War in Vietnam VS. War in Iraq

Saigon Then , Baghdad Now

Political experts began analyzing the Iraq War through a different perspective after the fall of Iraqi President Saddam Hussein in 2003 According to the article Thinking about Iraq , the United States occupied Iraq using strategies applied in the Vietnam War . Despite slight alterations in tactics and outcomes , there was a shift from Vietnamization to Iraqization

Ho Chi Minh established the Democratic Republic of Vietnam (North Vietnam ) after he and his Viet Minh guerrillas overthrew French colonial rule in 1954 . A ruthless land reform program soon followed - an

br estimated 10 ,000 landowners were stripped ' of their lands and executed . Nearly a million North Vietnamese (mostly Catholics ) fled to South Vietnam , where a non-communist state was constituted under the Emperor Bao Dai (a former puppet of the country 's French and Japanese colonizers , with Ngo Dinh Diem as his Prime Minister

According to the Geneva Conference of 1954 , the division of Vietnam was supposed to be only temporary elections were scheduled on July 20 1956 . However , Diem refused to hold elections , questioning the legitimacy of any elections in the communist-run North . In addition , the US declined to sign the Geneva agreement , stating the Domino Theory . The Domino Theory argued that if South Vietnam fell to the communists communism will easily follow the US home by first reaching Hawaii and the West Coast . Hence , it would be better to fight communism in Asia than on American soil . The US also used the Domino Theory as a justification for the commencement of the Southeast Asia Treaty Organization (SEATCO ) to counter communist expansion in the region

The US-backed Diem proved to be a corrupt and repressive leader . He tried to eliminate political opposition by having communist and anti-government elements arrested , tortured and executed . He also rigged the South Vietnamese election of 1955 in his favor with help from his brother , Ngo Dinh Nhu . Diem was eventually overthrown and executed with Nhu on November 2 , 1963 . The ten-year long Vietnam War (1965-1975 eventually followed and resulted in the victory of North Vietnam and the death of 800 ,000 North Vietnamese soldiers , 4 ,000 ,000 Vietnamese civilians and 52 ,209 American soldiers

The world thought that the end of the Cold War also ended the US fight against communism . But the US presented a new perceived threat - terrorism - to avail of a very crucial natural resource - oil

It has often been said that the Middle East (as well as the OPEC ) is no longer important in terms of oil production due to the emergence of several new oil sources such as the North Sea and Central Asia /Siberia This is true to some extent - non-OPEC countries now account for 60 of prices has been reduced

But the US Department of Energy has projected that oil production in non-OPEC countries are facing declining production in the coming years due to land maturity and high cost production . While non-OPEC reserves cost more to develop , their production will be slower in the long run - it is...