Changes

The communist leaders had expected that the [[ceasefire]] terms would favor their side. But Saigon, bolstered by a surge of U.S. aid received just before the ceasefire went into effect, began to roll back the Vietcong. The communists responded with a new strategy hammered out in a series of meetings in Hanoi in March 1973, according to the memoirs of Tran Van Tra.

The communist leaders had expected that the [[ceasefire]] terms would favor their side. But Saigon, bolstered by a surge of U.S. aid received just before the ceasefire went into effect, began to roll back the Vietcong. The communists responded with a new strategy hammered out in a series of meetings in Hanoi in March 1973, according to the memoirs of Tran Van Tra.

As the Vietcong's top commander, Trà participated in several of these meetings. With U.S. bombings suspended, work on the Ho Chi Minh Trail and other logistical structures could proceed unimpeded. Logistics would be upgraded until the North was in a position to launch a massive invasion of the South, projected for the 1975–1976 dry season. Trà calculated that this date would be Hanoi's last opportunity to strike before Saigon's army could be fully trained.

As the Vietcong's top commander, Trà participated in several of these meetings. With U.S. bombings suspended, work on the Ho Chi Minh Trail and other logistical structures could proceed unimpeded. [[Logistics]] would be upgraded until the North was in a position to launch a massive invasion of the South, projected for the 1975–1976 dry season. Trà calculated that this date would be Hanoi's last opportunity to strike before Saigon's army could be fully trained.

In 1974, Congress voted not to enforce the commitments agreed to in the Paris Peace Accords.  Air support for Cambodia, South Vietnam, and Laos was cut off.  The military aid promised was scaled back or never materialized, and the North was allowed to resume support for the Khmer Rouge.  "After Nixon stepped down over Watergate," said one Communist commander, "we knew we would win."<ref>http://www.grunt.com/scuttlebutt/corps-stories/vietnam/north.asp</ref>  Without the logistical support provided by the Ho Chi Minh trail, the North would not have been able to launch an invasion of South Vietnam by 1975, which it predicted would be its "last chance" before the South was self-sufficiently able to defend itself.<ref>http://www.grunt.com/scuttlebutt/corps-stories/vietnam/north.asp</ref>  The US canceled the bombing of Communist positions on the trail.  In Cambodia, last minute efforts on the part of the US to arrange for a peace settlement involving Sihanouk ended in failure.  When the US Congress vetoed [[Ford]]'s call for a resumption of air support in Cambodia, panic and a sense of doom filled the capital, which was mercilessly shelled for more than a year by the Communists.  President Ford openly predicted a "bloodbath" and stated that the Congress's decision to abandon Cambodia to the Khmer Rouge, in particular, would lead to "an unbelievable horror story".<ref>http://www.paulbogdanor.com/left/cambodia/bloodbath1.pdf</ref>  The US frantically abandoned Saigon, and the Pathet Lao advanced throughout Laos.  The Ford administration's prediction that the Khmer Rouge would murder at least one million people<ref>Washington Post, June 4, 23, 1975</ref> was laughed off by liberal reporters.  Some journalists, mocking the claims of a bloodbath, were so bold as to sing the following lyrics to the tune of "''She Was Poor But She Was Honest''": "Oh will there be a dreadful bloodbath/ When the Khmer Rouge come to town?/ Aye, there'll be a dreadful bloodbath/ When the Khmer Rouge come to town."<ref>http://jim.com/canon.htm#ch2 From an important study by genocide survivor Sophal Ear.  Note that the source is, of all people, William Shawcross.</ref>

In 1974, Congress voted not to enforce the commitments agreed to in the Paris Peace Accords.  Air support for Cambodia, South Vietnam, and Laos was cut off.  The military aid promised was scaled back or never materialized, and the North was allowed to resume support for the Khmer Rouge.  "After Nixon stepped down over Watergate," said one Communist commander, "we knew we would win."<ref>http://www.grunt.com/scuttlebutt/corps-stories/vietnam/north.asp</ref>  Without the logistical support provided by the Ho Chi Minh trail, the North would not have been able to launch an invasion of South Vietnam by 1975, which it predicted would be its "last chance" before the South was self-sufficiently able to defend itself.<ref>http://www.grunt.com/scuttlebutt/corps-stories/vietnam/north.asp</ref>  The US canceled the bombing of Communist positions on the trail.  In Cambodia, last minute efforts on the part of the US to arrange for a peace settlement involving Sihanouk ended in failure.  When the US Congress vetoed [[Ford]]'s call for a resumption of air support in Cambodia, panic and a sense of doom filled the capital, which was mercilessly shelled for more than a year by the Communists.  President Ford openly predicted a "bloodbath" and stated that the Congress's decision to abandon Cambodia to the Khmer Rouge, in particular, would lead to "an unbelievable horror story".<ref>http://www.paulbogdanor.com/left/cambodia/bloodbath1.pdf</ref>  The US frantically abandoned Saigon, and the Pathet Lao advanced throughout Laos.  The Ford administration's prediction that the Khmer Rouge would murder at least one million people<ref>Washington Post, June 4, 23, 1975</ref> was laughed off by liberal reporters.  Some journalists, mocking the claims of a bloodbath, were so bold as to sing the following lyrics to the tune of "''She Was Poor But She Was Honest''": "Oh will there be a dreadful bloodbath/ When the Khmer Rouge come to town?/ Aye, there'll be a dreadful bloodbath/ When the Khmer Rouge come to town."<ref>http://jim.com/canon.htm#ch2 From an important study by genocide survivor Sophal Ear.  Note that the source is, of all people, William Shawcross.</ref>