1970 in the Vietnam War

none 1970 Vietnam War SonTayRaiders.JPG 300px Blueboy assault group aboard Banana HH-3E at the start of Operation Ivory Coast Vietnam Anti-Communist forces: South VietnamUnited StatesSouth KoreaAustraliaPhilippines 1936New ZealandCambodia 1970 Khmer RepublicThailandLaos 1952 Kingdom of Laos Communist forces: North VietnamRepublic of South Vietnam Viet CongCambodia 1975 Khmer RougeLaos Pathet LaoPeople's Republic of ChinaSoviet Union 1955 South Vietnam: 968,000 United States: 335,790 South Korea: 48,540 Thailand: 11,570 Australia: 6,800 Philippines: 70 New Zealand: 440 US: 6,173 killedhttps://www.archives.gov/research/military/vietnam-war/casualty-statistics Vietnam War U.S. Military Fatal Casualty Statistics 15 August 2016 National Archives 10 October 2021South Vietnam: 23,346 killed Clarke Jeffrey United States Army in Vietnam: Advice and Support: The Final Years, 1965-1973 Center of Military History, United States Army 1988 https://history.army.mil/html/books/091/91-3/index.html https://web.archive.org/web/20120913060006/http://www.history.army.mil/html/books/091/91-3/index.html dead September 13, 2012 978-1518612619275 Unknown The United States continued its unilateral withdrawal of forces from South Vietnam notwithstanding the lack of progress at the Paris Peace Talks. The removal of Prince Norodom Sihanouk from power in Cambodia in March and his replacement by General Lon Nol, began the Cambodian Civil War. South Vietnamese and U.S. forces entered Cambodia in late April to attack People's Army of Vietnam (PAVN) and Vietcong (VC) bases and supply lines there which had long been used to support the insurgency in South Vietnam. The expansion of the war revitalized the antiwar movement in the U.S. and led to the Kent State shootings and Jackson State killings in May. While U.S. ground forces withdrew from Cambodia at the end of June and legislation was passed to prevent their reintroduction, the South Vietnamese conducted operations in Cambodia for the rest of the year and the U.S. provided air support and military aid to the Cambodian government. Despite this support the Cambodians lost control of vast areas of the country to the PAVN. Within South Vietnam the second half of the year saw a reduction in large U.S. operations with the focus shifting to pacification and population security and supporting Vietnamization. The PAVN/VC generally reverted to sapper attacks and attacks by fire but they fought hard to defend their base areas and infiltration routes. January 2-3 January People's Army of Vietnam (PAVN) forces attacked a U.S. 23rd Infantry Division night defensive position near Đức Phổ Base Camp. In the four hour battle 29 PAVN and seven U.S. soldiers were killed.Willbanks James Vietnam War Almanac: An In-Depth Guide to the Most Controversial Conflict in American History Simon and Schuster 2013 9781626365285325 6 January Under the cover of monsoon rains the Vietcong (VC) 409th Battalion attacked the 1st Battalion, 7th Marines at Firebase Ross with mortars and sappers penetrating the wire. The attack was repulsed by 04:00 with 13 Marines and 38 VC killed.Cosmas Graham US Marines in Vietnam Vietnamization and Redeployment 1970-1971 History and Museums Division Headquarters United States Marine Corps 1986 9781494287498 https://www.usmcu.edu/Portals/218/US%20Marines%20In%20Vietnam%20Vietmanization%20and%20Redeployment%201970-1971%20PCN%2019000309600.pdf48–50 8 January President of South Vietnam Nguyễn Văn Thiệu announced that it would be impossible for U.S. forces to fully withdraw from South Vietnam by the end of 1970 and called for increased aid and training and phased U.S. withdrawal over several years.325 16 January The VC attacked a refugee camp on the Batangan Peninsula killing 16 civilians and wounding 21.325 18 January VC bombs exploded at the Thủ Đức Military Academy killing 18 people and wounding 33.325 18-24 January The first Tour de Vietnam cycle race in 14 years began, following a 500 mi course from Nha Trang to Long Xuyên. The race was to demonstrate the extent of government control over the countryside, however the competitors were escorted by armored vehicles and helicopter gunships.the New York Times Cyclists race in Vietnam with politics in tandem 19 January 1970 3 19 January to 22 July The 1st Brigade, 5th Infantry Division launched Operation Green River in Quảng Trị Province. The operation results in 106 PAVN soldiers killed and 37 U.S. killed.https://www.vietnam.ttu.edu/reports/images.php?img=/images/2624/26240106001.pdf Operational Report - Lessons Learned Headquarters, 1st Infantry Brigade, 5th Infantry Division, Period Ending 31 July 1970 Department of the Army Headquarters, 1st Infantry Brigade, 5th Infantry Division 25 January 1971 25 June 2020 3 21 January A PAVN/VC artillery attack on Bien Hoa Air Base damaged a C–123, a C–7 and a UH–1.Nalty Bernard The United States Air Force in Southeast Asia: The War in South Vietnam Air War over South Vietnam 1968–1975 Air Force History and Museums Program 2000 http://www.afhso.af.mil/shared/media/document/AFD-100924-004.pdf https://web.archive.org/web/20130216072651/http://www.afhso.af.mil/shared/media/document/AFD-100924-004.pdf dead February 16, 2013 9781478118640246 A box of 81 mm mortar ammunition exploded at Firebase Nancy, 20 mi north-northeast of Xuân Lộc, killed 13 soldiers of the U.S. 4th Battalion, 12th Infantry Regiment.The New York Times 72 of enemy reported killed in Delta 23 January 1970 14 22 January A PAVN/VC attack on a Republic of Vietnam Marine Division (VNMC) base in the Mekong Delta results in 72 PAVN/VC and 15 VNMC killed. 28 January United States Air Force (USAF) jets attacked an SA-2 missile site near the Mụ Giạ Pass after it fired on a U.S. reconnaissance jet. One USAF F-105G Wild Weasel was shot down during the raid. Jolly Green 71 an HH-53B combat search and rescue helicopter was shot down by a missile fired from a Mig-21 piloted by Vu Ngoc Dinh of the Vietnam People's Air Force 921st Fighter Regiment as it attempted to rescue the aircrew. The 6-man crew were all killed.http://www.acig.org/artman/publish/article_246.shtml Vietnamese Air-to-Air Victories, Part 2 10 February 2010 https://web.archive.org/web/20130304225827/http://www.acig.org/artman/publish/article_246.shtml 4 March 2013 usurped326 A Gallup poll showed that 65% of Americans approved of President Richard Nixon's handling of the war.326 30 January Nixon stated that Vietnamization was "irreversible" but that he would respond forcefully to any increase in North Vietnamese military activity.326 February 3 February The United States Senate Committee on Foreign Relations led by Democratic Senator J. William Fulbright reopened hearings on the war. Republican Senator Charles Goodell described Vietnamization as "a great public relations success" but "not a true policy of disengagement."327 5 February Starting at 18:00, Allied forces began a 24-hour Tết ceasefire. U.S. jets attacked North Vietnamese antiaircraft positions in the Ban Karai Pass after they had fired on U.S. reconnaissance jets.The New York Times 6 February 1970 U.S. again bombs North as reconnaissance planes are fired on 3 U.S. helicopter gunships accidentally attacked South Vietnamese Regional Forces test-firing a machine-gun killing eight and wounding 31. 10 February United States Secretary of Defense Melvin Laird in Saigon for a fact-finding mission said that he was satisfied with the current pace of Vietnamization.327 12 February The PAVN 31st Regiment ambushed a 1st Battalion, 7th Marines patrol near Firebase Ross in the Quế Sơn valley. The U.S. 3rd Battalion, 21st Infantry Regiment was sent to support the Marines. U.S. losses were 13 killed.The New York Times Foe kills 14 G.I.s in Danang ambush 22 February 1970 150–1 14 February A Gallup poll showed that 55% of Americans opposed an immediate withdrawal from South Vietnam compared to 35% in favor.327 16 February Two ARVN Ranger battalions and the 1st Armored Brigade reported killing 280 PAVN and capturing 36 after a series of encounters over five days 18 mi south of Da Nang. ARVN losses were 23 killed.The New York Times Allied say units kill 145 of foe 16 February 1970 8 17 February Military Policemen were called to a murder scene in an apartment at Fort Bragg. Special Forces Captain Jeffrey R. MacDonald claimed that four intruders attacked his family killing his pregnant wife and two young daughters. The case remains one of the most litigated murder cases in American criminal history.Joe Nickell John F. Fischer Crime Science: Methods of Forensic Detection University Press of Kentucky Lexington, Kentucky 1998 978-0-813-12091-1 43–9 Testifying before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, William Colby, head of Civil Operations and Revolutionary Development Support (CORDS) denied that the Phoenix Program was an assassination program, while acknowledging that "some illegal killings" had taken place. Colby stated that in 1969 19,534 suspected VC cadres had been "neutralized" of which 6,187 had been killed, 8,515 captured and 4,832 defected. Colby said "I am neither optimistic nor pessimistic about the future of this program or Vietnam."The New York Times U.S. aide in Saigon denies "counter-terror" charge Tad Szulc 17 February 1970 1 18 February Sergeant Michael Mullen was killed by shrapnel from friendly artillery fire while serving with the 6th Infantry Regiment in Quảng Tín Province. His death prompted his mother Peg Mullen to become an antiwar activist who was profiled by journalist C.D.B. Bryan in The New Yorker in 1976 and the story was subsequently made into the 1979 telemovie Friendly Fire.Peg Mullen, 92, Who Fanned Her Anger Over Son's Death Into Antiwar Drive, Dies The New York Times Douglas Martin 5 October 2009 https://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/06/us/06mullen.html USAF B-52 bombers were reported to be bombing PAVN and Pathet Lao forces on the Plain of Jars, the first time the heavy bombers had been used in northern Laos.328 19 February In the Son Thang massacre five U.S. Marines killed five Vietnamese women and 11 children in Sơn Thắng, Quế Sơn Valley. Four of the Marines were charged with murder, two were acquitted and two convicted but only served sentences of one year.345–7 21 February Despite the U.S. bombing, PAVN and Pathet Lao forces captured Xiangkhouang airfield and most of the Plain of Jars while the Royal Lao Army forces retreated west.329 PAVN forces ambushed a mechanized infantry unit from the 196th Light Infantry Brigade in the Quế Sơn valley, killing 14 and wounding 29 in a five hour battle. PAVN losses were four killed. 27 February A PAVN/VC rocket attack on Bien Hoa Air Base damaged three A-37s, two F-100s and a C-7. Two USAF personnel were killed in these attacks and 74 wounded.246 March 9 March Operational control of U.S. forces in I Corps passed from III Marine Amphibious Corps to XXIV Corps.443 11 March Anti-Vietnamese demonstrations erupted in Phnom Penh, Cambodia while head of state Prince Norodom Sihanouk was touring Europe, the Soviet Union and China. Crowds attacked the North Vietnamese and VC embassies.330 12 March Cambodian prime minister Lon Nol closed the port of Sihanoukville to the North Vietnamese and demanded that all PAVN and VC forces withdraw from Cambodian soil within 72 hours (on 15 March) or face military action.330 14 March The first FTA Show is performed in Fayetteville, North Carolina, near Fort Bragg.The New York Times 500 G.I.'s at Debut of Antiwar Show Wooten James T. 15 March 1971 14 March – 12 April In the SS Columbia Eagle incident, two crewmembers seized the Columbia Eagle 2 with the threat of a bomb and handgun and forced the captain to sail towards Cambodia. Twenty-four of the crew were forced to abandon the ship in lifeboats, while the remaining 13 sailed the ship into Cambodian waters and the two mutineers Clyde McKay Jr. and Alvin Glatkowski surrendered to the Cambodia government which gave them asylum. The mutineers were later arrested and imprisoned in Cambodia, but released later in the year. Glatowski eventually turned himself in to the U.S. Embassy, was extradited to the U.S. and served seven years in prison, while McKay sought refuge with the Khmer Rouge who apparently killed him.Lipsman Samuel Doyle Edward Fighting for Time (The Vietnam Experience) Boston Publishing Company 1984 9780939526079141 16 March A U.S. Navy EC-121 Warning Star crashed on landing at Da Nang Air Base. The aircraft struck a hangar and caught fire killing 22 of the 31-man crew.https://www.vietnam.ttu.edu/reports/images.php?img=/images/1683/168300010812.pdf Headquarters MACV Monthly Summary March 1970 Headquarters United States Military Assistance Command, Vietnam 11 July 1970 14 July 2020 34–5 17 March The Peers Commission presented their report on the Mỹ Lai massacre. The report found that members of the 23rd Infantry Division had killed at least 175–200 Vietnamese men, women and children and that senior officers at brigade and divisional levels had participated in covering-up the incident.330 18 March The Cambodian National Assembly voted to remove Sihanouk from power with Lon Nol taking the powers of the Head of State on an emergency basis.330–1 19-30 March Fearing a joint ARVN–Cambodian attack Central Office for South Vietnam began moving from the Cambodia-South Vietnam border area into Kratié Province, Cambodia.Tảng Truong Như Chanoff David A Vietcong memoir Harcourt Brace Jovanovich 1985 978015193636-6 177 20 March The PAVN attacked Firebase Granite, the attack was repulsed with 10 U.S. and 10 PAVN killed.https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=2519&dat=19700320&id=y3FeAAAAIBAJ&pg=3133,2658705&hl=en North Vietnamese sappers attack jungle firebase Observer-Reporter 20 March 1970 14 July 2020 21 March North Vietnamese Prime Minister Phạm Văn Đồng flew to Beijing to meet with Zhou Enlai and Sihanouk. Sihanouk agreed to accept the leadership of anti-Lon Nol forces under the umbrella of the National United Front of Kampuchea (FUNK).331 22 March The VC bombed a Buddhist meeting in Hóc Môn District killing 14 civilians and wounding 20.331 23 March thumb|right|Norodom Sihanouk in Beijing in 1965 Sihanouk on Beijing radio called for a general uprising against Lon Nol and the formation of FUNK.331 25 March North Vietnam withdrew its diplomats from Cambodia.331 26 March North Vietnam refused an offer by South Vietnam for the release and repatriation of 343 wounded or ill prisoners of war, declaring that there were no members of the PAVN in the south. The North Vietnamese representatives at the Paris Peace Talks asserted that the captives were, instead, "illegally arrested patriots" from among South Vietnamese citizens rebelling against the Saigon government.Reds Won't Take Own Sick POWs Pittsburgh Post-Gazette 27 March 1970 6 The South Vietnamese Government began the Land to the Tiller program of land reform designed to redistribute land to tenant farmers and undermine support for the VC.Prosterman Roy Land-to-the-Tiller in South Vietnam : The Tables Turn Asian Survey 10 8 751–764 August 1970 10.2307/2642811 2642811 27-8 March ARVN Rangers with armored cavalry support and support from U.S. helicopter gunships made the first large-scale South Vietnamese attack into Cambodia attacking a PAVN base in Kandal Province, killing 53 PAVN and capturing one for the loss of three ARVN killed.331 28 March The White House announced that based on the judgment of commanders in the field, U.S. forces could cross into Cambodia in response to PAVN/VC threats. The White House denied that this represented any change in policy or widening of the war.331 A U.S. Navy F-4 Phantom II shot down a VPAF MiG-21 while escorting a reconnaissance jet near Thanh Hóa in the first aerial engagement since the November 1968 bombing halt.332 29 March The PAVN 272nd Regiment hit Firebase Jay with mortar, rocket and recoilless rifle fire hitting the command post and knocking out communications. The base was occupied by Companies A and E, 2nd Battalion, 7th Cavalry, B Battery, 2nd Battalion, 12th Artillery and B Battery, 2nd Battalion, 19th Artillery. The PAVN then launched infantry attacks on the base perimeter but were beaten back by dawn. U.S. losses were 13 killed, while 74 PAVN dead were found in and around the base.Laurence John The Cat from Hue https://archive.org/details/catfromhuvietn00laur registration Public Affairs 2001 1586481606617–8 The PAVN launched Campaign X against the Cambodian Khmer National Armed Forces (FANK), quickly seizing large portions of the eastern and northeastern parts of the country, isolating and besieging or overrunning a number of Cambodian cities including Kampong Cham.Sak Sutsakhan The Khmer Republic at war and the final collapse United States Army Center of Military History 1984 978178039258561 April 1 April 199th Infantry Brigade commander Brigadier General William R. Bond was killed by sniper fire in Bình Thủy District.https://www.vietnam.ttu.edu/reports/images.php?img=/images/1683/168300010803.pdf Headquarters MACV Monthly Summary April 1970 Headquarters United States Military Assistance Command, Vietnam 17 August 1970 4 July 202012 The PAVN hit Firebase Illingworth with over 300 rounds of mortar and recoilless rifle fire and then assaulted the base with a force of over 400 troops. The base was defended by Companies C and E, 2nd Battalion, 8th Cavalry, B Battery, 5th Battalion, 2nd Artillery, A Battery, 1st Battalion, 30th Artillery, A Battery, 2nd Battalion, 32nd Artillery and B Battery, 1st Battalion, 77th Artillery. During the attack an ammunition dump containing over 190 rounds exploded. By 05:00 the attack had been repulsed at a cost of 24 U.S. killed and 54 wounded and 88 PAVN killed.https://www.army.mil/article/36723/Battle_survivors_reunite_40_years_later_at_Fort_Sill_monument/ Battle survivors reunite 40 years later at Fort Sill monument US Army 1 April 2010 14 July 2020 thumb|right|Song Mao Base Camp Three PAVN battalions attacked Song Mao Base Camp which was defended by the U.S. 2nd Squadron, 1st Cavalry and the ARVN 44th Regiment, 23rd Division. The attack was repulsed resulting in two U.S., two ARVN and 151 PAVN killed. 1 April to 8 May The PAVN besiege Dak Seang Camp. On 15 April 1970 the 170th Assault Helicopter Company dropped the 3rd Battalion, 42nd ARVN Regiment into a landing zone near Dak Seang, resulting in the loss of two helicopters. 1 April to 5 September Operation Texas Star was a military operation of the U.S. 101st Airborne Division and the Army of the Republic of Vietnam (ARVN) 1st Division against PAVN logistics routes and bases in the A Shau Valley and the mountains east of the valley. The operation culminated in the Battle of Fire Support Base Ripcord.Stanton Shelby L. Vietnam order of battle 2003 2003 Stackpole Books 0-811700712 13 The operation resulted in 1,782 PAVN killed and five captured, U.S. losses were 386 killed and ARVN losses were 370 killed.Olson James S. In Country: The Illustrated Encyclopedia of the Vietnam War 2008 Metro Books 9781435111844 4 April A group of 50,000 demonstrators picketed in Washington D.C. in the "March for Victory", organized by fundamentalist radio evangelist Carl McIntire. The marchers, mostly middle-aged white Americans, protested Nixon's decision to reduce the American commitment rather than to take the war into North Vietnam.'Win In Viet' March Attracts 50,000 Pittsburgh Press 5 April 1970 2 5 April Photojournalist Gilles Caron disappeared on Highway 1 in Cambodia. He was the first of 25 journalists to disappear or be killed by the Khmer Rouge/PAVN between 5 April and 28 October 1970.Volkert Kurt A Cambodian Odyssey: and The Deaths of 25 Journalists iUniverse 2001 9780595166060 187 6 April Photojournalists Sean Flynn and Dana Stone disappeared on Highway 1 in Cambodia. Later investigations revealed that they were captured by the PAVN and then handed over to the Khmer Rouge who executed them.https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/asia/how-errol-flynns-son-was-lost-in-cambodia-ndash-all-but-a-pile-of-bones-1931662.html https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220501/https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/asia/how-errol-flynns-son-was-lost-in-cambodia-ndash-all-but-a-pile-of-bones-1931662.html 2022-05-01 subscription live How Errol Flynn's son was lost in Cambodia – all but a pile of bones 31 March 2010 independent.co.uk 9 July 2020 6-10 April The PAVN/VC attacked Khmer National Army (ANK) forces near Chiphou in Svay Rieng Province killing 20 with 30 more missing. The ANK claimed to have killed 300 PAVN/VC on 9 April, but the ANK then withdrew all its forces from the Parrot's Beak region of Svay Rieng Province abandoning it to the PAVN/VC and forming a new defensive line at Prasot village, where the ANK killed numerous ethnic Vietnamese.333 7 April Nixon awarded 21 posthumous Medals of Honor to U.S. servicemen killed in the war.The New York Times 21 G.I.s awarded Medals of Honor posthumously by President 7 April 1970 3 10 April thumb|right|U.S. artillery at Mai Loc Camp Following a mortar and rocket-propelled grenade barrage, PAVN sappers attacked Mai Loc Camp which was defended by CIDG forces and a U.S. artillery unit. The PAVN withdrew with 19 dead, while U.S. losses were six and 14 CIDG were killed.Viet Reds overrun U.S. camp Chicago Tribune 10 April 1970 http://archives.chicagotribune.com/1970/04/10/#page/44/article/viet-reds-overrun-u-s-camp 11 April A Gallup poll showed that 48% of Americans approved of Nixon's Vietnam policy while 41% disapproved.333 12 April - May Two PAVN battalions attacked Dak Pek Camp and the defenders were forced back to a small fighting position before air support forced the PAVN back. The PAVN then besieged the camp until early May when they withdrew. Total losses were 34 CIDG and 420 PAVN killed.http://www.vhpa.org/KIA/panel/battle/70041210.HTM Attack on Dak Pek information for A-242 SF DET Vietnam Helicopter Pilots' Association 14 July 2020 13 April In the village of Xom Bien, a massacre of about 600 Vietnamese Cambodians was carried out by the ANK as part of a campaign by the Lon Nol government against the nation's Vietnamese-speaking minority. Shortly after midnight, troops entered the village, founded as a Roman Catholic mission on the waters of the Mekong River in the Chrouy Changvar area near Phnom Penh and removed the men and boys and shot them. Days later, hundreds of the corpses of the victims (which included more from outside of Xom Bien) were seen floating down the Mekong into South Vietnam.1,000 Civilians Slain In Cambodia— Youth Describes Massacre Of 600 Seized At Village Indianapolis Star 19 April 1970 1 A PAVN sapper company attacked Firebase Nancy defended by a unit of the ARVN 1st Regiment, 1st Division and a U.S. artillery unit, returned fire and the PAVN withdrew. At dusk ARVN soldiers sweeping the perimeter made sporadic contact with PAVN. PAVN losses were 71 killed and nine captured and 11 individual and six crew-served weapons captured; U.S. losses were four killed.37 14 April Lon Nol appealed for foreign military assistance to counter the PAVN/VC.333 14-7 April Operation Toan Thang 41 was a 3rd Brigade, 25th Infantry Division, ARVN 49th Regiment, 31st, 36th and 52nd Ranger Battalions and 10th and 18th Armored Cavalry operation against a PAVN logistics and rest area in the Angel's Wing, Svay Rieng Province, Cambodia. The operation resulted in 378 PAVN/VC killed.https://www.vietnam.ttu.edu/resources/operations/operations.txt Vietnam Archive Operations Database The Vietnam Center and Archive 10 November 2021 15 April A VC booby-trap made from a 105mm shell detonated ammunition at a U.S. camp near Đức Phổ killing 14 Americans from the 11th Infantry Brigade and wounding 32.333 16 April The PAVN 95C Regiment attacked Firebase Atkinson which was defended by Companies B and E, 2nd Battalion, 7th Cavalry and B Battery, 2nd Battalion, 19th Artillery. The PAVN attacks were beaten back with seven U.S. and 66 PAVN killed.723 20 April Nixon announced that he would order the withdrawal of a further 150,000 American troops from South Vietnam over the next 12 months as part of the process of turning conduct of the war over to the South Vietnamese.Nixon to Pull Out 150,000 by May '71 Bridgeport (CT) Telegram 21 April 1970 1 20-3 April Operation Cuu Long/SD9/06 was conducted by elements of the ARVN 9th Infantry Division attacking 6 km into Cambodia west of the "Crow's Nest". The ARVN claimed 187 PAVN/VC killed and over 1,000 weapons captured for a cost of 24 killed. Thirty CH-47 sorties were flown to remove captured weapons and ammunition before it was decided to destroy the remainder in situ. The ARVN force returned to South Vietnam on 23 April.Tran Dinh Tho The Cambodian Incursion United States Army Center of Military History 1979 https://apps.dtic.mil/dtic/tr/fulltext/u2/a324718.pdf https://web.archive.org/web/20210831010346/https://apps.dtic.mil/dtic/tr/fulltext/u2/a324718.pdf live August 31, 2021 978198102525148–9 22 April In a meeting at the White House of his National Security Council, Nixon discussed the options for the U.S. response to the continuing use of Cambodia by the PAVN/VC as a base. National security adviser, Henry Kissinger, would recount later that the three choices were to continue the current response, favored by Secretary of Defense Laird and Secretary of State William P. Rogers; providing financial and adviser aid to an invasion by the ARVN without committing ground troops (favored by Kissinger); or sending U.S. troops and planes into Cambodia to attack the sanctuaries (favored by General Earle Wheeler, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff). While Nixon supported Kissinger's option, U.S. Vice President Spiro T. Agnew made the argument for committing U.S. troops to Cambodia, the decision that Nixon ultimately adoptedhttps://history.state.gov/historicaldocuments/frus1969-76v06/d248 Foreign Relations of the United States, 1969–1976, Volume VI, Vietnam, January 1969–July 1970 Editorial Note United States State Department Office of the Historian 6 July 2020 23 April Nixon issued an Executive Order ending any future deferment from the military draft based on occupation, agriculture or fatherhood.Nixon Abolishes Job, Fatherhood Draft Deferment Pittsburgh Post-Gazette 24 April 1970 1 24-5 April At a conference near Canton, Sihanouk, Souphanouvong, Phạm Văn Đồng and Nguyễn Hữu Thọ pledged to jointly oppose the U.S.. The resolution was endorsed by Zhou Enlai.334 27 April Two Marine A-4 Skyhawks accidentally bombed a CIDG unit during a battle 77 mi southwest of Da Nang killing ten and wounding 20.335 28 April Kien Tuong Province Regional Forces with support from the 9th Division attacked 3 km into the "Crow's Nest" again in a two-day operation, reportedly killing 43 PAVN/VC and capturing two for the loss of two killed.49 During the same period the Regional Forces also raided northwest of Kampong Rou District killing 43 PAVN/VC and capturing 88 for the loss of 2 killed.49–50 The Senate Foreign Relations Committee announced its opposition to extending U.S. military aid to Cambodia.The New York Times Key Senate unit opposes sending Cambodia arms 28 April 1970 1 29 April The PAVN again attacked Firebase Granite, the attack was repulsed with seven U.S. killed and one missing and 18 PAVN killed.Nolan Keith Ripcord: Screaming Eagles Under Siege, Vietnam 1970 Random House 2007 9780307416551 105 29 April – 22 July The Cambodian Campaign (also known as the Cambodian Incursion) was a series of military operations conducted in eastern Cambodia by the U.S. and the South Vietnam. A total of 13 major operations were conducted by the ARVN and U.S. forces between 1 May and 30 June. In addition to the capture of large amounts of supplies and equipment 11,369 PAVN/VC were killed and 2,328 captured, ARVN losses were 638 killed and 35 missing and U.S. losses were 338 killed and 13 missing.Tran Dinh Tho The Cambodian Incursion United States Army Center of Military History 1979 https://apps.dtic.mil/dtic/tr/fulltext/u2/a324718.pdf https://web.archive.org/web/20210831010346/https://apps.dtic.mil/dtic/tr/fulltext/u2/a324718.pdf live August 31, 2021 9781981025251 193–4 30 April thumb|right|President Nixon announces the Cambodian Incursion In a nationally televised address, Nixon announced that he had sent 2,000 American combat troops into Cambodia and ordered U.S. B-52 bombers to begin airstrikes. Nixon reversed his April 20 announcement that he would withdraw 150,000 troops from Vietnam over the next year, in effect providing that there would again be a need to draft young American men to maintain the current force level. Nixon told viewers "This is not an invasion of Cambodia." rather the attacks were upon territory in Cambodia that were "completely occupied and controlled by North Vietnamese forces."GIs Attacking in Cambodia, Not an Invasion, Says Nixon Pittsburgh Post-Gazette 1 May 1970 1 30 April to 4 May A PAVN regiment captured Hiệp Đức District and ARVN and U.S. forces ejected them resulting in 219 PAVN, 12 ARVN and seven U.S. killed.336 May 1 May Operation Toan Thang IV a multi-division U.S./ARVN operation in III Corps concludes. U.S. losses are 685 killed while PAVN/VC losses are 14,479 killed.83 Protests against the expansion of the war into Cambodia began on U.S. college campuses.Tear Gas Scatters Stanford Protesters Tucson (AZ) Citizen 1 May 1970 1 For the first time in more than 50 years, the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee voted to ask for a meeting with a U.S. president, after having been given no notice of the invasion, and the request was unanimous from both political parties.Senators call Nixon— Fulbright group wants conference on Cambodia The Tampa Times 1 May 1970 1 1-2 May U.S. aircraft bombed PAVN supply depots in Nghệ An and Quảng Bình Provinces. The Nixon Administration described the raids as defensive.336 3 May A PAVN artillery and sapper attack on Firebase Betty resulted in five U.S. killed and 25 wounded.The New York Times 30 U.S. casualties at base 4 May 1970 13 4 May Four college students were shot and killed at Ohio's Kent State University, and nine others wounded by Ohio National Guardsmen, during a protest against the incursion into Cambodia.4 Killed, 10 Hurt At Kent State — Firing Erupts As Guardsmen Chase Crowd Pittsburgh Post-Gazette 5 May 1970 1 4-5 May A PAVN rocket attack on Chu Lai Air Base resulted in 12 U.S. killed and 33 wounded.The U.S. Army campaigns of the Vietnam War: The Drawdown 1970–1971 Birtle Andrew Maass John Center of Military History United States Army 2019 9781088823613 https://history.army.mil/html/books/076/76-7/index.html https://web.archive.org/web/20230607091055/https://history.army.mil/html/books/076/76-7/index.html dead June 7, 2023 34 5 May Sihanouk announced from Beijing that he had formed a government-in-exile that would ally with the Communist government of China and the Khmer Rouge to overthrow head of state Lon Nol. Sihanouk's group was called "GRUNK" and was a coalition of government officials exiled in China (former premier Penn Nouth as the Prime Minister) and Khmer Rouge leaders within Cambodia, chief of whom was Khmer Rouge leader Khieu Samphan.Sihanouk Organizes 'Royal Government' Orlando Evening Star 5 May 1970 5 China severed diplomatic relations with Cambodia.Nguyen Lien-Hang Hanoi's War: An International History of the War for Peace in Vietnam University of North Carolina Press 2012 978-0807835517 169 Nixon met with Congressional leaders and pledged that U.S. forces would be withdrawn from Cambodia within seven weeks and that he would not allow them to penetrate deeper than 21 mi without Congressional preapproval.337 6 May At 05:00 the PAVN 33rd Sapper Battalion attacked Firebase Henderson south of Ca Lu, Quảng Trị Province, which was occupied by elements of the 2nd Battalion, 501st Infantry Regiment, 2nd Battalion, 11th Artillery, 326th Engineer Battalion and ARVN units. The attack resulted in 27 U.S., 3 ARVN and 29 PAVN killed.http://www.e2501airmobile.com/files/Hell%20Night.pdf Hell night at Henderson 20 November 2014 4 March 2016 https://web.archive.org/web/20160304045505/http://www.e2501airmobile.com/files/Hell%20Night.pdf deadRed Attack in South Vietnam Cuts Down 29 Yank Troops Des Moines (IA) Tribune 6 May 1970 10 The PAVN/VC attacked Quế Sơn District Headquarters with mortar fire followed by a battalion-sized ground attack. Marines of Company H, 2nd Battalion, 5th Marines, supported by artillery aided the besieged RF/PF units. The RF/PF lost 10 killed, the Marines one killed and the PAVN/VC 27 killed.444 More than 100 colleges and universities across the U.S. shut down as a result of students protests over the Cambodian Incursion and the Kent State shootings.337 7 May The PAVN attacked Firebase Maureen which was defended by a platoon of the 1st Battalion, 506th Infantry. 8 May Thiệu announced that he had reached an agreement in principle with Lon Nol for South Vietnamese combat operations in eastern Cambodia. Unlike the U.S. forces, the South Vietnamese would not be restricted in time or by geographical limits.338 A group of 500 construction workers attacked a group of 1,000 student antiwar protesters outside of New York City Hall, near the intersection of Wall Street and Broad Street. More than 60 people were injured.500 Storm City Hall to Raise Flag— Construction Laborers Then Assault Pace Students Daily News (New York) 9 May 1970 3 9 May Hours before a large anti-war protest began at Washington, D.C., Nixon surprised most of his Secret Service bodyguards and about eight demonstrators by walking in to the Lincoln Memorial at 4:55 in the morning. The Associated Press described it as a "strange encounter, unique in recent political annals."Nixon Meets Protesters Spokane (WA) Daily Chronicle 9 May 1970 1 As word got around that Nixon was chatting with students, the group had increased to 50 by the time he left, and his parting words were "Go shout your slogans on the Ellipse. Just keep it peaceful."I Am Not a Kook: Richard Nixon's Bizarre Visit to the Lincoln Memorial Tom McNichol The Atlantic 14 November 2011 https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2011/11/i-am-not-a-kook-richard-nixons-bizarre-visit-to-the-lincoln-memorial/248443/ Later in the day, a crowd of about 100,000 demonstrated peacefully in the event organized by the New Mobilization Committee to End the War in Vietnam in one of many anti-war protests that took place across the nation that day.Protesters Throng Capital — Youths At Lincoln Memorial Get Surprise Visit By Nixon Tucson (AZ) Daily Citizen 9 May 1970 1 12 May Major General John A. B. Dillard and eight others were killed when their helicopter was shot down southwest of Pleiku.https://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-28669943 Five US generals killed in action BBC News 6 August 2014 4 July 2020 Kỳ announced that Republic of Vietnam Navy boats were blockading the Cambodian coastline to prevent the PAVN/VC from being resupplied by sea.339 Lair announced that Vietnamization was progressing so well that U.S. forces would cease to be involved in combat by the end of June 1971.339 15 May Police shot and killed two students and injured 12 more in the Jackson State killings at Jackson State College, Mississippi.339 16 May 22-year-old Specialist 4 James E. Paul fired a rifle at other American soldiers as they waited in bleachers to see a stage show in Tây Ninh. Two people were killed and ten others were wounded. Paul was convicted of two counts of murder and sentenced to 22 years in prison.15 September 1970 Alamogordo Soldier Given Prison Term Las Cruces Sun-News https://www.newspapers.com/article/las-cruces-sun-news/122849156/ 14 April 2023 19 May A PAVN rocket attack on Pleiku Air Base destroyed an EC-47 and damaged two more.246 20 May A pro-war rally attracted 150,000 people to New York's City Hall Park, with a crowd that included blue collar workers and union members who supported the Nixon administration's policies in the war.150,000 Parade for Nixon Daily News (New York) 21 May 1970 1–2 Chinese Communist Party Chairman Mao Zedong, the de facto leader of the People's Republic of China, issued a statement to his people for the first time in five years, with Radio Peking delivering the word to listeners nationwide. Urging Chinese citizens to work together "to defeat U.S. imperialism" in Vietnam and Cambodia, Mao's statement declared, "People of the world, unite and defeat the U.S. aggressors and all their running dogs!" Mao went on to say that "Nixon's fascist atrocities have kindled the raging flames of the revolutionary mass movement" and added that "The Chinese people firmly support the revolutionary struggle of the American people", predicting that "the fascist rule in the United States will inevitably be defeated."World War Threat Exists, Mao Warns Fort Lauderdale (FL) News 20 May 1970 1 27 May South Vietnamese and Cambodian diplomats sign agreements reestablishing diplomatic relations between South Vietnam and Cambodia, providing for economic and military cooperation and protecting ethic Vietnamese in Cambodia.340 28 May thumb|right|The National League of POW/MIA Families flag The National League of POW/MIA Families was incorporated by a group of wives of American servicemen who were listed as prisoners of war or missing in action in the war.https://www.pow-miafamilies.org/about-the-league.html https://web.archive.org/web/20170625170016/http://www.pow-miafamilies.org/about-the-league.html dead June 25, 2017 History of the League National League of POW/MIA Families 6 July 2020 31 May PAVN/VC troops who had captured positions in Dalat withdrew evading South Vietnamese forces. The PAVN/VC lost 47 killed while ARVN losses were 16 killed.340 June 1-3 June The PAVN 9th Battalion, 66th Regiment struck Firebase Tun Tavern (16.567°N 106.935°E) with mortar fire followed by a ground attack. The defenders returned fire supported by artillery, helicopter gunships and airstrikes. PAVN losses were 136 killed while ARVN losses were 41 killed and U.S. losses two killed.340 3 June Nixon announced in a nationwide television and radio address that American troops would be pulled back out of Cambodia after the achievement of "all our major military objectives", and that half of the 31,000 U.S. troops in Cambodia had been returned to fight in South Vietnam.Cambodian Objectives Achieved, Nixon Says Pittsburgh Post-Gazette 4 June 1970 1 6 June In a speech to the Cambodian parliament, Kỳ states that South Vietnam has no territorial aims in Cambodia and will send military support whenever requested.341 8 June In a speech in Hanoi, Sihanouk states that Cambodians will fight with the Vietnamese against U.S. imperialism.341 10 June The song War by Edwin Starr was released. 11 June The VC killed 78 South Vietnamese civilians in Thanh My hamlet, Phu Thanh village, Quảng Nam Province in the Thanh My massacre.177–8 thumb|right|Aftermath of the Thanh My massacre 12-16 June In the Battle of Kompong Speu a combined forces of the ARVN and ANK fought to recapture the provincial capital of Kompong Speu. The town was captured by PAVN/VC forces on June 13 but was retaken by Allied forces on June 16. 183 PAVN, four ARVN and 40-50 civilians are killed in the fighting.341 15 June The Battle of Prey Veng was part of the ARVN's campaign in Cambodia. It took place in Prey Veng on June 15, 1970, where ARVN and Cambodian troops battled the PAVN/VC. It ended with an Allied victory with 110 PAVN and 13 ARVN killed.341 16-21 June PAVN attacks almost completely isolated Phnom Penh, severing Highways 1 and 4 and cutting the railway line to the Thai border.342 22 June Đặng Thùy Trâm a 27 year old PAVN doctor and a colleague were killed near Đức Phổ, Quảng Ngãi Province by a patrol from the U.S. 4th Battalion, 21st Infantry Regiment in a Free-fire zone. Two of her diaries recovered by U.S. forces were later published under the title Nhật ký Đặng Thùy Trâm (Đặng Thùy Trâm's Diary (Last Night I Dreamed Of Peace)).Hastings Max Vietnam: An Epic Tragedy, 1945-1975 Harper 2018 9780062405661 561 24 June The United States Senate voted to repeal the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution that had supported U.S. intervention in the Vietnam War since 1964.Senate Repeals Gulf of Tonkin Resolution, 81-10 Pittsburgh Post-Gazette 25 June 1970 1 26 June Laird confirmed that U.S. bombing of Cambodia would continue after the 30 June date for withdrawal of U.S. forces.342 27 June Cambodian forces abandoned Ratanakiri Province to the PAVN/VC.342 29 June The last U.S. ground troops withdrew from Cambodia.Reds Pour It On As Last GI Units Leave Cambodia Pittsburgh Post-Gazette 29 June 1970 1 29 June to 1 March 1971 The 198th Light Infantry Brigade launched Operation Pennsylvania Square in Quảng Tín Province. The operation resulted in 264 PAVN/VC killed and 13 captured, U.S. losses were 20 killed.https://www.vietnam.ttu.edu/reports/images.php?img=/images/1683/168300010622.pdf Operational Report - Lessons Learned, 23rd Infantry Division, (Americal), Period ending 30 April 1971 Department of the Army 15 May 1971 25 June 2020 31 30 June Naval Support Activity Danang was deactivated and its role taken over by U.S. Army units.444 Nixon described the operation in Cambodia as successful, while stating that in future the defense of Cambodia would be the responsibility of Cambodia and its allies without U.S. ground forces.342 The U.S. Senate voted 58:37 to approve the Cooper–Church Amendment to end funding to retain U.S. ground troops and military advisors in Cambodia and Laos after 30 June 1970; bar air operations in Cambodian airspace in direct support of Cambodian forces without congressional approval and end U.S. support for South Vietnamese forces outside territorial South Vietnam.343 July In response to North Vietnam's support of Soviet Union in the Sino-Soviet split China removes its final anti-aircraft troops from North Vietnam.Li Xiaobing A history of the modern Chinese Army 2007 2007 University Press of Kentucky 978-0-813124384 206 1 July Nixon named diplomat David K.E. Bruce to head the U.S. delegation to the Paris Peace Talks.343 1-23 July thumb|right|U.S. artillery at Firebase Ripcord The Battle of Fire Support Base Ripcord was a 23-day battle between the 2nd Battalion, 506th Infantry Regiment, 101st Airborne Division and the PAVN 324B Division from 1 to 23 July. The battle resulted in 422 PAVN and 75 U.S. killed.343 2 July To unify command and strengthen the administration of the South Vietnamese military Thiệu incorporated the Regional and Popular Forces into the ARVN and redesignated Corps Tactical Zones as Military Regions (MRs). Under the reorganization the Corps deputy commander conducted major offensive operations in the MR while the MR deputy commander, in charge of territorial defense and pacification, commanded the RFs and PFs. Concurrently, MACV and the Joint General Staff completed plans to incorporate the CIDGs into ARVN Border Defense Ranger Battalions.445 While on a congressional tour of the South Vietnamese prison on Côn Sơn Island, aide Tom Harkin photographed the "tiger cages" which were used to hold communist cadres, the photos were published in Life Magazine on 17 July 1970 causing international outrage.Hammond William 1996 United States Army in Vietnam Public Affairs: The Military and the Media, 1968–1973 United States Army Center of Military History 0-16-048696-3 https://history.army.mil/html/books/091/91-2/ https://web.archive.org/web/20171018090008/https://history.army.mil/html/books/091/91-2/ dead October 18, 2017 360–2 2-17 July Operation Maeng Da was an RLA operation against the PAVN logistics hub at Tchepone. The PAVN 9th Regiment offered stiff resistance and the RLA were forced to withdraw having only temporarily interrupted PAVN supply routes.Conboy Kenneth Morrison James Shadow War: The CIA's Secret War in Laos Paladin Press 1996 0-87364-825-0269–71 3 July The Hải Lăng PF Platoon; RF group 1/11 and Companies 121 and 122; and CAPs 4-3-2 and 4-1-2, located 9 km southeast of Quảng Trị, were attacked by a PAVN/VC force. Supported by gunships and artillery, the Marines/ARVN killed 135 PAVN/VC and captured 74 weapons while losing 16 killed and six missing.445 7 July 1st Cavalry Division commander Major General George W. Casey and six others were killed when their helicopter crashed into a mountain in poor weather.de Chaunac Jacques-François 2003 The American Cavalry in Vietnam: "First Cav" https://books.google.com/books?id=kUHUghki7sMC&pg=PA289 Turner Publishing Company 289 978-1563118906 8 July At 11:30, elements of Troop A, 2/17th Cavalry attacked a 250 strong PAVN force from the 1st and 2nd Battalions, 9th Regiment 4 km southwest of Khe Sanh. The PAVN withdrew after eight hours leaving 139 dead and four captured; U.S. losses were four killed.343 9 July The Cooper-Church Amendment was defeated 237:153 in the U.S. House of Representatives.343 9-15 July The 1st Brigade, 101st Airborne Division and the ARVN 3rd Regiment, 1st Division launched Operation Clinch Valley to engage the PAVN 9th Regiment on the Khe Sanh plateau. The operation resulted in 266 PAVN killed.https://apps.dtic.mil/dtic/tr/fulltext/u2/a955417.pdf https://web.archive.org/web/20200217054613/https://apps.dtic.mil/dtic/tr/fulltext/u2/a955417.pdf live February 17, 2020 Command History 1970 Volume III Headquarters Military Assistance Command Vietnam 19 April 1971 25 June 2020 E-12 11 July A CH-53D was hit by a surface to air missile and crashed near Quảng Trị, killing three crewmen and 45 South Vietnamese Marines.https://aviation-safety.net/wikibase/wiki.php?id=148204 ASN Wikibase Occurrence #148204 Aviation Safety Network 20 August 2020 12 July - 29 September The 196th Infantry Brigade launched Operation Elk Canyon near Khâm Đức, Quảng Tín Province. The operation resulted in 107 PAVN killed and one captured, U.S. losses were 37 killed.https://apps.dtic.mil/sti/pdfs/AD515335.pdf https://web.archive.org/web/20120119131849/http://www.dtic.mil/cgi-bin/GetTRDoc?AD=AD515335&Location=U2&doc=GetTRDoc.pdf live 19 January 2012 Operational Report, Lessons Learned, Headquarters, 23rd Infantry Division, Period ending 31 October 1970 15 November 1970 25 June 2020 42 16 July - 24 August thumb|right|Company B, 1/7 Marines patrol during Operation Pickens Forest The 1st Marine Division launched Operation Pickens Forest to attack PAVN base areas in the mountains of Quảng Nam Province. The operation resulted in 99 PAVN killed; Marine losses were four killed.77 22 July - 30 January 1971 The 1st Battalion, 11th Infantry Regiment and elements of the ARVN 1st Division launched Operation Wolfe Mountain to conduct reconnaissance in force, rocket suppression and night ambush operations in Quảng Trị Province. The operation resulted in 242 PAVN killed, U.S. losses were 27 killed.E-13 24 July - 11 August The 1st Brigade, 101st Airborne Division and the ARVN 1st Division launched Operation Chicago Peak in the A Shau Valley. The operation resulted in 99 PAVN killed and 3 ARVN killed.E-13 31 July Thiệu declared that there was no change to South Vietnam's peace conditions and ruled out any coalition government with the VC other one formed after internationally supervised elections.344 August August 1970-February 1971 Operation Chenla I was an operation involving the ANK launched the operation during late August 1970 with limited air support from the ARVN and Republic of Vietnam Air Force. The operation was terminated in February 1971, after the Cambodian High Command made a decision to withdraw some units from Tang Kauk to protect Phnom Penh after Pochentong Airbase was attacked. The objective of the operation was to reconnect Skoun and Kompong Cham along Route 7, which was repeatedly attacked by PAVN/VC forces. 4 August ARVN forces killed 44 PAVN/VC in the Mekong Delta for the loss of six killed.344 9 August - 7 October In the siege of Firebase O'Reilly 570 PAVN were killed for the loss of 61 ARVN and two U.S.G-9 12-15 August ARVN units Principally Regional and Popular Forces) killed over 285 PAVN and captured 33 for the loss of 21 killed in scattered fighting southeast of Quảng Trị.344 19 August The U.S. and Cambodia signed a military aid package for $40 million worth of equipment and training for the period to 30 June 1971.345 21 August A VC mortar attack on the village of Bo Chuc in the Mekong Delta killed 11 civilians and wounded 42.345 24 August A bomb exploded next to Sterling Hall, University of Wisconsin aimed at destroying the Army Mathematics Research Center killing researcher Robert Fassnacht.Bates Tom Rads: The 1970 Bombing of the Army Math Research Center at the University of Wisconsin and Its Aftermath Harper 1993 9780060167547 26 August At the end of Operation Elk Canyon a CH-47 (#67-18445) carrying personnel and munitions came in for landing at Landing Zone Judy (15.37 N 108.08 E inline) when it was hit by PAVN fire and crashed in flames killing 30 onboard and 1 soldier on the ground.https://aviation-safety.net/wikibase/wiki.php?id=154430" Accident Boeing CH-47B Chinook 67-18445 26 Aug 1970 12 November 2021 27 August In a speech at the end of a visit to South Vietnam Agnew praised the South Vietnamese and said there would be no reduction in U.S. support.345 28 August Thailand announced that it planned to withdraw its forces from South Vietnam.345 29 August The Chicano Moratorium against the war began in East Los Angeles. A parade through the streets quickly became violent and three days of rioting followed, spreading into South Los Angeles and into Wilmington, California.One Dead, 40 Hurt in East L.A. Riot Los Angeles Times 30 August 1970 A-1 The VC attacked a Buddhist orphanage south of Da Nang killing 15 civilians and wounding 45.345 30 August The South Vietnamese Senate election was held and two-thirds of the eligible voters participated despite random attacks on polling places by the PAVN/VC. The polling was for 30 of the 60 seats in the Senate. At least 11 voters were killed, most of them in the Bình Định Province.Viet Cong Attacks Fail To Disrupt Elections Louisville (KY) Courier-Journal 31 August 1970 1 A PAVN/VC rocket attack on Cam Ranh Base destroyed two 420,000 gallon jet fuel storage tanks.Fox Roger Air Base Defense in the Republic of Vietnam 1961–1973 Office of Air Force History 1979 http://www.afhso.af.mil/shared/media/document/AFD-100921-023.pdf 9781410222565 164 2020-07-14 2016-11-23 https://web.archive.org/web/20161123144536/http://www.afhso.af.mil/shared/media/document/AFD-100921-023.pdf dead 31 August Buddhist candidates won 10 of the 30 Senate seats, however Catholics controlled 30 seats despite being a minority in South Vietnam.345 31 August - 25 September Operation Honorable Dragon was an offensive by six RLA battalions to capture Pakse Site 26 and disrupt the Ho Chi Minh Trail.276–8 September 1 September The U.S. Senate voted against the McGovern–Hatfield Amendment by Senators George S. McGovern (D-South Dakota) and Mark O. Hatfield (R-Oregon) to force President Nixon to withdraw all American troops from Indochina by mid-1971. The vote had 39 supporters (including seven Republicans) and 55 voting against it.Pullout-of-Troops Proposal Defeated By Senate, 55-39 Pittsburgh Post-Gazette 4 September 1970 1 1 September - 7 May 1971 thumb|right|Elements of the 1st Battalion, 5th Marines await a heli-lift during Operation Imperial Lake Operation Imperial Lake, a United States Marine Corps, Republic of Korea Marine Corps and U.S. Army operation in the Quế Sơn District, Quảng Nam Province begins. It was the last operation of the U.S. 1st Marine Division during the war. The operation resulted in 296 PAVN killed and 24 U.S. killed.89 3 September North Vietnam's lead negotiator Xuân Thủy returned to the Paris Peace Talks after walking out in December 1969, however he stated that North Vietnam's negotiating position remained unchanged requiring and unconditional U.S. withdrawal and abandoning the Saigon government.346 4 September VC attacked a South Vietnamese training center in Bình Định Province, killing 14.346 5 September - 8 October 1971 Operation Jefferson Glenn, an operation by the 101st Airborne Division and the ARVN 1st Division to shield critical installations in Huế and Da Nang began. It was the last operation of the 101st Airborne during the war. the operation resulted in 2,026 PAVN/VC killed.Summers Jr. Harry G. The Vietnam War Almanac 1985 Random House New York 0-7394-4290-2 9730994 55 7 September Kissinger held his first secret talks with North Vietnamese negotiators in Paris and made no progress.347 An unsuccessful assassination attempt was made against the newly-arrived U.S. Ambassador to Cambodia Emory C. Swank when a bicycle-bomb failed to detonate next to his car.The New York Times An Attempt to Kill U.S. Envoy in Pnompenh Fails 8 September 1970 3 9 September An ANK amphibious force of 1,500 men broke the siege of Kompong Thom after three months, driving away the PAVN and Khmer Rouge forces.Cambodian Force Breaks Siege of Kompong Thom Dayton Daily News 10 September 1970 24 200 PAVN/VC attacked Trà Bồng District headquarters killing 24 ARVN and one U.S. adviser.347 11–13 September Operation Tailwind was a covert incursion into southeastern Laos by a company-sized element of U.S. Army Special Forces and Montagnard commando (Hatchet Force) of the Military Assistance Command, Vietnam Studies and Observations Group (MACV-SOG or SOG). The purpose of the operation was to create a diversion for an RLA offensive and to exert pressure on PAVN forces. The operation resulted in 54 PAVN and three U.S. killed.276–80 19-28 September The Republic of Vietnam Navy and Marines mounted an operation against PAVN bases and infiltration routes between the Bassac and Mekong Rivers, 35 mi southeast of Phnom Penh, resulting in 233 PAVN killed.347–8 21 September The Hamlet Evaluation System indicated that 92.8% of the South Vietnamese population was under the control of the South Vietnamese government.347–8 26 September A Gallup poll found that 55% of Americans supported the McGovern–Hatfield Amendment if there was no declaration of war, while 36% of Americans were opposed.348 26 September - 7 January 1971 Operation Counterpunch was an RLA offensive to recapture Moung Soui and pre-empt the PAVN wet season offensive. The operation succeeded in capturing Moung Soui and delayed the PAVN offensive by one month.265–7 27 September Two U.S. helicopters collided 44 mi northeast of Saigon killing all eight crewmen.348 October 3 October A pro-war rally was held in front of the Washington Monument attended by approximately 20,000 people.348 4 October Nixon met with his peace negotiators David Bruce and Philip Habib in Dublin.348 Fifteen civilians were killed in VC attacks north of Saigon.348 5 October A PAVN/VC mortar attack on a refugee camp killed 20 civilians and wounded 40. RF/PF forces engaged 100 VC in the same area killing 20. A VC attack on an RF/PF outpost in Phú Yên Province killed 20 ARVN.The New York Times Enemy shellings increase 6 October 1970 3 6 October A PAVN/VC mortar attack on a refugee camp near Phú Mỹ killed seven civilians and wounded 52.348 7 October In a nationwide address, Nixon announced a five-point proposal for a truce to halt the war, with all sides to begin a ceasefire and the release of all prisoners of war, in exchange for broader negotiations in the Paris Peace Talks "Nixon Proposes Indochina Truce", Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, October 8, 1970, p1 The North Vietnamese and VC delegations to the Paris Peace Talks both denounced Nixon's proposal the next day as "a maneuver to deceive world opinion," but stopped short of rejecting it entirely.Viet Reds Knock U.S. Peace Plan Pittsburgh Post-Gazette 8 October 1970 1 9 October thumb|right|Flag of the Khmer Republic The Khmer Republic was proclaimed in Cambodia, four days after the parliament voted unanimously to abolish the 1,168 year old monarchy. Lon Nol was inaugurated as the republic's first president.Cambodia Okays Republic Status Pittsburgh Post-Gazette 9 October 1970 2 11 October A U.S. helicopter gunship accidentally fired on ARVN troops in the Mekong Delta killing eight.349 11-12 October The U.S. 199th Light Infantry Brigade departed South Vietnam.349 13 October In a report to Nixon, British counterinsurgency expert Robert Grainger Ker Thompson said that the VC infrastructure remained largely intact despite U.S. pacification efforts and that destroying it was essential to end the insurgency.349 14 October Hanoi rejected Nixon's 7 October peace proposal and called for the U.S. to accept the 17 September North Vietnamese/VC proposal.350 Nine U.S. and one ARVN soldiers were killed by a VC booby-trap 66 mi southeast of Da Nang.350 15 October The 2nd Battalion, 5th Marines handed over An Hoa Combat Base to the ARVN 1st Battalion, 51st Regiment.102 18 October A U.S. plane accidentally bombed an ARVN camp at Thien Ghon killing 18.350 19-21 October The PAVN/VC attacked Thường Ðức Camp but were repelled by ARVN forces with artillery, helicopter gunship and air support. The PAVN/VC lost 163 killed and 20 captured.350The New York Times Vietcong ambush reported by US 20 October 1970 9 19 October - 13 November The Tchepone Operation was mounted by the RLA to attack PAVN positions at Tchepone and Muang Phine. The operation failed to secure either objective.268–72 20 October Seven Americans were killed when two helicopters collided northwest of Quảng Ngai. 25 October Fourteen Americans were killed in mine and booby-trap explosions in Quảng Tín and Quảng Nam Provinces. The ARVN killed 37 PAVN/VC in an operation in Quảng Tín Province.350 The Associated Press reported that U.S. special forces had been conducting secret cross-border operation in Laos and that casualties had been included in general casualty figures.The New York Times U.S. casualties in Laos reported in secret actions 26 October 1970 1 25-9 October Tropical storms Kate and Joan caused the worst flooding in Quảng Nam Province since 1964, over 200 people, mostly civilians, drowned; over 240,000 temporarily or permanently lost their homes; and 55 percent of the season's rice crop was ruined.108–9 Typhoon Kate caused a reduction in Allied air operations.Associated Press Kentucky New Era October 24, 1970 July 13, 2010 Typhoon Cuts War Activity https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=XucrAAAAIBAJ&sjid=OWcFAAAAIBAJ&dq=typhoon%20kate&pg=2439%2C2169095 37 26 October The New York Times reported on the declining morale among career U.S. servicemen as a result of the war, anti-war protests, drug and racial problems and the impact of the My Lai massacre.The New York Times Morale sag afflicts career servicemen Drew Middleton 26 October 1970 1 28 October UPI journalists Frank Frosch and Kyōichi Sawada were killed by Khmer Rouge on their way to the Kirirom Pass in Cambodia.2 More Newsmen Slain by Reds in Cambodia The New York Times 30 October 1970 https://www.nytimes.com/1970/10/30/archives/2-more-newsmen-slain-by-reds-in-cambodia.html 29 October ARVN units engaged a PAVN force near Snuol, Cambodia killing 44 PAVN for the loss of one ARVN. In fighting elsewhere 41 VC were killed.The New York Times Saigon unit reports battle near Snuol 29 October 1970 11 30 October The PAVN attacked Landing Zone Oasis occupied by the 6th Battalion, 14th Artillery and elements of B Battery, 4th Battalion, 60th Artillery resulting in three U.S. killed.http://www.14faregiment.org/id34.html 6th Battalion - Warbonnets 14th Field Artillery 15 July 2020 MACV reported that deaths from drug abuse among U.S. servicemen were 25 for the year to date compared with 16 for all of 1969.The New York Times Deaths from drug abuse rise among Vietnam G.I.s Iver Peterson 31 October 1970 3 The South Vietnamese Supreme Court annulled the ten year sentence given to Tran Ngoc Chau on espionage charges.The New York Times 10-year sentence of Saigon Deputy annulled by Court 31 October 1970 3 30 October to 1 November Heavy flooding in South Vietnam's northern provinces killed 293 people including four U.S. Marines and left more than 200,000 homeless.351 31 October Thiệu declared that the North Vietnamese had no intention of negotiating peace unless it gave them total domination of South Vietnam, that the North regarded the Paris negotiations as a way to achieve victory gradually and that peace could only be achieved through battlefield victory.The New York Times Thieu says peace can't be obtained at talks in Paris 31 October 1970 1 November 2 November U.S. Army Landing Craft Utility LCU-63 capsized in bad weather east of Huế killing all 11 onboard, only two bodies were recovered.http://www.navsource.net/archives/10/18/181563.htm US Army LCU-63 NavSource 18 November 2020 The PAVN/VC fired four rockets into Saigon killing seven civilians and wounding 25.352 4 November thumb|right|Handover ceremony at Sóc Trăng Airfield. In a ceremony attended by Abrams and Secretary of the Air Force Robert Seamans Sóc Trăng Airfield was handed over to the RVNAF.352 9 November The U.S. Supreme Court refused to hear a case brought by Massachusetts to challenge the constitutionality of the war.352 10 November CBS broadcast a report showing troops of the 1st Cavalry Division at Firebase Aries smoking marijuana through a shotgun barrel.104 13 November PAVN gunners shot down a U.S. reconnaissance jet 42 mi south of Vinh killing both crewmen. Laird said the shootdown violated understandings agreed as part of the November 1968 bombing halt.353 Six U.S. soldiers were killed when their truck hit a mine near Quảng Ngai.The New York Times No U.S. war dead for two day period 13 October 1970 11 15 November Nine Americans were killed by mines and booby-traps.353 16 November Speaking at West Point at the start of a two week visit to the U.S., Kỳ said that the PAVN would overrun Cambodia in 24 hours if the South Vietnamese withdrew. He warned the Nixon Administration about yielding to antiwar factions and against withdrawing too fast from South Vietnam.353 17 November A PAVN/VC rocket attack on Bien Hoa Air Base killed three Americans and two South Vietnamese and wounded 14 civilians.353 The court-martial of William Calley began at Fort Benning.353 18 November Nixon requested $155m in supplemental aid for the Cambodian government.354 An HMM-263 CH-46D Sea Knight crashed into terrain in the Quế Sơn District after extracting a Marine patrol killing all 15 onboard. Among those killed was Lieutenant colonel William G. Leftwich Jr. commander of the 1st Reconnaissance Battalion.The New York Times 15 die in crash of Marine rescue copter 20 November 1970 10 19 November A VC threw a hand grenade into an open-air cinema at Cong Thanh 20 mi northeast of Saigon killing nine civilians and wounding 43.354 20 November Following a scandal surrounding the award of the Silver Star to Brigadier General Eugene Forrester, MACV and the Pentagon announced a review of the basis for awarding medals for heroism to officers.The New York Times Medals system under study by U.S.; many awarded though war wanes 20 November 1970 10 21 November Operation Ivory Coast was a failed mission to rescue U.S. prisoners of war from the Son Tay prison camp conducted by U.S. Special Forces and other elements of the U.S. military. 25 PAVN guards were killed in the attack for no U.S. losses. One hour after the raid U.S. jets carried out intensive attacks below the 19th parallel which Laird said were in response to the continued North Vietnamese firing on U.S. reconnaissance jets.354 The North Vietnamese would later claim that 49 civilians were killed and 40 wounded in the attacks.355 22 November U.S. Navy SEALs and ARVN Special Forces rescued 19 ARVN prisoners from a POW camp in the Mekong Delta.354–5 23 November The North Vietnamese and VC delegations announced they would not attend the next session of the Paris Peace Talks in response to the U.S. attacks against North Vietnam.355 24 November Lard testified before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee in relation to the Son Tay Raid and said that he would recommend a resumption of bombing of North Vietnam if the North continued with its violations of the tacit understanding behind the November 1968 bombing halt.355 An RVNAF UH-1 helicopter collided with a U.S. observation plane over the Mekong Delta killing four U.S. and 13 ARVN onboard.355 27 November A USAF C-123K on approach to Nha Trang Air Base in poor visibility crashed into terrain killing six U.S. crew and 73 South Vietnamese.https://www.vietnam.ttu.edu/reports/images.php?img=/images/1683/168300010798.pdf Headquarters MACV Monthly Summary November 1970 Headquarters United States Military Assistance Command, Vietnam 16 March 2020 20https://www.baaa-acro.com/crash/crash-fairchild-c-123k-provider-near-nha-trang-79-killed Crash of a Fairchild C-123K Provider near Nha Trang: 79 killed Bureau of Aircraft Accidents Archives 20 August 2020 The PAVN attacked an ARVN task force near Krek, Cambodia losing 48 killed. In fighting in the Rung Sat Special Zone 33 VC were killed.355 29 November A USAF C-123K on approach to Cam Ranh Air Base crashed into terrain killing 32 Americans and 12 South Vietnamese onboard with two Americans surviving.https://www.baaa-acro.com/crash/crash-fairchild-c-123k-provider-near-cam-ranh-bay-42-killed Crash of a Fairchild C-123K Provider near Cam Ranh Bay: 42 killed Bureau of Aircraft Accidents Archives 20 August 2020 A USAF F-105G fired on a North Vietnamese SAM site 5 mi east of the Laos-North Vietnam border in what was later described as a "protective reaction" strike in exercise of what Laird called an "inherent right of self-defense."the New York Times U.S. said to offer a new justification for raids in North Hedrick Smith 1 December 1970 1 December 1-8 December An ARVN force attacked a PAVN/VC force in the U Minh Forest killing 182 VC for the loss of eight ARVN.356–7 7 December The U.S. 4th Infantry Division less its 3rd Brigade was withdrawn from South Vietnam.356 7-9 December In Quy Nhon a U.S. soldier accidentally killed a 12 year old South Vietnamese schoolboy while firing to scare away thieves from an Army truck. The killing caused two days of rioting by South Vietnamese with several vehicles burned and Americans attacked before a 24 hour curfew was imposed in the city.The New York times Vietnam riot: anti G.I. feelings boil over 14 December 1970 1 8 December The U.S. 25th Infantry Division less its 2nd Brigade was withdrawn from South Vietnam.356 9 December 200 PAVN attacked an ARVN forces in the Fishhook, Cambodia killing 30 ARVN.357 10 December Nixon warned that if the North Vietnamese increased the level of fighting in South Vietnam as U.S. forces withdrew he would restart bombing North Vietnam.447 Meanwhile the North Vietnamese called for redoubled efforts to win the war.357 12 December A unit of the 1st Brigade, 5th Infantry Division (Mechanized) on patrol 1 mi south of the DMZ inadvertently entered an old U.S. minefield and detonated anti-personnel mines killing six U.S.357 17 December to 19 January The ARVN 1st Task Force conducted Operation Hoang Dieu 101, a province-wide campaign of saturation patrolling in the lowlands. In the month-long effort, the South Vietnamese and cooperating U.S. and Korean Marine units claimed to have killed 538 PAVN/VC and to have captured 87 prisoners and 171 weapons. Another 45 PAVN/VC surrendered as Chieu Hoi.214 22 December North Vietnam released their first accounting of American prisoners of war held there, with a partial list of 368 names in "the closest thing yet to an official accounting by Hanoi".POW List Obtained From Reds— U.S. Contends It's Not Complete Pittsburgh Post-Gazette 23 December 1970 1 North Vietnamese Defense Minister Võ Nguyên Giáp stated that U.S. reconnaissance aircraft had no right to fly over North Vietnam and would be shot down.358 23 December South Vietnamese forces captured Nguyễn Tài the chief of security for the Saigon-Gia Dinh Party Committee and the highest ranking North Vietnamese cadre captured during the war.https://www.cia.gov/library/center-for-the-study-of-intelligence/csi-publications/csi-studies/studies/vol48no1/article06.html#author1 https://web.archive.org/web/20070613112835/https://www.cia.gov/library/center-for-the-study-of-intelligence/csi-publications/csi-studies/studies/vol48no1/article06.html#author1 dead June 13, 2007 The Man in the Snow White Cell Merle Pribbenow Central Intelligence Agency 14 April 2007 28 August 2020 24 December A U.S. artillery unit accidentally fired on a unit of the 1st Brigade, 101st Airborne Division 11 mi south of Huế killing nine.358 27 December Nhân Dân stated that Nixon would "invite upon himself heavier attacks" unless he learnt from Johnson's "failure".358 29 December The Senate approved Nixon's $255m aid package for Cambodia with a revised version of the Cooper–Church Amendment restricting the introduction of ground troops in Laos.358 The ARVN repelled an attack by a PAVN force inside Cambodia, killing 74 PAVN for the loss of ten ARVN.The New York Times A gain in Cambodia reported in Saigon 30 December 1970 5 31 December The VC killed 19 People's Self-Defense Force members in a hamlet in Hậu Nghĩa Province, 90 minutes after the beginning of a VC declared ceasefire.The New York Times Saigon says Vietcong killed 19 after the start of foe's truce 31 December 1970 5 Year in numbers Armed Force StrengthBonds Ray The Vietnam War: The illustrated history of the conflict in Southeast Asia Salamander Books Limited 1979 0861011082 174 KIA Reference Military costs - 1968 Military costs in US$ Reference South Vietnam 968,00023,346 United States 335,800 6,173 South Korea 48,537 Leepson Marc Hannaford Helen Marc Leepson Webster's New World Dictionary of the Vietnam War 1999 Simon & Schuster 0028627466 209 Thailand 11,586 Australia 6,763 Philippines 74 New Zealand 441 North Vietnam References 2 See also List of allied military operations of the Vietnam War (1970) Category:Vietnam War by year War Vietnam Category:United States history timelines