President Nixon declares an end of U.S. involvement in the Vietnam in 1973 President Nixon announced that a deal has been reached to end the Vietnam War. A ceasefire agreement was initialed in Paris by Henry Kissinger and Le Duc Tho. NEW YORK DAILY NEWS Thursday, January 22, 2015, 12:00 PM (Photo 1): President Richard Nixon addresses nation on T.V. (Originally published by the Daily News on Jan. 24. 1973. This story was written by Jeffrey Antevil.) Washington, Jan. 23 (News Bureau) President Nixon announced tonight that the United States and North Vietnam have concluded an agreement to end the longest war in America’s history and bring “peace with honor” to Vietnam. A ceasefire will begin at 7 P.M. (New York time) this Saturday throughout Vietnam, Nixon told a nationwide television audience. The peace agreement will be formally signed by the U.S. and South Vietnam and North Vietnam and the Viet Cong at Paris on Saturday. Withdrawal of the remaining American forces in Vietnam and the return of U.S. prisoners of war will be accomplished within the next 60 days, the President said in outlining terms of the agreement. “This is a peace that lasts,” Nixon said, “and a peace that heals.” Announcement of the ceasefire came just 11 years, one month and one day after the first American death in the Vietnam conflict - 25-year-old Army Specialist 4th Class James Thomas Davis of Livingston, Tenn., slain in ambush by the Viet Cong 25 miles from Saigon on Dec. 22, 1961. In his announcement, Nixon addressed the South Vietnamese, telling them that by their work and sacrifice they had won the right to establish their own government and gained the strength to maintain it. Appeal to North Vietnamese To the North Vietnamese, he appealed for a spirit of reconciliation. Nixon explained his silence in recent weeks by saying that any comment he might have made possibly could have interfered with the sensitive negotiations. He told the nation, bitterly divided over the conflict, that it should be proud of the 2.5 million young Americans who served unselfishly to help a friendly government maintain its freedom. Nixon said nothing meant more to him at this moment than that the long misery of the wives of the prisoners and men who were listed as missing was coming to an end. Lauds Johnson’s Support The President praised the late President Lyndon Johnson for his arduous efforts to find peace in Vietnam, and expressed deep appreciation for Johnson’s support of the Nixon efforts to bring the war to an honorable end. In one of the ironies of history, Nixon’s announcement came one day after the death of Johnson, who sacrificed his political career in the search for peace. (Photo 2): Jan. 24, 1973 New York Daily News cover (Photo 3-4): Jan. 24, 1973 New York Daily News Nixon Nixon said the ceasefire agreement was initialed in Paris earlier today by Henry Kissinger, his chief Vietnam negotiator, and Hanoi’s Le Duc Tho. He said it would go into effect at 7 p.m. (New York time) Saturday. In his address, he read a statement that he said was being issued simultaneously by North Vietnamese officials which expressed the hope that the agreement would lead to a lasting peace throughout Indochina. Nixon’s address, from the Oval Office of the White House, followed briefings for his cabinet and for Democratic and Republican congressional leaders. Reports All Conditions Accepted Nixon said that “within 60 days from the time the ceasefire takes effect, all Americans held as prisoners of war throughout Indochina will be released.” (Photo 5): President Richard Nixon with foreign affairs advisers. The President recalled that he had outlined conditions for such a ceasefire during his speech last May 8. “All the conditions that I laid down then have been met,” he said. Nixon’s announcement of a Vietnam peace agreement came almost four years to the day from the first peace talks in Paris. It was on Jan. 26, 1969, that American, North Vietnamese, Viet Cong and South Vietnamese negotiators first gathered at the Hotel Majestic in Paris to try to end the long and bloody war, which cost the U.S. 46,000 dead in combat. The agreement announced tonight “meets the goals and has the full support of President Nguyen Van Thieu and the government of South Vietnam,” Nixon said. But he warned that its terms “must be scrupulously adhered to.” He said United States will abide by the terms - and expects North Vietnam to do the same. He said the agreement recognizes the Thieu government “as the sole legitimate government of South Vietnam.” The United States, the President declared, will continue to aid that government militarily. “Ending the war is only the first step toward building the peace,” he declared. Praises Relatives of PWs In speaking of the long awaited release of U.S. PWs, Nixon paid tribute to “some of the bravest people I have ever met” - the wives and families of the prisoners, who, he said, steadfastly supported his quest for the “right kind of peace.” “When others called on us to settle on any terms,” the chief executive said, PW relatives stood firm, telling him to fight for “peace with honor” so that their loved ones “haven’t died and suffered in vain.” “Nothing means more to me,” said Nixon in a firm yet emotional voice, than to have found the way to bring the men home. (Photo 6): President Nixon meets with William Rogers and Melvin Laird. The statement which Nixon read in his speech tonight simultaneously issued in Hanoi. It said: “At 12:30 p.m. (Paris time) today, Jan. 23, 1973, The Agreement on Ending the War and Restoring Peace, was initialed by Dr. Henry Kissinger on behalf of the United States and Special Adviser Le Duc Tho on behalf of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam. “The agreement will be formally signed by the parties participating in the Paris conference in Vietnam on Jan. 27, 1973, at the International Conference Center in Paris. The ceasefire will take effect at 2400 (midnight) Greenwich Mean Time Jan. 27, 1973. “The United States and the Democratic Republic of Vietnam and contribute to the preservation of lasting peace in Indochina and Southeast Asian.” “Let us be proud that America did not settle for a peace that would have betrayed our allies,” Nixon said. “Let us be proud that America did not settle for a peace that would have abandoned our prisoners.” Praise for Past President Nixon said Kissinger and Tho initialed the agreement at 12:30 p.m. (Paris time, 6:30 a.m. New York time) today, just before Kissinger returned to Washington to report the President. The president thanked the American public for what he said was their patience and understanding as the U.S. negotiated the peace. “The important thing was not to talk about peace, but to get peace,” Nixon said. Speaking about President Johnson and the vilification” he endured during his search for peace, Nixon concluded his 10-minute speech with a eulogy to LBJ: “No one would have welcomed this peace more than he. And I know how join me in asking - for those who died, and for those who live - let us consecrate this moment by resolving together to make the peace we have achieved a peace that will last?” Source: nydailynews/news/world/nixon-declares-vietnam-war-1973-article-1.2074605
Posted on: Thu, 22 Jan 2015 19:15:17 +0000
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