0 - The Black Vault

THE BDM CURPORATION
One cannot argue with the success of the Nixon and Kissinger
negotiating strategy, They recognized that a military solution tu Viet,:am
was not possible.
They decided, therefore, to set their negotiating strategy
and withdraw from the conflict on American terms, In -eFponse co
public and congressional pressure at home, they initiated a unilateral
withdrawal of US forces. They beefed up the RVNAF thrjugh an accelerated
Vietnamizatioi program 9nd stepped up efforts -o improve pacification in
the RVN.
Thereafter, they successfully exploited detente with the Soviet
Union and the opening with China in order to isolate the DRV
from their
benefactors. Then, through incursions, denial operations and bombings of
DRV sanctuaries in Cambodia and Laos,
forces in the South,
they effectively isolated the Enemy's
Confronted with a stalemate in the South, punished by
dccurate "smart" bombs and waves of B-52s, and its harbors closed by lethal
mines, the DRV decided to negotiate (see Figure 7-5 for Presideqt Nixon's
Negotiations Decision Tree).
The unfirtunatc aspect of the process was that one of the
principal parties, the $outh Vietnamese, were not brought into fhe "talks"
until the agreement had been finalized.
The US gct its "peace with honor," its POWs back, a "safe"
withdrawal from oattie, and a "decent interval-"
The DRV got to keep their
forces iii-olace in the South and another agreement which they 2ccld violate
with impunity and regulirity., The GVN got little more than solace. Forced
to accept US terms, President Thieu .ried to rally his people around what
was to become a losing cauoe.
Throughout the rnegotiations, the US set about to convince
the GVN that by accepting an agreement it could lose nothing it already had
and to ýjnvince Hanoi that unless it accepted an agreement it would have no
chaice of winning politically. Each had to oelieve that a negotiated
ag.-eement was an interim step toward victory.147/
Implementing this negotiating
strategy required both time to allow the GVN co get a(- ,stomed to
fighting the war without US forces, and continued warfare so that the DRV
could not be certain that simply, by waiting out US withdrawal the war would
wind down, and wiLL it, the need to negotiate anything at all.
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