Gulf of Tonkin

(noun)

A body of water located off northern Vietnam and southern China; a northern arm of the South China Sea.

Related Terms

Examples of Gulf of Tonkin in the following topics:

  • Commitment to Vietnam

    • In effect, Johnson escalated the war, following the controversial Gulf of Tonkin incident.
    • The Gulf of Tonkin Incident proved an escalating factor of the war and justification of continued American presence in Vietnam.
    • Maddox, conducting an intelligence mission along the coast of North Vietnam, allegedly fired upon and damaged several torpedo boats; the boats had been stalking the Maddox in the Gulf of Tonkin.
    • Some historians believe that Johnson knowingly used the Gulf of Tonkin incident to gain the support of the American people to enter into the Vietnam War.
    • Robert McNamarra recounts the confusion and uncertainty surrounding the Gulf of Tonkin Incident, ultimately reporting that "It didn't happen."

  • Congress

    • In the instance of the Mexican-American War, President James Polk explained that Texas was about to become a part of United States of America.
    • Therefore, in light of the speculation concerning the Gulf of Tonkin and the possible abuse of the authorization that followed, Congress passed the War Powers Resolution in 1973.
    • It requires the president to obtain either a declaration of war or a resolution authorizing the use of force from Congress within 60 days of initiating hostilities with a full disclosure of facts in the process.
    • The constitutionality of the resolution has never been settled.
    • Johnson being shown a map of an area in Vietnam.

  • A Growing War in Vietnam

    • The U.S. framed the war as part of its policy of containment of communism in south Asia; however, the war was met with significant protests at home on American soil.
    • In February of 1962, Kennedy created The Military Assistance Command Vietnam (MACV), and in August of 1962, Kennedy signed the Foreign Assistance Act of 1962, which provides "…military assistance to countries...on the rim of the Communist world and under direct attack."
    • General Paul Harkins, the commander of U.S. forces in South Vietnam, confidently predicted victory against the insurgents by Christmas of 1963.
    • The CIA was less optimistic, however, warning that "the Viet Cong by and large retain de facto control of much of the countryside and have steadily increased the overall intensity of the effort."
    • Major American military involvement began in 1964, when Congress provided President Johnson with blanket approval for presidential use of force in the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution.

  • The Battle of Leyte Gulf

    • The Battle of Leyte Gulf is generally considered the largest naval battle of World War II and possibly the largest naval battle in history.
    • The Battle of Leyte Gulf, also called the Battles for Leyte Gulf, and formerly known as the Second Battle of the Philippine Sea, is generally considered to be the largest naval battle of World War II and, by some criteria, possibly the largest naval battle in history.
    • The Battle of Leyte Gulf consisted of four separate major engagements between the opposing forces: the Battle of the Sibuyan Sea, the Battle of Surigao Strait, the Battle of Cape Engaño, and the Battle of Samar; there were also other lesser actions.
    • Kamikaze strikes were first used by the Japanese in the Battle of Leyte Gulf
    • Identify the notable facts and the four major engagements of the Battle of Leyte Gulf.

  • Colossal Heads of the Olmec

    • The Olmec culture of the Gulf Coast of Mexico produced the first major Mesoamerican art, and is particularly known for the creation of colossal stone heads.
    • The first major Mesoamerican art, that of the Olmec, emerged during the Preclassic period along the Gulf of Mexico.
    • Across the swampy coastal areas of the modern Mexican states of Veracruz and Tabasco, the Olmec constructed ceremonial centers on raised earth mounds.
    • Seventeen confirmed examples are known from four sites within the Olmec heartland on the Gulf Coast of Mexico.
    • Dating the monuments remains difficult because of the movement of many from their original contexts prior to archaeological investigation.

  • The "New World Order"

    • The most widely discussed application of the phrase of recent times came at the end of the Cold War.
    • Bush's vision was, in comparison, much more circumscribed and realistic, perhaps even instrumental at times, and closely linked to the Gulf War.
    • Bush started to take the initiative from Gorbachev during the run-up to the Gulf War, when he began to define the elements of the new world order as he saw it, and link the new order's success to the international community's response in Kuwait.
    • Pat Buchanan predicted that the Gulf War would in fact be the demise of the new world order, the concept of UN peacekeeping, and the U.S.' s role as global policeman.
    • Bush greeting troops on the eve of the First Gulf War.

  • George H.W. Bush Abroad

    • Bush's presidency was characterized by military operations in Panama and the Gulf War.
    • In the wake of its eight-year war with Iran from 1980 to 1988, Iraq had accumulated a significant amount of foreign debt.
    • The planning of a ground operation by U.S.
    • Bush spoke before a joint session of Congress regarding the authorization of air and land attacks, laying out four immediate objectives: that Iraq withdraw from Kuwait, Kuwait's legitimate government be restored, the security of the Persian Gulf be assured, and American citizens abroad be protected.
    • The administration immediately returned to Arab-Israeli peacemaking following the end of the Gulf War; this resulted in the Madrid Conference later in 1991.

  • Hurricane Katrina

    • In 2005, Hurricane Katrina caused extensive damage and the deaths of thousands of people along the Gulf Coast, particularly in New Orleans.
    • The hurricane caused severe destruction along the Gulf coast from central Florida to Texas, much of it due to the storm surge.
    • Hurricane Katrina formed over the Bahamas on August 23, 2005 and crossed southern Florida as a moderate Category 1 hurricane, causing some deaths and flooding in the state before strengthening rapidly in the Gulf of Mexico.
    • About 1.2 million residents of the Gulf Coast were covered under a voluntary or mandatory evacuation order.
    • In addition to the destruction in Louisiana, the Gulf coast of Mississippi suffered massive damage, leaving 238 people dead, 67 missing, and billions of dollars in damage.

  • Bibliography

    • S. (1962) A History of the Adult Education Movement in the USA, New York: Krieger.
    • S. (1970, 1980) The Modern Practice of Adult Education.
    • A neglected species (4e), Houston: Gulf Publishing. 2e. 292 + viii pages.
    • Applying modern principles of adult education, San Francisco: Jossey Bass.
    • S. (1989) The Making of an Adult Educator.

  • Indochina: The Background to War

    • In spite of military resistance, by 1888 the area of the current-day nations of Cambodia and Vietnam was made into the colony of French Indochina (Laos was later added to the colony).
    • Most of the fighting took place in Tonkin in Northern Vietnam, although the conflict engulfed the entire country and also extended into the neighboring French Indochina protectorates of Laos and Cambodia.
    • Control of the north was given to the Viet Minh under Ho Chi Minh, and the south continued under Emperor Bao Dai (former Emperor of Vietnam and at the time the chief of state of the State of Vietnam or South Vietnam).
    • A dramatic shift occurred in American policy after the victory of Mao Zedong's Communist Party of China in the Chinese Civil War.
    • Pentagon's a map of dissident activities in Indochina as of November 3, 1950.