Shortly after taking office, President
began taking steps to end the nation’s involvement in the war. It was not until 1975 that Frank Snepp became one of the last Americans to leave
.
More than five years before Frank Snepp left Vietnam, President Nixon began working toward ending the war. As a first step, he appointed Harvard professor
as special assistant for national security affairs and gave him wide authority to use
to end the conflict. Kissinger embarked upon a policy he called
, which meant improving relations with the
-suppliers of aid to North Vietnam-so he could persuade them to cut back on their aid.
Kissinger also rekindled peace talks with the North Vietnamese. In August 1969, Kissinger entered into
negotiations with North Vietnam’s negotiator,
. In their talks, which dragged on for four years, Kissinger and Le Duc Tho argued over a possible cease-fire, the return of American prisoners of war, and the ultimate fate of
.
Meanwhile, Nixon
the number of American troops in Vietnam. Known as
, this process involved the gradual withdrawal of U.S. troops while South Vietnam assumed more of the fighting. On June 8, 1969, Nixon announced the withdrawal of 25,000 soldiers. Nixon refused to view this troop withdrawal as a form of
. He was determined to maintain a strong American presence in Vietnam to ensure bargaining power during peace negotiations. In support of that goal, the president increased
against North Vietnam and began bombing Vietcong sanctuaries in neighboring
.