Page 185 - Stand Down Vietnam

The United States was allied with France in WWI;
Indochina was ruled by the French.

President Wilson ignored Ho and his request. Many
historians believe this was the first time Vietnam was
turned down by the Americans.

Ho Chi Minh became the leader of his country and

devoted his life in pursuit of independence for his
country.

Ho Chi Minh’s Viet Minh Party was Nationalist and
Communist; making American support impossible.

By 1946, Ho was planning a war to defeat the French and
restore independence to Vietnam.

The French would be overcome;

The Americans would be defeated after what was then the
longest war in its history;

Reunification and independence for Vietnam would be
realized in 1975.

Historians continue the debate:

Was an opportunity to solve the question of Vietnamese

independence missed by the Wilson administration?

Did Wilson ignore Ho because of America’s WWI alliance
with France?

Did Wilson disregard one of the key arguments of his
Fourteen Points?

Was an opportunity to win an independent Vietnam as a
Western ally squandered?