By Bob Hall In early 1970, Malcolm Fraser, then Minister for Defence in the Gorton-led Coalition government, visited Vietnam to ‘survey the political situation, the prospects of the Saigon Government, and the progress in pacification of the countryside’.[1] According to the Departmental Secretary, Arthur Tange, Fraser was dissatisfied with what he saw. In particular Fraser believed that reporting from Saigon … Read More
Baria, Tet ’68: Province Senior Advisor Report – February 1968
By Bob Hall Each month the Province Senior Advisor (PSA) in each of the Republic of Vietnam’s 44 provinces submitted a detailed report up the chain of command. These reports assessed the political and psychological, security and economic situation in their province. They provided a qualitative evaluation of the previous month’s developments and so, form a useful complement to the … Read More
1ATF and the Collapse of Viet Cong Power in Phuoc Tuy Province
Employing the discipline of operations research, a recent study shows that contrary to this view, 1ATF dominated the enemy within the task force area of operations.
50th Anniversary: South Vietnam’s 1967 Presidential election
By Bob Hall and Amy Griffin Counterinsurgency campaigns are essentially politics with guns. Unlike conventional war, victory in counterinsurgency campaigns rarely comes through military action. Instead, although military action remains a key component of any campaign, counterinsurgencies tend to be resolved politically or diplomatically. This was well understood by the leaders of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam (DRV) and the … Read More