American Influence in Vietnam
       Although the incursion of the United States in Vietnam cannot be considered on the same level as China or France, it is nevertheless extremely importnant to the fate of the Nguyen Dynasty. The Chinese have given alot to Vietnamese culture, and though the two countries have not always been friends, they still have a common background. France, while being extremely autocratic in dealing with Annam at least realized it was best to keep Vietnam's traditional institutions in place. The United States on the other hand is a case of a good country that did the wrong thing for the right reason.
        For Southeast Asia, America has always had a rather confused relationship. President Franklin D. Roosevelt expressed his sympathy for the plight of the Vietnamese people but the U.S. government faced a difficult decision after the end of World War II. On the one hand, following their own colonial history, they expressed their desire to see Europe grant independence to their overseas colonies yet they also felt obliged to help France keep Vietnam from falling prey to the oppression of Marxist socialism. In this case, the intentions of the United States were good, to see the defeat of communism and to protect democracy and freedom in Vietnam. However, America's own style of nationalism often got in the way of foreign policy.
        Upon the restoration of His Majesty Bao Dai as Head of State for South Vietnam, the United States recognized the government and pledged support. However, there was still the overriding notion that the "American Way" was the only way and the Emperor was not given the support that was badly needed. Instead the United States, early on, began to put their hopes and trust in Prime Minister Ngo Dinh Diem, a well-known Catholic Vietnamese mandarin known for his hatred of communism and love of the American style of government. It was not long before the Emperor became aware that the United States was bypassing His Majesty and dealing with Diem in a takeover of the country to establish an American-style government. When Emperor Bao Dai voiced his concerns to President Eisenhower, the response was that America supported Diem.
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By Kong Zhishu
       Upon the defeat of France and the rigged vote that abolished the monarchy, the United States took over as the real power in South Vietnam with Diem as president. Diem's regime proved to be a great disaster due to his tyrannical policies, religious intolerance and extreme nepotism. In the end America was obliged to take part in the overthrow of the man they had placed in power. The loss of the traditional monarchy was an important one in the struggle for freedom in Vietnam. The northern communists did not at first stress Marxism but pointed to traditional Vietnamese heroes who struggled against Chinese rule in the past. In the south, there was really nothing traditional to look back on, only a government that was unlike any they'd ever had, a president, which they'd never had, who was in almost every way completely unlike the people he was leading. The result was that loyalty to the Republic of South Vietnam was never that great and America became all that was keeping the weak and corrupt government in power. In many ways it was this very support that also undermined the government since so many Vietnamese had become fearful and suspicious of all foreigners.
        Had the United States put aside their own beliefs of what works for their country and considered what would work best for Vietnam, history might have unfolded much differently.