{"id":1779,"date":"2024-01-06T21:36:09","date_gmt":"2024-01-06T21:36:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/gunowner-news.com\/?p=1779"},"modified":"2024-01-06T21:36:09","modified_gmt":"2024-01-06T21:36:09","slug":"americas-allies-in-the-vietnam-war","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gunowner-news.com\/?p=1779","title":{"rendered":"America\u2019s Allies in the Vietnam War"},"content":{"rendered":"


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By Capt. Dale Dye, USMC (Ret)<\/a><\/p>\n

F<\/span>rom a rice paddy or triple-canopy jungle perspective, most of America\u2019s Vietnam Veterans are only vaguely aware they had some serious allies fighting on their side in country. Unless an assignment in Vietnam involved duty as an observer or advisor, the ever-shrinking community of people who fought in Vietnam tends to ignore or dismiss the fact that five additional allied nations sent troops to assist in South Vietnam\u2019s fight against communist Viet Cong or North Vietnamese Army forces.<\/p>\n

\n<\/picture>
The United States was not the only combatant in the Vietnam War. Here, Australian pilots and maintenance crews arrive to support the Republic of South Vietnam. Image:\u00a0NARA<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Largely due to former U.S. President Lyndon Johnson\u2019s \u201cMore Flags\u201d campaign to enlist wider participation in the Vietnam War, Australia, New Zealand, South Korea, Thailand and the Philippines bolstered anti-communist combat power in South Vietnam in the 1960s and 1970s.<\/p>\n

\"Here\n<\/picture>
A Centurion MK 5\/1 tank of the 1st Australian Armoured Regiment (1AR) passes through a Vietnamese village. The tank was en route from Nui Dat to Fire Support Base Coral in Bien Hoa Province.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Despite the ultimate outcome of the war in Vietnam, those international efforts were significant and valuable for reasons that extended both on and off the battlefields. Here\u2019s a quick look at those allies and their contributions to the long, bloody decade of war in Southeast Asia.<\/p>\n

\"A\n<\/picture>
This safe conduct pass from the Vietnam War shows a South Vietnam flag in the center. It is flanked by the flags of the U.S.A., Australia, Thailand, South Korea, New Zealand, and Philippines. Image:\u00a0U.S. Navy<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Australia<\/h2>\n

As a long-time American ally in the Pacific, Australia followed suit when the U.S. escalated its involvement in South Vietnam by sending combat troops ashore in 1965. The Aussies spooled up their 1st Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment (1RAR) and sent them to serve under operational control of the US Army\u2019s 173rd Airborne Brigade at Bien Hoa in the III Corps Region, which included the South Vietnamese capitol at Saigon.<\/p>\n

\"An\n<\/picture>
A platoon sergeant and radio operator of the 7th Royal Australian Regiment during an ambush patrol in the Nui Thi Vai Hills, February 1968. Image:\u00a0NARA<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Australian military leaders didn\u2019t necessarily agree with the American way of warfare in those early days, citing rules of engagement that they felt were overly restrictive and counterproductive. In 1966 when Australia increased its troop commitment to form the 1st Australian Task Force, they ducked out of direct relationship with American forces to become an independent command based at Nui Dat in Phuoc Tuy Province southeast of Saigon.<\/p>\n

\"As\n<\/picture>
Cpl. George Perazic, Royal Australian Air Force, works with the Australian Army at the Taskforce Headquarters at Nui Dat. He inspects a RPD machine gun<\/a> that had been captured from the Viet Cong.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

It was from this base area that the Diggers fought perhaps the most significant battle of their war experience. During the Battle of Long Tan, one company fought off some 1,500 VC and NVA troops in a bloody, constantly escalating battle near an old French rubber plantation.<\/p>\n

\"UH-1\n<\/picture>
UH-1 Iroquois \u201cHuey\u201d helicopters of No 9 Squadron, RAAF, at the Task Force Headquarters preparing for a troop support mission in August 1966.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Between 1962 and 1973, some 60,000 Diggers from the Australian Army, Navy and Air Force served in Vietnam. During the course of Australian involvement, that nation lost 521 KIA and some 3,000 WIA.<\/p>\n

[Don\u2019t miss Tom Laemlein\u2019s article Heavy Weapons of the Viet Cong<\/a>.]<\/em><\/p>\n

New Zealand<\/h2>\n

Following a tradition that pre-dates WWI, where Australian troops went, New Zealand forces soon followed to fight as an ANZAC (Australia-New Zealand Army Corps) command. While the Kiwi\u2019s began their South Vietnam service with small medical and engineer detachments, by the summer of 1965 they sent combat forces. First to arrive were cannoneers from 161st Battery, Royal New Zealand Artillery, which joined up with fire support elements of the Royal Australian Task Force in III Corps.<\/p>\n

\"Although\n<\/picture>
Lance Bomardier David Carswell, a New Zealand forward artillery observer, works with Australian troops to coordinate fire support from the 161st Battery. A Viet Cong tunnel is in the foreground.\u00a0<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

[Be sure to read the harrowing tale of Tunnel Rats in Vietnam here<\/a>.]<\/em><\/p>\n

By 1967, New Zealand committed grunts in two rifle companies of the 1st Battalion, Royal New Zealand Infantry Regiment to fight alongside the Aussies in fairly conventional operations. In 1969, they sent elements of their own Special Air Service Regiment to reinforce the Australian SAS in clandestine counterinsurgency operations. Except for detached advisors, Kiwi troops were mainly committed to combat operations in the National Capitol regions of III Corps.<\/p>\n

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During their service in Vietnam from 1964 to 1972, New Zealand forces did not exceed a strength of 550 at any given time, but they suffered 37 KIA and 187 WIA in combat operations with the Australian Task Force.<\/p>\n

\"Shown\n<\/picture>
Kiwi soldiers of the 161st Battery, Royal New Zealand Artillery carry out a fire mission in support of allied forces in Vietnam. Image:\u00a0NARA<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Republic of Korea<\/h2>\n

Marking the first time since the armistice was signed in 1953 ending anti-communist combat operations in their own country, South Korea committed troops to Vietnam beginning in 1965. They stayed the course alongside U.S. forces in Vietnam and did not end their commitment until the U.S. did 10 years later. All ROK troops sent to fight in Vietnam were reported to be volunteers.<\/p>\n

\"Republic\n<\/picture>
Republic of Korea Marines set up a hasty defense perimeter on Barrier Island, 12 miles southeast of Da Nang. The Marines were inserted by helicopters to search for the enemy. Image:\u00a0Cpl. C. R. White\/USMC<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

More than 300,000 ROK soldiers and Marines served in Vietnam during the course of the war, and that number totals more than all the rest of U.S.\/South Vietnamese allies combined. It\u2019s only fair to note that the U.S. subsidized Korean Forces serving in Southeast Asia, which in many ways proved a significant economic boon for the fledgling South Korean government in Seoul.<\/p>\n

\"A\n<\/picture>
A U.S. Marine and a Korean Marine share rations during a lunch break during a joint combat operation in 1968. Image:\u00a0USMC\/CC BY 2.0 DEED<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The first two Korean combat formations to arrive in Vietnam in 1965 where the Army\u2019s Capital \u201cTiger\u201d Division and the Korean Marine Corps\u2019 2nd \u201cBlue Dragon\u201d Brigade. Those outfits rapidly made a name for themselves as brave and highly disciplined troops operating in the coastal areas of II Corps.<\/p>\n

\"This\n<\/picture>
While a Leatherneck helicopter waits, a wounded Korean Marine is brought on a stretcher for medical evacuation. Nearly 5,000 Koreans died in the defense of South Vietnam. Image:\u00a0Sgt. T. E. Kingry\/USMC<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

There was some early dithering among diplomats who called the Korean tactics unnecessarily brutal, but there was no question that their presence took the pressure off American forces in their areas of operations. That was most welcome among American field commanders who were struggling to cover increasingly large portions of the country.<\/p>\n

\"The\n<\/picture>
ROK Army 9th Division, the White Horse Division, arrives in South Vietnam. The 5,500 Koreans were greeted by a huge welcome sign. Image:\u00a0U.S. Navy<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

In the fall of 1966, South Korea sent a second Army outfit, the 9th \u201cWhite Horse\u201d Division, to Vietnam, which freed up the Korean Marines to move north where they joined U.S. Marines in operations throughout the dangerous Quang Nam and Thua Thien Provinces of I Corps adjacent to the DMZ.<\/p>\n

\"This\n<\/picture>
A sniper of the ROK 2nd Marine Brigade uses a scope to aim at a VC combatant during Operation Dragon Fire south of the Chu Lai Marine Air Base in 1967. Image:\u00a0Staff Sgt. Gary Thomas\/USMC<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Due to their aggressive tactics, the ROKs gained an almost mythical reputation among U.S. soldiers and Marines concerning their tough discipline, expertise in small unit tactics and close-quarter fighting based on martial arts styles. Captured documents indicated enemy forces were often instructed to avoid tangling with ROK combat units.<\/p>\n

\"US\n<\/picture>
The 3rd Marine Division band sounds attention at the opening of the Hoi An Vocational Training School, a civil action project of the 2d ROK Marine Brigade. Image:\u00a0Lance Cpl. C. E. Woodruff\/USMC<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The precise number of Korean Marines and soldiers wounded in action over 10 years of service in Vietnam is hard to compute precisely. What\u2019s a matter of record is that nearly 5,000 Koreans were killed in action.<\/p>\n

Thailand<\/h2>\n

Perhaps no other U.S. allied nation in Southeast Asia was as committed to anti-communist resistance as was the Kingdom of Thailand. A lot of that had to do with geography. Thailand and Vietnam were neighbors, and the Thai government felt a communist victory to their east would spur similar rebellions in their own country. That meshed nicely with American proponents of the domino theory and opened access to strategic U.S. bases in Thailand.<\/p>\n

\"Part\n<\/picture>
Part of the Queen\u2019s Cobras, this Thai soldier is part of a \u201csweep and clear\u201d mission in Vietnam near Phuoc Tho in 1967. He is armed with an M79 grenade launcher<\/a>. Image:\u00a0NARA<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The US Air Force eventually flew combat operations from seven major Royal Thai Air Force Bases including Udorn, Ubon, Korat, Takhli, Nakhon Phanom, U-Tapao, Don Muang and Bangkok. Activities at those bases eventually pumped some two billion dollars into the Thai economy over the course of the war. More importantly, Thai bases provided handy nests for long-range air strikes into the North Vietnamese heartland.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"In\n<\/picture>
Pipe Major (Sergeant) Jack Elliott of the Royal Australian Regiment (3RAR) Pipe Band plays the bagpipes for Thai soldiers in Saigon during the Armed Forces Day parade, June 1971.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

By the fall of 1967, Thailand committed ground troops from the Royal Thai Volunteer Regiment to Vietnam in operations around Bien Hoa in II Corps. That unit, known as the Queen\u2019s Cobras, was replaced the following year by the Black Panthers, who formed the Royal Thai Army Expeditionary Division operating out of Camp Bearcat in II Corps.<\/p>\n

\"This\n<\/picture>
U.S. General William C. Westmoreland watches the arrival ceremonies for the Queen\u2019s Cobra, the Royal Thai Volunteer Regiment in Vietnam. Image:\u00a0NARA<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The U.S. was subsidizing Thai soldiers serving in Vietnam, which led to some American press reports accusing the Thais of being mercenaries in service to the U.S. There was some credibility to that stance given the amount of U.S. foreign aid provided to Thailand in support of their commitment to Vietnam, which amounted to more than what was provided to any other country involved except for South Vietnam itself. It was no secret that Thai troops were trained and equipped by the U.S. and transported by American ships and aircraft.<\/p>\n

\"This\n<\/picture>
A month after arriving \u201cin country,\u201d these Thai troops plan a patrol through an area near Nhon Trac, southeast of Saigon. Image:\u00a0NARA<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Regardless of such controversies, Thailand played a significant role in combat operations throughout Southeast Asia. Thai troops had extensive counterinsurgency experience that they brought to bear both in South Vietnam and in Laos where U.S. clandestine forces were waging a sub-rosa war against communist Pathet Lao guerillas.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Between 1967 and 1972, some 40,000 Thai soldiers served in Vietnam. The effort cost the kingdom 350 KIA and more than 1,300 WIA.<\/p>\n

Philippines<\/h2>\n

In response to President Johnson\u2019s \u201cMore Flags\u201d efforts to aid South Vietnam, the Philippines sought congressional approval from their government to send combat troops. That request was denied, but the Philippine congress did authorize personnel and funds for a civic action contingent.<\/p>\n

\"The\n<\/picture>
Australian Pvt. Clive Williams watches a Filipino soldier fire his pistol during shooting competition just outside Saigon. The friendly competition was between the Allied nations involved in the Vietnam war.\u00a0<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Beginning in 1964, it sent a group of doctors, nurses, technicians and civic action officers to assist MACV, the American command, with psychological warfare and civil affairs efforts primarily in the heavily populated III Corps regions.<\/p>\n

That was followed two years later with an increased line-up of an engineer construction battalion, a security battalion and a logistics element to form the Philippines Civic Action Group-Vietnam, or PHILCAG-V. They set up a base of operations in Tay Ninh northwest of Saigon and went to work on public works construction, rural development and food and medical support to the South Vietnamese populations in that area.<\/p>\n

\"ARVN\n<\/picture>
ARVN Major General Tr\u1ea7n Thanh Phong meets with a Philippine Army Brigadier General near Ben Dinh in September 1968. Philippine troops were involved in a humanitarian mission there. Image:\u00a0NARA<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Slightly more than 2,000 Filipino soldiers served in Vietnam over the next 40 months, but they consistently focused on humanitarian rather than combat missions. While such efforts were appreciated by both the South Vietnamese and Americans in country, the greatest contribution made by the Philippines to the U.S. war effort was on the other side of the South China Sea. Throughout the war, U.S. forces continued to operate out of vital support bases at the Naval Base Subic Bay and Clark Air Force Base. Those bases provided significant stations for rest, repaid and refit throughout the war in Vietnam. <\/p>\n

Final Thoughts<\/h2>\n

The Vietnam War was a long, tough fight for the United States. Thankfully, in addition to the efforts of American troops in fighting the communist enemy, a large number of troops from allied countries supported our efforts there.\u00a0They deserve to be remembered for their bravery, hard work and willingness to stand with America in an unpopular war.<\/p>\n

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By Capt. Dale Dye, USMC (Ret) From a rice paddy or triple-canopy jungle perspective, most of America\u2019s Vietnam Veterans are only vaguely aware they had some serious allies fighting on their side in country. Unless an assignment in Vietnam involved duty as an observer or advisor, the ever-shrinking community of people who fought in Vietnam […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1780,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1779","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/gunowner-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1779","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/gunowner-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/gunowner-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gunowner-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gunowner-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1779"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/gunowner-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1779\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gunowner-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/1780"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/gunowner-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1779"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gunowner-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1779"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gunowner-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1779"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}