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Establishment of Moscow-Washington hotline
Direct communication link between the President and the Kremlin established after representatives of the US and USSR met in Geneva. Khrushchev becomes more open to discussions around nuclear restraint. JFK was criticised for being 'soft' on communism, wanted to reduce nuclear weapons. -
Nuclear Test-Ban Treaty signed
Set against the backdrop of wider protests against atmospheric testing and a 1950s push from Moscow to limit nuclear weapons. US, USSR and Britain agree in Moscow to ban all test of nuclear weapons whereby radioactive debris could spread. France and China notably abstained from signing this treaty, continuing their own nuclear programmes until the 1990s. -
JFK assassinated, Johnson ascends to presidency
Sworn in after JFK's assassination, Johnson increased the number of US military advisers assisting South Vietnam from 16,300 to 23,000. The situation was bleak, with the USSR supplying military equipment to the North, who in turn utilised China's support and the Ho Chi Minh Trail to achieve success. -
Gulf of Tonkin incident and Resolution
After the USS Maddox was attacked by North Vietnamese torpedo boats in the Gulf of Tonkin on the 2nd, Congress passed a resolution authorising Johnson to take whatever measures he saw necessary to guarantee US security. -
Khrushchev ousted from power
After receiving criticism for his handling of the Cuban Missile Crisis and appearing 'soft' on the US, Khrushchev is ousted as head of the Communist Party and is replaced by Leonid Brezhnev -
President Johnson wins landslide election, serves a full term in his own right
Johnson won the largest share of the popular vote for the Democratic Party in history, defeating Goldwater by 486 electoral votes to 52. -
Operation Rolling Thunder
Bombing of strategic military targets in Hanoi and supply routes. Accompanied existing jungle patrols, aerial bombardment using Napalm, Agent Orange to defoliate. Vietcong and North Vietnamese Army used guerilla, hit-and-run tactics, using jungle cover, booby traps and tunnels -
Johnson Declaration
Johnson publicly declared that he would escalated US involvement in Vietnam. Two battalions of US marines were sent to protect military bases at Da Nang, 184,000 US troops were in Vietnam by the end of the year. Intended to boost the depleted morale of the South Vietnamese forces. China sent 300,000 troops to assist the North Vietnamese -
Dubcek launches his 'Action Plan'
Arguing for 'socialism with a human face', Dubcek removed state controls over industry and put a greater emphasis on individual and organisational freedoms. -
Alexander Dubcek becomes President of Czechoslovakia
With Ota Sik demanding an end to centrally planned economic targets and better worker/consumer rights, reformist Dubcek came to power, replacing Novotny. -
Tet Offensive
Using the cover of the Buddhist New Year (Tet), the Vietcong launched more conventional attacks on US-held areas in South Vietnam, e.g the US embassy in Saigon. Whilst a large-scale nationalist uprising in the South did not occur, and the Vietcong lost 25,000 men, the offensive psychologically depressed the engaged US public, contributing to a worsening approval of Johnson -
Johnson Announces decision not to stand for re-election
He also announced that he was partially halting the US bombing of Vietnam, and that he intended to negotiate a settlement with North Vietnam, before these negotiations would break down in May due to mutual distrust. -
Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty signed
Rather than relying on MAD as a nuclear deterrent, the superpowers sought to limit nuclear weapons stockpiles. The US continued to produce ICBMs and SLBMs, with USSR reaching nuclear parity and developing ABMs. US responded by developing MIRVs. Britain, US and USSR signed the treaty to prevent the spred of nuclear weapons and information, promote co-operation in the uses of nuclear energy and to further nuclear disarmament. China and France signed the treaty in 1992. -
Warsaw Letter published
Alarmed by President Tito's visit to Prague, Warsaw Pact member states expressed that intervention was necessary to safeguard socialism. -
Warsaw Pact invasion of Czechoslovakia
500,000 Warsaw Pact troops invaded Czechoslovakia after Brexzhnev failed to convince Dubcek to repeal his reforms. Careful to not suffer the same fate as the Hungarians 12 years previous, the Czechoslovaks enacted a policy of passive resistance. NATO condemnation and Red Army occupation ensued, with Dubcek exiled to Moscow and replaced by a more Kremlin-sympathetic Gustav Husak. Brezhnev announced his intention to intervene when socialism is compromised in any Eastern European country. -
Operation Menu begins
US-led bombing offensive on North Vietnamese supply chains in Cambodia. The installation of Pol Pot as Cambodian leader in 1970 was met with cross-border raids by the US and ARVN. These harmed the Vietcong but unpopularly increased the US commitment to war in Asia, prompting Congress to ban US troops from entering any other country than Vietnam -
Nixon introduces Vietnamisation
Concerned with the threat of nuclear war, declining American public opinion over the War and strained relations with the USSR and China, Nixon announced his vision of "peace with honour". The US began withdrawing troops whilst building up the ARVN's ranks and maintaining US air support. US paid the ARVN troops and supplied them with updated military equipment and aircraft. However, the ARVN remained plagued with low morale, corruption and inefficiency -
Willy Brandt becomes Chancellor of West Germany
Pioneers the policy of Ostpolitik, a new approach to relations with East Germany -
Kissinger meets Le Duc Tho in Paris
North Vietnamese insisted that Thieu be removed and a coalition government rule in South Vietnam that would include the NLF. -
Cambodian Coup d'etat
Lon Nol overthrew Prince Sihanouk, forming a pro-American government and escalating the Cambodian Civil War. America sent 119 military advisors and dropped 430,000 tons of bombs on Cambodia to combat the Khmer Rouge, who had recently allied themselves with North Vietnam. Lon Nol took little notice of American advice, and the Khmer Rouge, although outnumbered, used guerilla tactics. -
Treaty of Moscow
Non-Aggression Pact between USSR and West Germany that rejected the use of force and acknowledged post-WW2 European borders. -
Treaty of Warsaw
A treaty signed between West Germany and Poland that recognised the Oder-Neisse border. -
Extension of the war into Laos
To further damage the Ho Chi Minh Trail, Nixon supported 30,000 ARVN troops with aircraft, however Thieu ordered his force to retreat once they had reached 3,000 casualties. -
Kissinger's deal collapses
Pressured by the Chinese to accept a realistic settlement, Kissinger submitted his proposal. However, fearing US abandonment, Thieu refused to sign it and the South Vietnamese delegation pulled out of negotiations. -
Nixon visits China
Set against the backdrop of a more open Chinese premier in Zhou Enlai, Nixon deliberately improved relations with China. He communicated with China diplomatically and removed trade controls and travel restrictions. He sought to pressure the USSR into signing SALT, and further the Sino-Soviet split. -
Spring Offensive
ARVN suffered 8000 casualties compared to the Vietcong's 40,000. -
Nixon visits the USSR
Heads the Moscow summit, where 'basic principles of relations' were established on the principles of disarmament and the avoidance of nuclear war.