Operation Giant Lance
The operation Giant Lance was an American action in the Cold War . It was carried out in 1969 during the Nixon presidency and should contribute to a quick end to the Vietnam War . The operation was part of Nixon's " Madman Strategy ".
reason
President Nixon wanted to end it quickly after American losses in the Vietnam War. He had promised this in the election campaign in 1968 and tried to keep this promise in 1969.
target
According to President Nixon, " after two days, Ho Chi Minh would personally beg for peace in Paris". Nixon wanted to prove his readiness for a third world war and prevent further deaths on the part of the USA in the Vietnam war.
Happenings
Reason
According to Nixon, he ordered the operation because he "wanted to show the North Vietnamese that I have reached a point where I would do anything to end the war."
Military maneuvers
To put the American readiness for a Third World War demonstrated, and thus the Soviet Union intimidate, started on October 10, 1969 18 nuclear -tipped B-52 bombers from Fairchild Air Force Base in Washington state in the east. The bombers stayed in Soviet airspace for three days. There were also military maneuvers all over the world. Destroyers and aircraft carriers in the Gulf of Aden , the Mediterranean Sea, and the Japanese seas carried out maneuvers designed to send a message of power and determination to the Soviet Union.
Reactions
The Soviet ambassador Dobrynin reported to the Soviet leadership that "Nixon is unable to control himself."
cancellation
On October 30, President Nixon broke off the operation without having achieved a change in the balance of power in Vietnam.
Individual evidence
- ↑ Michael Evans: Nixon's Nuclear Ploy. Retrieved May 24, 2017 .
- ↑ Russell, Dick .: 63 documents the government doesn't want you to read . Skyhorse, 2011, ISBN 978-1-61608-226-0 .
- ↑ a b Nixon, Kissinger, and Operation Giant Lance . In: At Home In The Wasteland Travel Blog . March 10, 2008 ( lindsayfincher.com [accessed May 24, 2017]). Nixon, Kissinger, and Operation Giant Lance ( Memento of the original from June 6, 2017 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ a b c That time Nixon wanted commies to think he was crazy enough to nuke them . In: Business Insider . ( businessinsider.com [accessed May 24, 2017]).
