86.1k views
5 votes
Why did U.S. officials support Ngo Dinh Diem’s refusal to participate in elections aimed at reuniting Vietnam?

Ngo Dinh Diem was prepared to install a communist government in a united Vietnam.
They believed that Ngo Dinh Diem would allow communists to rule in North Vietnam.
The United States wanted a divided Vietnam in order to contain communism in the region.
They believed that Ho Chi Minh would win, and the united Vietnam would be communist.

User Guri
by
6.8k points

2 Answers

1 vote
The U.S officials supported Ngo Dinh Diem as they believed that Ho Chi Minh government would win, and the united Vietnam would be communist.
User Shephali
by
6.8k points
3 votes

Answer:

  • They believed that H.o Chi Minh would win, and the united Vietnam would be communist.

Step-by-step explanation:

Because of Diem's prosperity against the Cao Dai and Hoa Hao religious orders and other political groups in South Vietnam in 1955, the U.S. started to trust Diem could stave off the Viet Minh with military help, and accordingly occupied with a more profound pledge to their opportunity from the communist threat.

But because of political instability in South Vietnam and fears that a communist authority would not permit free elections, Dulles later contended that it was to the greatest interest of the U.S. to permit Diem to hold a rigged referendum ahead of the elections that had been mandated by the Geneva Conference. The decision not to permit free elections fueled the Viet Minh’s resolve to reunify Vietnam.

User Esta
by
6.5k points