Many Flags
Encyclopedia
The Many Flags campaign was an initiative by United States
President Lyndon Johnson to get US allies in Asia and the Pacific to participate in the Vietnam War
in support of South Vietnam
. While it served a military purpose, the program was also a propaganda effort by Johnson to enlist Free World
forces in the Cold War
against communism
. The US supported the Allied forces through direct monetary aid, military contracts, logistic
aid, and various forms of economic compensation.
, Australia
, New Zealand
, Republic of Korea, and the Philippines
. ANZUS Pact allies Australia
and New Zealand
contributed several thousands men, but they agreed only to limited support role.
South Korean President Park Chung Hee agreed to contribute a large number of troops in return for US support in Korean War
as well as US aid money for his modernization program. The ROK contingent peaked about 50,000 at one time. Over several years, some 300,000 Korean infantry and marines would served in South Vietnam. Thailand contributed more than 12,000 troops of which 351 were killed in action in Vietnam.
In addition, 40 nations sent further aid and assistance to the South Vietnamese government in Saigon.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
President Lyndon Johnson to get US allies in Asia and the Pacific to participate in the Vietnam War
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...
in support of South Vietnam
South Vietnam
South Vietnam was a state which governed southern Vietnam until 1975. It received international recognition in 1950 as the "State of Vietnam" and later as the "Republic of Vietnam" . Its capital was Saigon...
. While it served a military purpose, the program was also a propaganda effort by Johnson to enlist Free World
Free World
The Free World is a Cold War-era term often used to describe states not under the rule of the Soviet Union, its Eastern European allies, China, Vietnam, Cuba, and other communist nations. The term often referred to states such as the United States, Canada, and Western European states such as the...
forces in the Cold War
Cold War
The Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...
against communism
Communism
Communism is a social, political and economic ideology that aims at the establishment of a classless, moneyless, revolutionary and stateless socialist society structured upon common ownership of the means of production...
. The US supported the Allied forces through direct monetary aid, military contracts, logistic
Logistics
Logistics is the management of the flow of goods between the point of origin and the point of destination in order to meet the requirements of customers or corporations. Logistics involves the integration of information, transportation, inventory, warehousing, material handling, and packaging, and...
aid, and various forms of economic compensation.
Allied countries
Under this program, five countries contributed troops - ThailandThailand
Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
, Republic of Korea, and the Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
. ANZUS Pact allies Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
and New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
contributed several thousands men, but they agreed only to limited support role.
South Korean President Park Chung Hee agreed to contribute a large number of troops in return for US support in Korean War
Korean War
The Korean War was a conventional war between South Korea, supported by the United Nations, and North Korea, supported by the People's Republic of China , with military material aid from the Soviet Union...
as well as US aid money for his modernization program. The ROK contingent peaked about 50,000 at one time. Over several years, some 300,000 Korean infantry and marines would served in South Vietnam. Thailand contributed more than 12,000 troops of which 351 were killed in action in Vietnam.
In addition, 40 nations sent further aid and assistance to the South Vietnamese government in Saigon.