BBC: Nixon sabotaged Vietnam peace talks, Lyndon Johnson knew but kept quiet

[JadedWolf]

Pretty unbelievable stuff this.

 

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-21768668

 

TL:DR version: Nixon told the South Vietnamese delegation at the Paris peace talks not to negotiate a peace until Nixon would be in power, promising them a better deal. Lyndon Johnson knew of this because the South-Vietnamese embassy was wiretapped, but didn't want to disclose the wiretap. Democratic rival in the presidential elections Humphrey was notified, but decided he would win anyway. What a mistake to make.

 

Now, I have no idea whether the Vietnam war could have ended sooner (and under better terms for the Americans) had this not happened, but just the thought of it... Wow.

[Meshugger]

Just to get this straight. Nixon didn't have a better deal, bombed Laos and Cambodia and delayed the whole thing five years? And Johnsson was silent? WHY?

[Gorth]

Elected politicians, It seems a universal law: Much overrated and little trustworthiness.

[Guard Dog]

If this is true, not judging one way or another, I'm not surprised.

[pmp10]

Wasn't this common knowledge?

Pretty sure I heard about it in an old documentary.

As for ending the war the solution was always very simple:

US needed to give-up much sooner or nuke North Vietnam.

[Gorgon]

If this is true, not judging one way or another, I'm not surprised.

It is true. It's declassified whitehouse tapes among other things. It was always going to come out.

 

The gruesome thing about it of course is that the Vietnamese were ready to sign a deal and an immensely destructive bombing campaign went on needlessly because of Nixon's backhand dealings. 

[NOK222]

It's a good thing he's dead, because oh boy

[Rostere]

So, what do you think, how many years will it take before it's official that Reagan sabotaged Iran hostage talks under Jimmy Carter in the same way?

[Guard Dog]

Now that would suprise me. Not because of any misplaced faith in Reagans Presidency but becuase that kind of thing would be so much harder to keep quiet in 1980 than in 1968. Now it would be impossible.

[Gorgon]

I wonder if history would have judged Carter a lot kinder if those helicopters hadn't crashed. A forgein policy success and a heroic one at that at just the right moment.

[Hurlshort]

This also illustrates how ridiculous the South Vietnamese government was.  

[HoonDing]

Just to get this straight. Nixon didn't have a better deal, bombed Laos and Cambodia and delayed the whole thing five years? And Johnsson was silent? WHY?

Domino theory.

[rjshae]

Tricky dicky was a sneaky bastard. Nothing new there.

[Meshugger]

Now that would suprise me. Not because of any misplaced faith in Reagans Presidency but becuase that kind of thing would be so much harder to keep quiet in 1980 than in 1968. Now it would be impossible.

 

I do not think Reagan himself was involved, but like the Iran-Contra affair, i think that there were suspect members of his cabinet that had potential to do so. From what i could gather about his personality, he did put to too much trust on the people within his administration.

[AGX-17]

Just to get this straight. Nixon didn't have a better deal, bombed Laos and Cambodia and delayed the whole thing five years? And Johnsson was silent? WHY?

Because politicians, capitalism and racism. Simple, really. A righteous capitalist crusade to civilize the inferior yellow races of Asia, misled by the vile communists, to spread the one true religion of capitalism appealed to the "silent majority."

 

The entire cold war was an exercise in the US engaging in anti-democratic covert operations around the world. Democratically elected governments that were leftist were overthrown by US backed fascist coups left and right for 30-40 odd years. Hell, it was like that long before then. The US overthrew the democratically elected government of Honduras at one point so that it could be used as a corporate banana plantation colony by Dole.

 

 

Now that would suprise me. Not because of any misplaced faith in Reagans Presidency but becuase that kind of thing would be so much harder to keep quiet in 1980 than in 1968. Now it would be impossible.

 

I do not think Reagan himself was involved, but like the Iran-Contra affair, i think that there were suspect members of his cabinet that had potential to do so. From what i could gather about his personality, he did put to too much trust on the people within his administration.

 

 

He supported the Contras openly. Selling weapons to Iran is secondary to the fact that the US, and Reagan, prolonged a vicious civil war in Nicaragua, with at least tens of thousands of human deaths involved. I know the man was a dimwit, but regardless, he was a True Believer in the Hayekian/Randian worldview. He's the one who shredded benefits for the mentally ill and Vietnam veterans, putting them out on the street with little/no resources, in a country that now hated them for actions they had no control over.

 

Ronald Reagan was still the man at the top, and he had a lot of Nicaraguan blood on his hands when he died. I doubt he lost a wink of sleep over it, too. Alzheimer's or not.

 

Fun fact: Ronald Reagan is still the most hated, vilified person in Nicaragua to this day.

Edited March 18, 2013 by AGX-17

[Malcador]

I wonder if history would have judged Carter a lot kinder if those helicopters hadn't crashed. A forgein policy success and a heroic one at that at just the right moment.

If Eagle Claw succeeded there'd be nothing to wonder. Carter'd be the guy who sent commandos in and nabbed hostages out a hostile country safely.

[HoonDing]

Note that a helicopter crashed also during the Bin Laden assault. Must be an American thing.