Cause of the Vietnam War
The Vietnam War started around 1955. This is when France had colonies in the South of Vietnam. The North of Vietnam, which is closer to Communist countries like China and Russia, wanted to unite the country under communist rule. The French people stood behind the Southern Vietnamese, and they declined the offer for a communist government. North Vietnam didn't take South Vietnam's response very well, and they deployed troops in the South to try and change their mind. The Vietnamese people in the South were startled, but they did not want to change their government which was a republic. The North Vietnamese had a number of countries which supported them in this war. The communist forces included North Vietnam, the Viet Cong, Khmer Rouge, and Pathet Lao. They were supported by China, the Soviet Union, Cuba, North Korea, Czechoslovakia, Bulgaria, and East Germany. The anti-communist forces were South Vietnam, the United States, South Korea, Australia, Thailand, New Zealand, Khmer Republic, and the Kingdom of Laos. The anti-communist countries were supported by the Philippines, Taiwan, Canada, West Germany, the United Kingdom, Iran, and also Spain. The communist countries were trying to help North Vietnam unite its country under communist rule, while the anti-communist countries were trying to stop the spread of communism.