background and origins of, 19–38
covert action programs of, 43–44, 46–47, 56
and end of Vietnam War, 390–391, 406
infiltration and penetration by, 109–112, 335–336
modus vivendi of, 213–223
organization of, 38–40
PICs and, 73–74, 80, 82, 83, 85, 87–88
psychological warfare and, 280–290
publications of, 334–335
systematizing of operations against, 113–142
VCIIS (Viet Cong Infrastructure Information System), 258–259
Vien, Mrs., 303 Viera, Jose Rodolfo, 422
Vietcong Memoir, A (Tran Van Truong), 156, 234
Vietminh, 22–29, 58, 74
colonialism opposed by, 22–24
Diem and, 27–29
see also VC; VCI
Vietnam:
colonial rule of, 20–22
political demarcations of, 20, 22, 24
Vietnam: A History (Karnow), 20
Vietnam, Democratic Republic of (North), 53, 90, 128, 194, 195
Vietnam, Republic of (South), 34, 39, 41, 47, 60, 90, 220, 280, 399
ceasefire and last days of, 404–419
Diem’s downfall and, 51–56
and end of Vietnam War, 404, 411, 413, 417–419
“infrastructure” as understood by, 185–186
interrogation networks in, 73–88
modus vivendi of, 213–215
“nation building” strategy in, 160
as prison regime, 221, 349
as scapegoats, 276
Soviet Union compared with, 69
U.S. support of, 47, 148–149, 174, 186–188, 256–257, 303–305, 387, 391
Vietnam: The Secret War (Generous), 26
Vietnamese History from 1939–1975 (Huy), 24
Vietnamization, 254–279
corruption and, 266–271
intelligence networks restructured in, 266–279
policies and implementation of, 254–265
reforms in, 291–302
Vietnam War:
end of, 404–419
new breed of officers in, 163
northern bombing as beginning of, 53
suppression of dissent against, 336–339
Village in Vietnam, 105
Village Voice, 312
Vincent, Vance, 357
Vinh, Major, 407, 409
Vinh Loc, 189
VIS (Vietnam Information System), 51, 282
VNQDD (Vietnam Qiioc Dan Dang), 22, 64, 67, 344
VNTF (Vietnam Task Force), 298–299
Volkman, Dennis, 425
Vo Nguyen Giap, 22
Vung Tau program, see RDC
Vu Nhoc Nha, 305
Wall, Bob, 124–126, 139, 140–141, 184, 191, 208, 373, 390, 393, 424
Waller, Efram E., 384
Wall Street Journal, 264, 276, 314
Walt, Lou, 124–125
Walters, Howard, 51
Walton, Frank, 35, 260, 348
War Comes to Long An (Race), 32, 258
Ward, Jim, 160, 169, 173, 208, 225, 254, 265, 321
interviews with, 109, 137–138, 150, 163, 172, 205–207, 278–279, 281–282
Washington Monthly, 179
Washington Post, 163, 314, 388
Weidhas, Al, 329
Weisz, George, 278
Welch, David, 162–163
West, Dave, 127, 136, 156, 371
Westbrook, Colston, 337
Westmoreland, William, 91, 118, 146, 253
libel suit of, 272–273
as MACV commander, 57, 64, 113, 116, 127, 135, 152–153, 181, 342
on pacification, 89
Wheeler, Earle, 135, 297
Wilbur, John, 163–173, 176, 177–178, 255–256
Williams, Ogden, 57, 281
Willson, Brian, 215–216
Wilson, “Coal Bin” Willie (Wilber), 208–209, 382, 385
Winne, John, 77
Wisner, Frank, 406, 417
With The Contras (Dickey), 426
Woodsman, John, 72, 106
World War I, 22, 62, 100, 338
World War II, 12, 47, 69, 90, 91, 143, 192, 198, 300
Yarborough, William, 91, 338
Yoh, Bernard, 37
Yoonchul Mo, 357
Yothers, Charlie, 319
Young, Stephen, 107
Zasloff, J. J., 28, 33
Zinman, William, 311–312
Zorthian, Barry, 71
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
This book is dedicated to my darling wife, Alice. Special thanks to my father for his editorial assistance; the Fitchburg Arts Council for its financial aid; Adria Henderson, Bill McCoy, Jack Madden, John Kelly, and Nick Proffitt for their comradeship; Sandy Kelson, Larry Hill, and Andy McKevitt for their generosity; Dave Coggeshall, Ian Fleming, the Fat Angel, and Robert Graves for inspiration; Lucy Nhiem Hong Nguyen, Lien Johnson, and Pham Thi Ngoc Chan for their efforts on my behalf; Larry Tunison for the night on the town; and all those who contributed to this book.
About the Author
Douglas Valentine is the author of four books of historical nonfiction: The Hotel Tacloban, The Phoenix Program, The Strength of the Wolf: The Secret History of America’s War on Drugs, and The Strength of the Pack: The Personalities, Politics and Espionage Intrigues that Shaped the DEA. He is the author of the novel TDY, and a book of poems, A Crow’s Dream. He is also the editor of the poetry anthology With Our Eyes Wide Open: Poems of the New American Century (West End Press, 2014). He lives with his wife, Alice, in Massachusetts.
All rights reserved, including without limitation the right to reproduce this ebook or any portion thereof in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of the publisher.
Copyright © 1990 by Douglas Valentine
Cover design by Andrea Worthington
ISBN: 978-1-4976-2020-9
This edition published in 2014 by Open Road Integrated Media, Inc.
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Phoenix Program Page 63
