begins impeachment hearings against President Richard Nixon. Among the articles of impeachment is a resolution condemning Nixon for the secret bombing of Cambodia.

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Nixon Resigns

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Communists Plan Major Offensive
With North Vietnamese forces in the South believed to be at their highest levels ever, South Vietnamese leaders gird themselves for a major Communist offensive.

1975

Communist Forces Capture Phuoc Long Province
The South Vietnamese Army loses twenty planes in a failed effort to defend Phuoc Long, a key province just north of Saigon. North Vietnamese leaders will interpret the U.S.'s complete lack of response to the siege as an indication that they can move more aggressively in the South.

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Hue Falls to Communists

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Communists Take Aim at Saigon
The North Vietnamese initiate the Ho Chi Minh Campaign -- a concerted effort to "liberate" Saigon. Under the command of General Dung, the N.V.A. sets out to capture Saigon by late April, in advance of the rainy season.

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Phnompenh Captured by Khmer Rouge
The Khmer Rouge accept the surrender of Cambodian leader Lon Nol on April 16. The Khmer Rouge's victory ends five years of fighting in Cambodia and ushers in a period of genocide and forced "re-education" engineered by the dictator Pol Pot.

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Ford Calls Vietnam War "Finished"
Anticipating the fall of Saigon to Communist forces, U.S. president Gerald Ford, speaking in New Orleans, announces that as far as the U.S. is concerned, the Vietnam War is "finished."

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Last Americans Evacuate as Saigon Falls to Communists
South Vietnamese president Duong Van Minh delivers an unconditional surrender to the Communists in the early hours of April 30. North Vietnamese colonel Bui Tin accepts the surrender and assures Minh, "...only the Americans have been beaten. If you are patriots, consider this a moment of joy." As the few remaining Americans evacuate Saigon, the last two U.S. servicemen to die in Vietnam are killed when their helicopter crashes.

Pham Van Dong Heads Socialist Republic of Vietnam
As the National Assembly meets in July of 1976, the Socialist Republic of Vietnam names Pham Van Dong its prime minister. Van Dong and his fellow government leaders, all but one of whom are former North Vietnamese officials, take up residence in the nation's new capital -- Hanoi.

Jimmy Carter Elected U.S. President

Carter Issues Pardon to Draft Evaders
In a bold and controversial move, newly inaugurated president Jimmy Carter extends a full and unconditional pardon to nearly 10,000 men who evaded the Vietnam War draft.

Vietnam Granted Admission to United Nations

Relations Between Vietnam and China Deteriorate

Vietnam Invades Cambodia
Determined to overthrow the government of Pol Pot, Vietnam invades Cambodia. Phnompenh, Cambodia's capital, falls quickly as Pol Pot and his Khmer Rouge followers flee into the jungles.

"Boat People" Flee Vietnam
Swarms of Vietnamese refugees take to the sea in overcrowded and unsafe boats in search of a better life. The ranks of the "boat people" include individuals deemed enemies of the state who've been expelled from their homeland.

China Invades, Then Withdraws From, Vietnam

U.S. Issues Report on Agent Orange
After years of Defense Department denials, the U.S. General Accounting Office releases a report indicating that thousands of U.S. troops were exposed to the herbicide Agent Orange. Thousands of veterans had demanded a government investigation into the effect that dioxin, a chemical found in Agent Orange, had on the human immune system.

Ronald Reagan Elected U.S. President

Vietnam Memorial in Washington, DC Dedicated
Designed by Maya Ying Lin, a 22-year-old Yale architectural student, the Vietnam Veterans Memorial opens in Washington, DC. The quiet, contemplative structure consisting of two black granite walls forming a "V", lists the names of the 58,183 Americans killed in the Vietnam War. The memorial itself stirs debate as some think its presentation is too muted and somber, lacking the familiar elements of war-time heroics found in most war memorials.

Reagan Promises to Make M.I.A.s "Highest National Priority"
For the family members of those still listed as Missing In Action, the war is not over. In an address to the National League of Families of American Prisoners and Missing in Southeast Asia, President Ronald Reagan pledges to make finding these individuals a "highest national priority."

Dow Chemical Knowledge of Dioxin Revealed
Documents used as part of a lawsuit brought by 20,000 Vietnam veterans against several chemical companies reveal that Dow Chemical had full knowledge of the serious health risks posed by human exposure to dioxin, a chemical found in the herbicide Agent Orange. Evidence indicates that despite this information, Dow continued to sell herbicides to the U.S. military for use in Vietnam.

U.S. Invades Grenada

"Unknown Soldier" of Vietnam War Laid to Rest

U.S. Offers Asylum to Vietnamese Political Prisoners

Vietnamese Forces Defeat Khmer Rouge Rebels
An offensive launched against refugee Khmer Rouge rebels spills over the Thai border and eventually involves Thai troops. The Vietnamese are successful in suppressing the rebels and solidify their hold on Cambodia despite criticism from neighboring countries and the United Nations.

U.S. Congress Votes to Block "Lethal Aid" to Nicaraguan Contras
The legacy of Vietnam infuses Congressional debate surrounding U.S. aid to the Contras of Nicaragua. The Reagan administration's determination to unseat the Marxist Sandinista government leads to its open support of the Contras. Wary of again getting bogged down in the internal struggles of another nation, Congress votes to allow only non-lethal assistance to reach the Contras.