The Vietnam War, in theory, was a civil war between the communist North and the Western-aligned South. However, the Vietnamese were not the only ones fighting. The United States and several other nations intervened, supporting both sides—particularly South Vietnam—with troops, weapons, and supplies. This turned a small guerrilla uprising into a major Cold War conflict.
Below is a list of the countries that invaded Vietnam, along with details about their motivations for intervening in this conflict.
French Military
France had long occupied Vietnam before 1954 and was reluctant to join the new conflict. After World War II, France reoccupied Vietnam as part of an effort to restore its pre-war empire.
“The French had controlled Vietnam for generations,” explains Ed Moise, a history professor at Clemson University and author of Tonkin Gulf and the Escalation of the Vietnam War. “They were determined to maintain control, both as a matter of national pride and because if they lost one colony, others might get similar ideas.”
However, most Vietnamese opposed colonial rule, and an uprising emerged under the leadership of Ho Chi Minh, a communist advocate for independence. In 1954, Ho Chi Minh’s forces achieved a decisive victory at Dien Bien Phu, successfully expelling France from Vietnam for good.
When the Second Indochina War, or Vietnam War, began shortly after, France kept its distance from the conflict. In fact, French President Charles de Gaulle warned his American counterpart, John F. Kennedy, that Vietnam would be “a bottomless military and political quagmire.” Though this assessment proved accurate, the advice ultimately went unheeded.
American Military
The United States joined the Vietnam War to prevent South Vietnam from falling to communism. Initially, the U.S. operated behind the scenes, but from 1964, it sent troops into combat, becoming increasingly entangled in the war.
After France’s defeat in the First Indochina War, an international agreement split Vietnam into two. Ho Chi Minh led the North, while Ngo Dinh Diem, backed by the U.S., ruled the South. Elections to unify the country were planned within two years, but Diem, with U.S. approval, refused to hold them, fearing defeat. Instead, a communist insurgency erupted, with the Viet Cong, supported by the North, opposing Diem’s forces.
Determined to stop South Vietnam from becoming communist, the U.S. aided Diem with billions in funding and a growing number of military advisors. As the Pentagon Papers later revealed, “the Diem regime, and almost certainly an independent South Vietnam, could not have survived” without American help.
Eventually, U.S. officials lost faith in Diem, indirectly endorsing a 1963 coup that led to his death. Yet, their commitment to South Vietnam never wavered, regardless of who held power in the White House.
Later, as James McAllister, a political science professor at Williams College, noted, “no one thought they would win,” but “they were certain they wouldn’t let failure happen on their watch.”
Initially, the U.S. operated in the shadows. But in 1964, the Gulf of Tonkin incident led President Lyndon B. Johnson to commit troops and launch a massive bombing campaign. From there, U.S. involvement deepened.
When American forces withdrew from Vietnam in 1973, about 2.7 million U.S. troops had served, over 58,000 had died, and the nation had spent at least $111 billion (excluding non-military costs).
Though France and the U.S. had different experiences in Vietnam, as Moise points out, both learned a key lesson: “It’s dangerous to enter a war when the other side cares more about winning than you do.”
Chinese Military
China, as a newly communist nation, supported Ho Chi Minh during the war with France and continued similar aid in the war against the U.S., providing weapons, expertise, and labor.
Though China’s economy was struggling at the time, having aided Ho Chi Minh against France, it persisted in supporting him against the U.S. In total, China claims to have spent over $20 billion and deployed about 320,000 troops, with more than 4,000 killed.
Most of the time, China operated in the background, rebuilding areas devastated by U.S. bombs and manning anti-aircraft batteries. However, its biggest role may have been deterrence: China made it clear that if U.S. troops invaded North Vietnam, they would retaliate in kind.
Unlike in the Korean War, the U.S. yielded to this threat. As Moise explains, “Their function was like an alarm bell, a warning to the Americans: ‘Don’t go too far… or you’ll face us.’”
China and the Soviet Union didn’t need to do as much as the U.S., Moise notes, because they backed the stronger side. Yet, “without Chinese and Soviet support, North Vietnam couldn’t have won,” he says, pointing out that the U.S. military budget was about 30 times North Vietnam’s GDP.
Soviet Military
The Soviet Union, as the first communist state, supported North Vietnam, with aid escalating in the late 1960s. Though it sent some troops, its greatest contribution was weapons.
Initially, the Soviet Union showed little interest in the Vietnam War, but after Nikita Khrushchev’s ouster, it secretly ramped up aid to North Vietnam. The Soviets wanted to “make life difficult for the U.S.,” as McAllister puts it, “but not in a way that risked conflict with the United States.”
Soviet involvement grew in the late 1960s as Chinese influence waned (amid a bitter Sino-Soviet split). The Soviets supplied advanced weapons, including surface-to-air missiles that China couldn’t produce at the time. They were even accused of downing some U.S. planes. Overall, however, they sent only about 3,000 troops—far fewer than China.
Soviet involvement grew in the late 1960s as Chinese influence waned (amid a bitter Sino-Soviet split). The Soviets supplied advanced weapons, including surface-to-air missiles that China couldn’t produce at the time. They were even accused of downing some U.S. planes. Overall, however, they sent only about 3,000 troops—far fewer than China.
Lao Military
Laos initially remained neutral in the conflict, but North Vietnam moved troops through the country and backed a communist uprising, drawing heavy U.S. bombing.
In 1962, the U.S., both Vietnams, and other nations agreed to respect Laos’s neutrality and non-interference, a country bordering western Vietnam. However, North Vietnam immediately violated this, moving troops and supplies through Laos instead of the heavily guarded demilitarized zone separating it from South Vietnam.
North Vietnam also fueled a communist insurgency against Prince Souvanna Phouma’s royal government, reducing local Lao communists to “junior partners,” as Moise describes.
In response to North Vietnam’s violations, the U.S. secretly dropped billions of pounds of bombs on Laos. This nine-year campaign was so intense that, on average, a bomber dropped every eight minutes, making Laos, per capita, the most bombed nation in history. Unexploded ordnance from the Vietnam War era continues to kill Laotians (and Vietnamese and Cambodians) to this day.
Meanwhile, President Richard Nixon authorized a cross-border invasion of Laos in 1971. Yet, despite these efforts, the U.S. failed to significantly disrupt North Vietnam’s supply lines or prevent Laos’s fall to communism in 1975.
Cambodian Military
Cambodia, though officially neutral, tolerated communist infiltration and faced U.S. bombing as a result.
Understandably, North Vietnamese forces also moved troops and supplies through Cambodia, which, despite its neutrality, accommodated communist incursions.
Prince Norodom Sihanouk “felt surrounded by dangerous enemies and had to appease some of them,” Moise explains, adding that “he couldn’t afford to antagonize” North Vietnam, though he “opposed communism in Cambodian politics.”
The U.S. responded with a secret bombing campaign, intensified by Nixon in 1969. Then, in 1970, Nixon sent troops across the border, capitalizing on a coup ousting Sihanouk to install a pro-U.S. general.
U.S. bombs killed tens of thousands of Cambodians, which some historians argue may have boosted local support for the Khmer Rouge, a communist insurgency that enacted a brutal genocide upon taking power in 1975.
Though Vietnamese communists allied with the Khmer Rouge during the Vietnam War, they ultimately overthrew the regime in 1979.
South Korean Military and U.S. Vassals
South Korea was a key U.S. and South Vietnam ally in the war, contributing over 300,000 troops and suffering about 5,000 casualties. The Johnson administration, keen to avoid appearing isolated, pressed other nations to join the Vietnam War, much like George W. Bush later formed a “coalition of the willing” for the Iraq War.
South Korea was a primary U.S. partner, sending over 300,000 troops with around 5,000 casualties. “The South Koreans sent more troops, and their military was stronger,” Moise notes.
He explains they joined partly from a sense of duty and ideological affinity: after all, they couldn’t miss the historical parallels with South Vietnam. However, they also received U.S. aid in the form of economic and military support.
Financial incentives and a desire to curry favor with the U.S. drew other nations as well, alongside a rational fear of communism, per Moise.
Ultimately, about 60,000 Australian troops participated (521 died), around 40,000 Thai troops joined (321 died), and over 3,000 New Zealand troops served (37 died). The Philippines, Taiwan, and Spain also aided the U.S. war effort, while the communist side received symbolic support from North Korea and Cuba.
Vietnamese Military
The Vietnam War is described as a civil war within South Vietnam, though it became a Cold War proxy conflict between great powers. As a result, the Vietnamese bore the brunt of the conflict’s toll.
Brutal tactics were commonplace throughout the Vietnam War, and no one suffered more than the Vietnamese, both North and South. By 1975, when northern forces captured Saigon and unified the country under communist rule, estimates suggest 1 to 3 million Vietnamese had died, many of them civilians.
Conclusion
Through this article, Thefactsofwar reveals that the Vietnam War was not just a clash between North and South but involved numerous major nations, each with its own motives. The war’s consequences were devastating losses in lives and resources, especially for the Vietnamese. We hope this piece provides a clear, detailed look at the conflict’s far-reaching impacts, deepening your understanding of history and its valuable lessons.
Translated by: Minh Tuan
Source: history.com – Which Countries Were Involved in the Vietnam War?
