Domino Theory and the Vietnam War

Domino Theory and the Vietnam War

The decisions and actions of the US leading up to the full scale incursion in Vietnam are well documented. The US policy of Communist containment outlined by the Truman Doctrine, and the policy’s expansion due to “domino theory” during the Cold War, helped shape and direct the actions of the United States during this time. However, were the key decisions that led to the Vietnam War compelling enough to have had no alternative? This paper will examine several of those key factors, the political elements that influenced the decisions, and the practical possibilities for alternate resolutions.

The main principles that informed US foreign policy can be found within the Truman Doctrine and the philosophy of Communist containment. The original scope of the Truman Doctrine, as outlined in his speech before Congress, was “to support free people who are resisting attempted subjugation by armed minorities or by outside pressures” (Merrill, 2006). The main purpose of this doctrine was to halt or prevent the expansion of Communism using military and economic aid, specifically as it related to Greece and Turkey (Merrill, 2006).

The relative success of this strategy with Greece and Turkey caused the expansion of this foreign policy to include regions of strategic importance around the world, including Asia. The basic tenets of the Truman doctrine were modified and expanded beyond its original scope to account for “domino theory” which influenced foreign policy decisions in the Eisenhower and Kennedy administrations. China, which had been overtaken by Communists in 1949, was central to the US decisions regarding intervention in Asia (Tanter, 1999).

The main catalyst for the subsequent events in Vietnam was the fall of the French colonies in Indochina, brought about by the defeat of French troops in Vietnam by a Communist backed nationalist army led by Ho Chi Minh. Because of US foreign policy, the French asked for, and received,...