Vietnam Era and Cold War Presidents Practice Flashcards

Critical vocabulary terms and policy concepts covering the Vietnam War era and Cold War presidential administrations (Truman through Nixon).

Indochina

The region in Southeast Asia that included Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia.

Saigon

The capital of South Vietnam.

Hanoi

The capital of North Vietnam.

Dien Bien Phu

The site where Vietnamese forces defeated the French.

Geneva Accords

An agreement that divided Vietnam and called for elections in $2$ years.

Ngo Dinh Diem

The leader of South Vietnam who persecuted Buddhism.

Ho Chi Minh Trail

A supply route running through Laos and Cambodia used by North Vietnamese forces.

Vietcong

Vietnamese communists who fought against South Vietnam.

Gulf of Tonkin Resolution

Legislation that gave the president the power to commit troops to Vietnam.

Operation Rolling Thunder

A sustained bombing campaign against North Vietnam.

Search & Destroy

A military strategy used by U.S. forces to hunt down and eliminate enemy troops.

Agent Orange

A herbicide used during the Vietnam War to clear jungle vegetation.

Napalm

A jelly-like substance used in bombs to set fire to jungle areas.

Doves

People who were anti-war and supported peace.

Hawks

People who were pro-war.

Credibility Gap

The growing public distrust of government statements during the Vietnam War.

Silent majority

The segment of the population that Richard Nixon believed quietly supported the war effort.

Tet Offensive

A massive surprise offensive by the Vietcong on the Tet holiday.

Peace with Honor

Richard Nixon's slogan for ending U.S. involvement in Vietnam.

Vietnamization

Nixon's policy of withdrawing U.S. troops and having South Vietnamese forces take over the fighting.

Conscientious Objectors

Individuals who refused to fight in the war based on moral or religious grounds.

Containment

The foreign policy of Harry Truman focused on stopping the spread of communism.

Brinkmanship/Massive Retaliation

Dwight Eisenhower's foreign policy involving the expansion of nuclear missiles.

Flexible Response

The foreign policy approach of John F. Kennedy and Lyndon Johnson involving special forces like the Green Beret.

Détente

Richard Nixon's policy aimed at easing Cold War tensions with the USSR and China.

Domino Theory

The belief that if one nation in a region fell to communism, others would follow.

Modern Republicanism

Dwight Eisenhower's domestic policy of being conservative with money but liberal on civil rights.

New Frontier

The name for John F. Kennedy's domestic policy agenda.

Great Society

Lyndon Johnson's domestic policy that included the War on Poverty, Medicare, and Medicaid.

SALT

Strategic Arms Limitation Talks conducted between the U.S. and the USSR during the Nixon administration.