Why did the USA withdraw its forces from Vietnam in 1973

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Why did the USA withdraw its forces from Vietnam in 1973? By Laura Reid

The USA's involvement in Vietnam started in 1954, for a few reasons. Firstly, the Americans were, as always, concerned with the spread of communism. They wanted to stop communism spreading through south-east Asia. They were worried that if one country were to fall to a communist leader, so would neighbouring countries. This was known as the Domino Theory. These reasons for joining the war in Vietnam and the fact that the United States did not want to appear weak were the main reasons that the USA withdrew forces from Vietnam so late, as it took from 1968 when peace talks were made with North Vietnam until 1973 when the majority of soldiers had been withdrawn from Vietnam.

There were many reasons for the USA withdrawing its forces from Vietnam: the tactics of the two armies, the strong anti-war movement in America, the change in public opinion and the one-sided media coverage.

The major turning point for most members of the USA public and government was the Tet Offensive in 1968. Before this event, the US army believed they were winning the war