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TimeLines of Liberty
American Wars - Vietnam |
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Post Vietnam War
America withdrew
abandoning South Vietnam to fall to the ruthless communists of
North Vietnam. Without a decisive victory our military were not
afforded the honors as after other campaigns.
America was left without the power to demand information as to
the whereabouts of our missing in action and remains of the
uncovered fallen. The war continued in the minds of the
survivors and those seeking to find and bring home all the dead
and missing.
The Vietnam War was not an American victory in a military sense,
however the war slowed the advancement of communism allowing for
the eventual Cold War victory; the collapse of the U.S.S.R.,
under President Ronald Reagan.
Post War - 1976-1977-1978-1979-1980-1981-1982-1986-1988-1989-1990-1991-1992
1993-1994-1995-1996-1997-1998-1999-2000-2001-2002-2003-2004-2005-2006-2007
(Page Five) |
Pre-War
- 1930-1960
-
The War - 1961-1965 -
The War - 1966-1970 -
The War - 1970-1975
Page 1
Page 2
Page 3
Page 4
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Last updated
January, 2007. Unless stating the date, events within the
year may not be in order. |
|
1976 |
|
1976 |
April |
Prince Norodom Sihanouk is placed under house
arrest after resigning as Cambodia's leader on April 4th. |
|
1976 |
July |
The Socialist Republic of
Vietnam is formed as a Communist country upon the reunification
of North and South Vietnam on July 2nd. |
|
1977 |
|
1977 |
Jan. |
Draft evaders of the Vietnam
War are pardoned by President Jimmy Carter on January 21st. |
|
1977 |
Feb. |
The Southeast Asia Treaty
Organization (SATO) disbands on February 20th |
|
1978 |
|
1978 |
Oct. |
Communist Vietnam attacks
Cambodia on October 1st. |
|
1978 |
Dec. |
The "reign of terror" by the Khmer
Rouge government, led by Cambodia's leader Pol Pot, is ended in
December, during the invasion of the country by Vietnam. |
|
1979 |
|
1979 |
Jan. |
Cambodian insurgents,
supported by Vietnam forces, announced on January 7th the fall
of the Cambodian capital Phnom Penh and the subsequent collapse
of Pol Pot's regime. |
|
1979 |
Jan. |
Protesting the 1978 Vietnam
invasion of Cambodia, non-communist Asian nations and Western
European countries give support to the U.S. led embargo against
Vietnam. |
|
1979 |
Feb. |
The People's Republic of China launches the
Sino-Vietnamese War invading northern Vietnam on February 17th.
|
|
1980 |
|
1980 |
|
In response to the "boat
people" fleeing Vietnam, the Refugee Act is enacted granting
asylum to politically oppressed refugees. |
|
1981 |
|
1981 |
Feb. |
In
February, Private First Class Robert
Garwood was convicted by a military jury in North Carolina for
collaborating with the enemy while a POW in Vietnam. Garwood was
in Vietnam for 14 years. During the trial, in preparing
for the worst, he once stated to a reporter, "An American prison
is better than a Vietnamese prison." |
|
1981 |
May |
On May 6th out of 1,421
entries, a panel of architects and sculptors unanimously chose
Maya Ying Lin's design for the Vietnam Memorial. |
|
1982 |
|
1982 |
Feb. |
Participation in talks concerning American
MIAs is agreed to by Vietnam in February. |
|
1982 |
Nov. |
Thousands of Vietnam War Veterans march in
Washington D.C. on November
13th, to "The Wall", the Vietnam Veterans Memorial. |
|
1986 |
|
1986 |
Mar. |
Senator John Kerry accuses
President Ronald Reagan of
leading the U.S. into another Vietnam in Central America on the
Senate floor on March 27th. Kerry telling of a time when
President Nixon lied about troops in Cambodia, says,
"I remember Christmas of 1968 sitting on a gunboat in Cambodia.
I remember what it was like to be shot at by Vietnamese and
Khmer Rouge and Cambodians, and have the president of the United
States telling the American people that I was not there; the
troops were not in Cambodia. I have that memory which is seared
- seared - in me." The statement was a lie when considering that
Nixon was not president on Christmas of 1968 and many of Kerry's
shipmates say they were no where near Cambodia at Christmas. |
|
1988 |
|
1988 |
Sept. |
The first joint field investigation on the status of American
MIAs is held with the beginning of Vietnam and U.S. cooperation
in September. |
|
1989 |
|
1989 |
Sept. |
In September, Vietnam completes its withdraw of
forces in Cambodia. |
|
1989 |
Dec. |
Riots break-out on December
29th in Hong Kong after the government decided to force
repatriation of Vietnamese refugees. |
|
1990 |
|
1990 |
Sept. |
John Kerry attends a 24 hour
City Hall Plaza vigil, on September 21st, to commemorate POW /
MIA families. |
|
1991 |
|
1991 |
April |
On April 21st Vietnam and the
U.S. agree to establish an office in Hanoi to oversee and
conduct investigations into the fate of American Vietnam War
MIA. |
|
1991 |
July |
John Kerry becomes chairman of a committee established on July
21st when the Senate votes to open a new investigation in
Vietnam War MIA. |
|
1991 |
Oct. |
Vietnam voices support for the U.N. peace plan for Cambodia in
October. |
|
1991 |
Oct. |
To assist in a phased
normalization of relations and a lifting of the embargo the
U.S., in October, presents Hanoi with a "roadmap."
Secretary of State
James Baker says the President's Administration is ready to
begin the steps toward normalizing relations with Vietnam. |
|
1991 |
Nov. |
The first hearing over the inveistigations of U.S. MIA soldiers
in Vietnam was held on November 5th. |
|
1991 |
Nov. |
John Kerry and Senator John McCain begin working to normalize
relations with Vietnam in November. |
|
1991 |
Nov. |
After thirteen years exiled, Prince Norodom Sihanouk returns to
Phnom Penh on November 14th. |
|
1991 |
Dec. |
The ban on organized travel to Vietnam is lifted
by
Washington
in December. |
|
1992 |
|
1992 |
Info. |
Vietnam adopts its
Constitution in 1992. |
|
1992 |
Feb. |
Senator John Kerry places into the Congressional
Record on February 27th, during the Presidential election the
following sentiment,
"We do not need to divide America over who served and how. I
have personally always believed that many served in many
different ways. Someone who was deeply against the war in 1969
or 1970 may well have served their country with equal passion
and patriotism by opposing the war as by fighting in it." |
|
1992 |
April |
The U.S. eased the Trade
Embargo on April 29th, allowing commercial sales and
establishment of a telecommunications link to help meet basic
human needs, also lifting restrictions on projects by
non-governmental and non-profit organizations. |
|
1992 |
Jun. |
In a hearing on Americans missing or imprisoned
in southeast Asia on June 24th is convened and is attended by
Senator John McCain and John Kerry. Kerry contends that the
Pentagon may be purposely misleading families about the fates of
some of the missing in action. He claims as many as 133
prisoners may have been left behind at the time of the
evacuation. |
|
1992 |
|
In what
Washington
calls a
breakthrough, the Vietnamese agree on wider MIA cooperation the
sixth visit by
Retired General
John Vessey. John Vessy was the U.S. presidential envoy on the
MIA issue. |
|
1992 |
Oct. |
In the Rose Garden at the Whitehouse with Acting
Secretary of State Lawrence S. Engleburger, and both Senators
John McCain and John Kerry standing by, President George H. W.
Bush makes the announcement that the Vietnamese government
agreed to provide access to all material on American POWs. |
|
1992 |
Dec. |
President George Bush
grants permission, on December 14th, for American companies to
open offices, sign contracts and perform feasibility studies in
the Socialist Republic of Vietnam. |
|
1993 |
|
1993 |
July |
President Bill Clinton
ends America's opposition to a settlement of Vietnam's
$140,000,000 to the International Monetary Fund on July 2nd,
paving the war for a resumption of international lending to
Vietnam. |
|
1993 |
July |
A delegation of Congressmen
that included John Kerry
met with Do Muoi, Sec. Gen. of the Vietnamese Communist Party
in Vietnam from July 15th to the 18th. Kerry visits the Army
museum in Ho Chi Minh City and two site where missing Americans
were reportedly spotted.
The Communists honor John Kerry, reportedly saying, "Vietnamese
communists would not have won the war without John Kerry,"
cultivating his protest activity with the VVAW. Also stating"
This is a guy who tells our story, it will undermine the
sympathy for the war in America." (reported by Jerome Corsi,
co-author, "Unfit for Comand." |
|
1993 |
Sept. |
In another step to normalization of
relations with Vietnam, President Clinton
eases economic sanctions against Vietnam on September 13th,
allowing U.S. firms to bid on development projects financed by
international banks. |
|
1994 |
|
1994 |
Jan. |
The highest-ranking active-duty
U.S. military officer to visit Vietnam since the fall of Saigon,
is Admiral Charles Larson, head of the U.S. Pacific Command. He
visits Vietnam on January 16th, concluding the lifting the
embargo may help in efforts to find the status of American MIA. |
|
1994 |
Jan. |
The U.S. Senate approves, on
January 27th, a non-binding resolution with broad bipartisan
support urging President Clinton
to lift the embargo against Vietnam. It was hoped a full
accounting of American MIA would follow. |
|
1994 |
Feb. |
On February 3rd
President Bill Clinton
announces his lifting of the trade embargo against Communist
Vietnam. |
|
1994 |
Oct. |
A U.S.House bill on October 5th
passes that states MIA accounting should remain central to U.S.
policy on Vietnam and the primary function of a U.S. liaison
office in Vietnam |
|
1995 |
|
|
Jan. |
The U.S. and Vietnam settle old
property claims and establish liaison offices in
both capitals,
Washington
and
Hanoi, on January 27th, in an agreement that also settles old property claims. |
|
1995 |
April |
The end of the Vietnam war is celebrated by
Vietnam on April 30th, 1995, the
20th anniversary of the War's end. |
|
1995 |
May |
Described as the
most detailed and informative of their kind; a "batch,"
of documents on American MIA are presented by Vietnam to a U.S.
Presidential delegation on May 15th. |
|
1995 |
May |
Vietnam veterans, Senators John Kerry and John McCain urge
President Clinton, on
May 23rd, to normalize relations with Vietnam. |
|
1995 |
May |
On May 31st another 100-plus pages of maps and
reports on Americans killed or captured during the war are
provided by the Vietnam government. |
|
1995 |
June |
In June, Vietnam veterans, Senators John Kerry and John McCain
announce plans to offer a Senate resolution approving normalized
relations with Vietnam. |
|
1995 |
June |
President Bill Clinton
received in June, a recommendation from
Secretary of State
Warren Christopher to establish formal diplomatic relations with
Vietnam. |
|
1995 |
June |
In June, the State Department gave praise to Hanoi for the
increased cooperation with the U.S. on countering narcotics
production and traffic. |
|
1995 |
June |
Vietnamese President Le Duc Anh
announced in June that he will visit the United States for the
celebration of the 50th anniversary of the
United Nations. |
|
1995 |
July |
John Kerry stands next to
President Bill Clinton
on July 11th, as official recognition is extended to Vietnam
during the President's announcement of the restoration of U.S.
diplomatic relations with Vienam.
Clinton says, "the time
has come to move forward and bind up the wounds from the war." |
|
1995 |
July |
Vietnam becomes a member of ASEAN ( Association of Southeast Asian
Nations) on July 28th. |
|
1995 |
Aug. |
Secretary of State Warren
Christopher, on August 5th, establishes a United States Embassy
in Hanoi. |
|
1995 |
Sept. |
Former President
George H. W. Bush makes a visit
to Vietnam on September 4th. |
|
1995 |
Nov. |
Former Secretary of Defense
Robert S. McNamara makes a visit to Vietnam from November 7th to
the 10th. |
|
1996 |
|
1996 |
July |
The first anniversary of normalization of
relations with Vietnam is marked by the visit of
U.S. National Security Adviser
Anthony Lake, to Hanoi on July 12th. |
|
1997 |
|
1997 |
April |
The first Ambassador to
Vietnam since the fall of Saigon is former POW Douglas "Pete"
Peterson. He is confirmed by the U.S. Senate as U.S. Ambassador
to Vietnam on April 10th. "Pete" is the first U.S. Ambassador
posted to Hanoi. |
|
1997 |
April |
Le Van Bang is confirmed as
Vietnam's ambassador to the United States by the Vietnam
National Assembly in April. |
|
1997 |
April |
A step toward Most Favored Nation
status is made with the April 16th agreement with Vietnam on
copyright protection. |
|
1997 |
May |
Vietnamese
Ambassador Le Van Bang arrived in
Washington
on May 7. |
|
|
May |
On May 9th U.S. Ambassador Douglas "Pete" Peterson arrives to
begin service in Vietnam, the first ever post in Hanoi. |
|
1997 |
June |
Pol Pot, leader of the Khmer Rouge in Cambodia, on June 10th
orders the killing of Cambodia's defense chief Son Sen along
with 11 family members. Pol Pot then flees from the northern
stronghold. News of the assassination and Pol Pot's absence
reaches the West three days later. |
|
1997 |
June |
Secretary of State
Madeline Albright arrived in Vietnam on June 24th for an
official visit. |
|
1998 |
|
1998 |
March |
President Bill Clinton
issues the first waiver of laws that ban trade relations with
Communist nations that prohibit their citizens from emigrating.
Clinton waived the
Jackson-Vanik Amendment for Vietnamon March 10th allowing U.S.
investors more effective competition and allowing Vietnam access
to the financial assistance of American agencies, that include
the Export-Import Bank. |
|
1998 |
April |
The West learns on April 15th, that Pol Pot, past tyrant of
Cambodia, has died. |
|
1998 |
May |
On May 14th the Vietnam Unknown's remains were
exhumed for DNA testing. |
|
1998 |
June |
On June 30th the Department of Defense announced
the identity of the Vietnam Unknown has been determined by
mitochondrial DNA testing. The remains were of Air Force 1st
Lieutenant Michael Joseph Blassie. Joseph Blassie's plane was
downed near An Loc, Vietnam in 1972. His remains arrived to his
family at his home in St. Louis, Missouri on July 10th. |
|
1998 |
Dec. |
Khmer Rouge leaders apologized on
December 29th for the 1970's
genocide in
Cambodia. The
Khmer Rouge killed over 1 million people during the
1970s. |
|
1999 |
|
1999 |
April |
Cambodia joins ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations)
on April 30th becoming the 10th member of the organization. |
|
1999 |
Oct. |
Representative Lamar Smith introduced H.R.3061 on October 12th
to extend the Refugee Act of 1980 through the year 2002. |
|
1999 |
Nov. |
On November
13th H.R. 3061, extending the Refugee Act through 2002 becomes
Public Law No: 106-104. |
|
2000 |
|
2000 |
April
April |
Early in April the editor of the Philadelphia
Inquirer's Community Voices section asked the readers: "What did
Vietnam teach you about America ... its values and its people?"
Published on Sunday, April 23rd was a letter by John Wear, a
Vietnam veteran residing in New Hope,
Pennsylvania.
"I grew up as an Air Force "brat." My father (may he
rest in peace) was a 30-year career US Air Force officer. I was
raised as an "America, love it or leave it," right-wing,
conservative Republican. I graduated from a military preparatory
high school with the "America, my country, right or wrong, my
country" attitude. President John F Kennedy's words, "Ask not
what your country can do for you, ask what can you do for your
country" still rang in my ears as I joined the US Marine Corps
in mid-1966. After completing Bootcamp, I was practically rabid
in my belief that America could do no wrong. During my
enlistment (in 1967), Time magazine published a letter that I
had written to the editor where I chastised (then) Cassias Clay
for saying that he had no quarrel with the Viet Cong and for his
not submitting to the draft. In that letter, I wrote the we
should "fight now and love later." Not much later, I spent
twelve months and twenty-nine days inside a flame-thrower tank
"playing hide and seek" with the North Vietnamese Army in and
around the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) in Vietnam. I saw a lot of
unpleasantness (to say the least) but I came home physically
unscathed. I arrived in Vietnam a proud "gung-ho" American
fighting man, I came home a disillusioned and ashamed "old" man.
Luckily I was never was spat upon nor was I called a
"baby killer." For years I perceived that due to the lack of
interest by the general public, I avoided any and all
confrontations and conversations about "Nam." What did they know
anyway? They weren't there. I did not join the Veterans of
Foreign Wars, the American Legion, the Marine Corps League or
any other of the veterans groups. Why? I imagine that my inner
conflict of a proud warrior versus an ashamed loser could not be
resolved. Killing the enemy was practically a mechanical thing.
You see them, you point and you shoot. The Marine Corps trained
us to do this, it was our job. But seeing brave American
fighting men killed and/or horribly wounded in battle was one of
the most traumatic things anyone can imagine. I also had a very
good friend killed during my tour. I believe to this day that if
my tank had been accompanying his tank during that bloody
operation back in May of 1968 that I could have somehow keep him
from the needless death that occurred. I visit his name on The
Wall (in Washington, DC) often. It's a very small consolation.
What did Vietnam teach me? I taught me that I was
young, stupid and way too gullible back in the 1960's. Then in
the 1970's it taught me that the American people have deeper
feelings for American embassy non-combatant civilians who have
been held hostage by Iranian militants than they do for the
American fighting man who shed blood in Vietnam. Who got the
ticker-tape parade down 5th Avenue? In the 1980's the Vietnam
War's legacy taught me that during and after the conflict we
were lied to by everyone from the military leaders all the way
up to the President about what we did and why we did it. Who
recalls "the light at the end of the tunnel'? During the 1980's
it taught me that we Vietnam Veterans could put our money where
our mouths were and collected enough money (without the US
Government's involvement) to build a most awesome memorial to
our fallen comrades-at-arms..."The Wall." Finally in the 1990's,
thank God, I located a group of USMC Vietnam tankers who after
30 years have reached out and found one another. I am now no
longer afraid, ashamed or angry. I am proud of what I did in the
past and proud once again of my country, the United States of
America." |
|
2000 |
June |
Tariffs
on products between U. S. and Vietnam are dropped to under three
percent, by an agreement that is reached in June, 2000. |
|
2000 |
July |
A
bill granting Vietnam continued access to export-related
financing is passed by the U.S. House in July, paving the way
for
President Clinton's
visit in November. |
|
2000 |
July |
Vietnam agrees on July 13th, to
lower tariffs and regulations on American imports in a major
trade agreement signed by Vietnam's Trade Minister, Vu Khoan and
U.S. Trade Representative, Charlene Barshefsky. Providing
Vietnam access to U.S. markets on the same terms granted to most
other nations is the last step in the normalization of relations
between the two countries. |
|
2000 |
Nov. |
President Bill Clinton, First Lady Hillary Clinton and their
daughter Chelsea, arrived in Hanoi on November 16th for the
historic visit to discuss relations between the U.S. and
Vietnam. "I think it is time to write a new
chapter here." said the President.
Clinton is the first
sitting president since
President Nixon visited South Vietnam in 1969. |
|
2000 |
Nov. |
On November 17th the Pentagon stops pursuing
646 of MIA cases, leaving the remainder open as it follows leads
and rumors. 1,992 service members from the Vietnam War are
unaccounted for. |
|
2001 |
|
2001 |
July |
Captain Edward W. Freeman
is presented the Congressional Medal of Honor by
President George W. Bush
on July 16th, for rescuing troops of the 1st Battalion, 7th
Cavalry Regiment and re-supply them with ammunition. On April
14th he flew his helicopter into the battle zone amid heavy
enemy fire. He and Retired Maj. Bruce P. Crandall are credited
with saving 70 injured soldiers and providing supplies that
allowed the regiment to hold the position. |
|
2001 |
July |
Secretary of State
Colin
Powell pays his first visit to Vietnam on July 24th, since his
service during the Vietnam War in 1969. During his three day
visit, Powell attended the ASEAN Regional Forum in Hanoi. |
|
2001 |
Sept. |
The Vietnam Human Rights Act (HR2833) passed the
House with only one dissention on September 6th, only to be blocked in the Senate by
John Kerry,
chairman of the Senate's East Asian and Pacific Affairs
subcommittee. Kerry states at the time that he and Senator John
McCain "are concerned that denying aid to Vietnam would actually
slow human rights improvements." The three years followed with human rights conditions deteriorating,
however denying aid to Vietnam probably was not the cause.
Providing aid to a communist country, our philosophical enemy, I
do not understand. |
|
2001 |
Sept. |
Strong concerns are voiced by
Vietnam officials concerning the U.S. House passage of the
Vietnam Human Rights Act that places improvements to Vietnam's
human rights record. |
|
2001 |
Oct. |
Legislation to
ratify the agreement to normalize trade between the United
States and Vietnam is passed in the U.S. Senate on October 3rd. |
|
2001 |
Nov. |
The National Assembly of Vietnam, on November
28th, ratifies the trade agreement with the United States,
warning that interference in the internal affairs of Vietnam
might jeopardize
implementation. |
|
2002 |
|
2002 |
Jan. |
Thinking of those who have died for our liberty
the PoetPatriot, Roger W Hancock, writes the poem "Those Now
Gone" on January 26th.
See the poem "Those Now
Gone". |
|
2002 |
Feb. |
In response to an anti-war poem the PoetPatriot,
Roger W Hancock, writes the poem "Valiant Peace" on February
10th.
See the poem "Valiant
Peace". |
|
2003 |
|
2003 |
Nov. |
Donald Rumsfeld,
U.S. Secretary of Defense, met with Pham Van Tra, Vietnam's
Defense Minister, on November 10th. This was the first visit to
Washington D.C. by a senior Vietnamese military official. |
|
2003 |
Nov. |
The Poet Patriot Roger W Hancock, writes, on
November 25th, "Never Forget the Shame" a poem about the failure
to honor the Vietnam veterans as they returned home and allowing
the humiliation many of our veterans suffered, from anti-war
activists within our society.
Read the poem "Never
Forget the Shame" |
|
2003 |
Nov. |
The USS Vandegrift, a
Navy missile frigate docks on November 19th in the port of Ho
Chi Minh City. Manned by many sons and daughters of Vietnam War
veterans it was the first U.S. ship to dock in Vietnam since
1975. The visit was a symbolic act to boost Vietnam and American
relations.
|
|
2004 |
|
2004 |
Jan. |
Nguyen
Cao Ky, given permission from the Vietnamese government,
vists relatives in Vietnam for the Tet holiday, on January 14th.
The visit caused controversy among exiled Vietnamese fearing it
would legitimize the communist government of Vietnam. |
|
2004 |
Feb. |
The poem "It's the Veteran" is written on
February 16th, by the PoetPatriot Roger W Hancock, to give honor
and to remember those who maintain our liberty and our peace.
Read the poem "It's
the Veteran" |
|
2004 |
March |
Vietnamese monk, Thich
Nhat Han, exiled from
Vietnam in 1966. was welcomed by
Vietnamese Prime Minister Phan Van Khai on
March 25 , 2005. The Zen Master
was invited for a 3-month visit by the
Vietnam Buddhist Sangha's International Religious Board. |
|
2004 |
Aug. |
Having made his service record a centerpiece of
the July 2004 Democratic Convention, John Kerry becomes the
Democrat
Presidential candidate. Unfit for Command exposes
the many inconsistencies of Kerry's version of his military
record. The book debuted as #1 at Amazon.com and #3 on the New
York Times best seller list becoming #1 in the second week. |
|
2004 |
Sep. |
The Kerry Lied Rally is held on September 12th at
Upper Senate Park in Washington, D.C., by veterans and
supporters to tell the truth about Vietnam veterans. |
|
2005 |
|
2005 |
March |
Marking the celebration of the 10th
anniversary of current
diplomatic relations between the United States and Vietnam
The USS Gary docks at the
port of Saigon on March 29th. The first ship since the fall of
Saigon visited Vietnam in November, 2003 with the second in
July, 2004. It is expected that a visit by a U.S. Navy vessel to
Vietnam will become an annual event. |
|
2005 |
April |
The Department
of Defense POW/Missing Personnel Office (DPMO) released on April
13th, that the remains of two MIA U.S. Army officers from the
Vietnam War, have been identified as
Colonel Sheldon J. Burnett of
Pelham, New Hampshire and
Warrant Officer Randolph J. Ard of West Pensacola,
Florida.
Under JPAC (Joint POW/MIA
Accounting Command) joint U.S.-Lao teams conducted five field
investigations between 1989 and 1996 with no results. In 2003
four former North Vietnamese soldiers were interviewed. Three of
them had seen bodies of two U.S. officers and the fourth
person had sketched a map of the area shortly after the
officer's deaths. All four volunteered to help locate the
remains. |
|
2005 |
April |
April 30th is 30th anniversary of the end of the Vietnam War. |
|
2005 |
May |
The Department
of Defense POW/Missing Personnel Office (DPMO) released on May
20th that the remains of a U.S. serviceman, missing in action
from the Vietnam War, have been identified |
|
2005 |
June |
Vietnamese Prime Minister Phan Van Khai and a governmental
delegation arrived in Seattle on June 19th for a week long visit
of four cities. Khai met with the press, Microsoft Chairman Bill
Gates and representatives of major American businesses, signing
contracts worth $35 million.
Prime Minister Khai is the highest-ranking leader to have
visited the United States since the Vietnam War ended 31
years ago. The previous Vietnamese leader to visit the United States
represented a country that does not exist today. |
|
2005 |
June |
Prime Minister Phan Van Khai met at the White House with
President George W. Bush on June 21st. They talked about the
possibility of Vietnam joining the World Trade Organization (WTO)
as well as business and human rights issues. An agreement was
signed allowing freer worship for Vietnam citizens. |
|
2005 |
Nov. |
The NSA (National Security Agency)
releases "previously classified" documents from and with
information regarding the Vietnam era in November. Primarily on
the Gulf of Tonkin incident the release includes articles,
chronologies, oral history interviews, SIGINT intelligence
reports and translations and other material. |
|
2006 |
|
|
Jan. |
The Department
of Defense released on January 12th that Vice Admiral James Bond
Stockdale, the highest ranking naval officer to be held POW
during the Vietnam War, will be honored by the naming of the
Navy’s newest Arleigh
Burke-class guided missile destroyer The
USS Stockdale is a variation of
the Arleigh Burke-class having
a helicopter hanger facility and
the capability to carry two SH-60B/R Light Airborne Multipurpose
System MK III helicopters.
Shot down on September 9, 1965
Stockdale was captured and held
as a POW over seven years in various camps in North Vietnam,
including the "Hanoi Hilton." Stockdale is credited with
organizing behavior rules that govern interaction between fellow
POWs. He also developed a code that included "tapping on cell
walls" for communication between prisoners.
Stockdale has received the
Medal of Honor and 26 combat medals and awards that include two
Distinguished Flying Crosses, three Distinguished Service
Medals, two Purple Hearts and four Silver Stars. Stockdale had
been named to the Aircraft Carrier Hall of Fame and National
Aviation Hall of Fame. |
|
2006 |
July |
Two U.S. Navy ships, USS Patriot and USS Salvor, navigate the
complex waterway of the Saigon River arriving at the port of Ho
Chi Minh City on July 3rd. A scheduled port visit to enhance
U.S. and Vietnam relations also allowed shore leave of many
sailors to experience the culture-rich city. |
|
2006 |
July |
Pete Peterson, Former POW and U.S. Ambassador to Vietnam, wrote
an opinion essay submitted to Congress on July 26th that urges
the granting of permanent normal relations status to Vietnam. |
|
2006 |
mid-06 |
Vietnam’s 11-year long negotiation process to join the world's
largest trade body nears an end when invited to
become the 150th member of the
World Trade Organization (WTO).
|
|
2006 |
Nov. |
On November 7th,
Vietnam's admission to the
World Trade Organization is formally approved during a WTO special meeting of the organization's General
Council in Geneva.
The official admission occurs 30 days after the Vietnam National
Assembly ratify the accords. |
|
2006 |
Info |
It was expected that the U.S.
Congress would take action on Vietnam
Permanent Normal Trade Relations
(PNTR)
bills during the 2006 session. |
|
2006 |
Nov. |
America's former President
George H.W. Bush participates in an APEC Economic Leader's
meeting (Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation) in Hanoi over the
18th & 19th of November., during a . His four-day visit to
Vietnam began on November 17th and included meeting with
President Triet and Prime Minister Dung, visiting Ho Chi Minh
City, the stock exchange, and a tour of the Joint POW-MIA
Accounting Command (responsible for locating American soldiers
still missing in Vietnam). |
|
2006 |
Dec. |
Both houses of the U.S. legislature pass
legislation for Vietnam PNTR (perminent Normal Trade Relations)
on during sessions of December 8th and 9th. |
|
2006 |
Dec. |
The U.S. Department of Defense
POW/Missing Personnel Office (DPMO) announced on December
19th, remains of three U.S. Servicemen missing in action from
the Vietnam War have been identified as
Captain Herbert C. Crosby of Donalsonville,
Georgia; Sergeant 1st
Class Wayne C. Allen of Tewksbury,
Massachusetts and Sgt. 1st Class Francis G.
Graziosi of Rochester, New York.
Vietnam and U.S. teams
under JPAC (Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command)
conducted five investigations from
1993 to 1999, in Ho Chi Minh City and Quang Nam-Da Nang Province
(formerly Quang Nam Province) One investigation followed the
leads of a Vietnamese informant who said he knew where the
remains of up to nine Americans were buried. Among those were
the three identified servicemen. |
|
2006 |
Dec. |
The U.S. Department of Defense
POW/Missing Personnel Office (DPMO) announced on December
22nd that remains of two U.S. Servicemen missing in action from
the Vietnam War have been identified as
Major Frederick J. Ransbottom of Oklahoma City,
Oklahoma and Staff Sergeant
William E. Skivington Jr of Las Vegas,
California.
U.S. and Socialist Republic of Vietnam teams under JPAC (Joint
POW/MIA Accounting Command) conducted eight investigations and
four excavations in the vicinity of where the fallen soldiers'
remains were found. |
|
2006 |
Dec. |
In a December 29th proclamation by
President Bush,
nondiscriminatory treatment is extended to products from
Vietnam. |
|
2007 |
|
2007 |
Jan. |
On January 9th, talking with a Vietnam Air Force
Veteran, in Auburn, Washington, I learned that many Vietnam Veteran's
spirits were lifted when
Veterans of the 1st Gulf War returned and included the Vietnam
Veterans in being heralded in their service. |
|
2007 |
Jan. |
The PoetPatriot, Roger W Hancock
begins posting this TimeLine of the Vietnam War, to the
TimeLines of Liberty on this website in January 2007. |
|
2007 |
Feb. |
Retired
Major Bruce P. Crandall is awarded the Congressional Medal of
Honor by
President George W. Bush
on February 26th, for his heroic actions in the battle of Battle
of Ia Drang Valley on
November 14th, 1965. During the battle he
flew his helicopter into the battle zone to rescue troops with
the 1st Battalion, 7th Cavalry Regiment of the 1st Cavalry
Division (Custer's division) that were about to be
over-ran at Landing Zone X-Ray. He and his wing man Captain
Edward W. Freeman were credited with saving 70 injured soldiers
and providing supplies that allowed the regiment to hold the
position. |
|
|
|
LINKS:
Current trade news
"Gulf of Tonkin" incident
NSA information
Nixon's "Silent Majority" speech
Sources for the Vietnam War are found at
TimeLine Sources
|
Vietnam War - Page 5
Post Vietnam War
1976-1977-1978-1979-1980-1981-1982-1986-1988-1989-1990-1991-1992
1993-1994-1995-1996-1997-1998-1999-2000-2001-2002-2003-2004-2005-2006-2007 |
Pre-War
- 1930-1960
-
The War - 1961-1965 -
The War - 1966-1970 -
The War - 1970-1975
Page 1
Page 2
Page 3
Page 4 |
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