[11] In 2005, an internal National Security Agency historical study was declassified; it concluded that Maddox had engaged the North Vietnamese Navy on August 2, but that the incident of August 4 was based on bad naval intelligence and misrepresentations of North Vietnamese communications.[5]. The second Tonkin Gulf incident was claimed to have taken place on August 4, 1964. assassination of President John F. Kennedy, a study by NSA historian Robert J. Hanyok. [26] Another P-4 received a direct hit from a five-inch shell from Maddox; its torpedo malfunctioned at launch. In 1995, McNamara met with former Vietnam People's Army General V Nguyn Gip to ask what happened on August 4, 1964 in the second Gulf of Tonkin Incident. U.S. Navy Naval History and Heritage CommandThree North Vietnamese torpedo boats approaching the USS Maddox. As the enemy vessels launched their torpedoes, U.S. forces attacked them from above and below, severely damaging the boats. Questions about the Gulf of Tonkin incident have persisted for more than 40 years. The Gulf of Tonkin incident (Vietnamese: S kin Vnh Bc B) was an international confrontation that led to the United States engaging more directly in the Vietnam War.It involved both a proven confrontation on August 2, 1964, carried out by North Vietnamese forces in response to covert operations in the coastal region of the gulf, and a second, claimed confrontation on August 4 . Some people suspected the deception all along. False flags are real and have been used on many occasions to advance nations into war, change regimes or radically sway public opinion. But he did not immediately call Johnson to tell him that the whole premise of his decision at lunch to approve McNamara's recommendation for retaliatory air strikes against North Vietnam was highly questionable. America's history of using false flags to start wars. He thus characterized the attack as "unprovoked" since the ship had been in international waters. Although August 4 was a stormy day, Captain Herrick ordered the two destroyers further out to sea in order to give them more space in the case of an attack. In the 2003 documentary The Fog of War, the former United States Secretary of Defense Robert S. McNamara admitted that the August 4 Gulf of Tonkin attack never happened. voted against the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution. After the fraudulent second attack, LBJ capitalized on initial reports and ordered the bombing of four torpedo boat bases, and an oil-storage facility in Vinh. At about 1505G, Maddox fired three rounds to warn off the communist [North Vietnamese] boats. But the government itself wouldnt confirm Whites suspicions for decades. Stockdale was always adamant that no attack ever occurred on August 4. Gulf of Tonkin Resolution Passes House and Senate "Aggression by terror against the peaceful villagers of South Vietnam has now been joined by open aggression on the high seas against the. on the platform of Responsibility to Protect similar to the Gulf of Tonkin. Memorandum for Mr. J. Fred Buzhardt, General Counsel OSD from Vice Admiral Noel Gayler, Subj: Request from Senator Fulbright, Memorandum for the Record, Subj: Church Committee Interest in Gulf of Tonkin Incident, Memorandum for the Record; Subj: Interview with Mr. Arthur McCafferty, White House Staff, Commercial Solutions for Classified Material (CSFC), Hosted by Defense Media Activity - WEB.mil. The U.S. built a fortification 150km inside the Mexican border. casualties. They showed that there was no attack on August 4. Schaperjahn confirmed White's assertions that Maddox's sonar reports were faulty and the Johnson administration knew it prior to going to Congress to request support for the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution. National Archives and Records AdministrationPresident Johnson and Secretary of Defense McNamara in a cabinet room meeting. [56], Squadron Commander James Stockdale was one of the U.S. pilots flying overhead during the second alleged attack. Leaders Throughout History Have Acknowledged False Flags [26] Maddox stated she had evaded a torpedo attack and opened fire with its five-inch (127mm) guns, forcing the torpedo boats away. After the skirmish, Johnson ordered Maddox and Turner Joy to stage daylight runs into North Vietnamese waters, testing the 12 nautical miles (22km; 14mi) limit and North Vietnamese resolve. Despite the Navy's claim that two attacking torpedo boats had been sunk, there was no wreckage, bodies of dead North Vietnamese sailors, or other physical evidence present at the scene of the alleged engagement. The Maddox' mission was made even more provocative by being timed to coincide with commando raids, creating the impression that the Maddox was directing those missions " Thus, the North Vietnamese had every reason to believe that Maddox was involved in these actions. [5][6][7], On August 2, 1964, the destroyer USSMaddox, while performing a signals intelligence patrol as part of DESOTO operations, was approached by three Vietnam People's Navy torpedo boats of the 135th Torpedo Squadron. The Gulf of TonkiMonday, May 31, 2010 n Incident, in 1964, was a major turning point in US military involvement in Vietnam. Both the Maddox and the Turner reported multiple torpedos launched by the North Vietnamese. By mid-1965, his approval rating was 70 percent (though it fell precipitously once the war dragged on longer than expected). The Cold War policy of containment was to be applied to prevent the fall of Southeast Asia to communism under the precepts of the domino theory. As at least two millennia have proven, false flag operations, with healthy doses of propaganda and ignorance, provided a great recipe for endless war. People on Reddit say the Gulf of Tonkin incident is an example of a conspiracy that turned out to be true. It's a good example of a 'false flag', so common in politics since the beginning. Suggest thorough reconnaissance in daylight by aircraft. Domestically speaking, a large-scale false flag such as . Civil Liberties,Privacy,& Transparency Office, Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, & Accessibility, An official website of the United States government, National Security Agency/Central Security Service, Declassification & Transparency Initiatives, Commercial Solutions for Classified Program (CSfC), Diversity, Equity, Inclusion & Accessibility, Col Ralph Steakley, USAF; Chronology of Events Relating to DESOTO Patrol Incidents in the Gulf of Tonkin on 2 and 4 August 1964, Lawrence Levinson, Chronology of Events - Tuesday, 4 August and Wednesday, 5 August 1964 Tonkin Gulf Strike, Lt Col Delmar C. Lang, USAF; Chronology of Events of 18-20 September 1964 in the Gulf of Tonkin, Marshall Wright & Sven Kraemer, Vietnam Information Group; Presidential Decisions- The Gulf of Tonkin Attacks of August 1964, Memorandum by Lt Col Delmar Lang USAF regarding United States Intelligence Board: Special Annex USIB-M-345, Memorandum by NSA General Counsel Banner regarding 16 August 1964 Washington Post article, Memorandum for Commander Naval Security Group from N. Klar. One US aircraft was damaged, one 14.5mm round hit the destroyer. 5 (May 1970), pp. False Flags are Real - US Has a Long History of Lying to Start Wars Written by Danielle Ryan Tuesday April 17, 2018 Use of the term "false flag" is often met with raised eyebrows and accusations of conspiracism. "[34] In response to requests for confirmation, at around 16:00 Washington time, Herrick cabled, "Details of action present a confusing picture although certain that the original ambush was bona fide. National Archives and Records Administration. On August 2, it was attacked by North Vietnamese torpedo boats. [5], Maddox, when confronted, was approaching Hn M Island, three to four nautical miles (nmi) (6 to 7km) inside the 12 nautical miles (22km; 14mi) limit claimed by North Vietnam. Not every lie made the war seem better, though. But not every event is a false flag . [47] Various government officials and men aboard Maddox have suggested similar theories. According to National Security Archive research fellow John Prados, "the American people have long . Some of the most horrible Vietnam War facts . Gulf of Tonkin. This article will demonstrate three principal factual conclusions: (1) that Mr. Gamble is absolutely wrong, as a matter of historical fact, to claim that the Gulf of Tonkin incident was a "false flag" operation; (2) that belief in "9/11 was an inside job" conspiracy theories is not growing, but in fact shrinking; and (3) the conclusion . National Archives and Records Administration. [57] Stockdale said his superiors ordered him to keep quiet about this. Obama's real legacy makes him one of the worst US presidents of all time. No actual visual sighting by Maddox. The conversation between President Lyndon B. Johnson andSecretary of State Robert McNamara in the video below starts at 1:14 minutes. 2. Yoichi Okamoto/U.S. The accords allowed free movement of the population between the north and south for three hundred days. After these first shots, the North Vietnamese forces made their attack. And because it was highly probableand because even if it hadn't occurred, there was strong feeling we should have responded to the first attack, which we were positive had occurredPresident Johnson decided to respond to the second [attack]. Johnson dispatched U.S. planes against the attackers and asked Congress to pass a resolution to . Captain Herrick radioed that the USS Maddox was under attack, and U.S. officials ordered nearby aircraft from the USS Ticonderoga to fly in as backup. Four years later, Secretary McNamara admitted to Congress that the U.S. ships had in fact been cooperating in the South Vietnamese attacks against North Vietnam. [22] After the coastal attacks began, Hanoi, the capital of North Vietnam, lodged a complaint with the International Control Commission (ICC), which had been established in 1954 to oversee the terms of the Geneva Accords, but the U.S. denied any involvement. With regard to why this happened, Hanyok writes: As much as anything else, it was an awareness that Johnson would brook no uncertainty that could undermine his position. In the case of the PRESUMED DEAD (BODY REMAINS RECOVERED) and PRESUMED DEAD (BODY REMAINS NOT RECOVERED) categories of the table, the record counts are based on the codes in both the CASUALTY CATEGORY and REMAINS RECOVERED fields. For this purpose, it was authorized to approach the coast as close as 13 kilometers (8mi) and the offshore islands as close as four; the latter had already been subjected to shelling from the sea. . The article states, The incidents, principally the second one of 4 August, led to the approval of theGulf of Tonkin Resolutionby the U.S. Congress, which handed President Johnson the carte blanche charter he had wanted for future intervention in Southeast Asia. An F8 Crusader from the aircraft carrier USS Ticonderoga flew overhead for ninety minutes and failed to locate any North Vietnamese ships attacking the "Maddox" and "Turner" on august 4. The planes pilot, Dispropaganda is 100% independent non partisan and non profit, in order to keep the site up we rely on financial supprt from our readers. Stockdale at one point recounts seeing Turner Joy pointing her guns at Maddox. How The Gulf Of Tonkin Incident Sparked The Vietnam War. A false flag is a political or military action carried out with the intention of blaming an opponent for it. By 1964, the pressure on these waters had reached a boil, and North Vietnamese forces were not about to stand still against these operations. The Gulf of Tonkin incident (or the USS Maddox incident) is the name given to two separate confrontations involving North Vietnam and . This August 4 incident never happened. After the assassination of President John F. Kennedy, President Lyndon B. Johnson and Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara slowly increased military pressureon the coast of North Vietnam, aiding the South in offensive strikes and intelligence-gathering. This article will demonstrate three principal factual conclusions: (1) that Mr. Gamble is absolutely wrong, as a matter of historical fact, to claim that the Gulf of Tonkin incident was a "false flag" operation; (2) that belief in "9/11 was an inside job" conspiracy theories is not growing, but in fact shrinking; and (3) the conclusion . Two well-known incidents in American history the explosion of the U.S.S. One hour and forty minutes after his speech, aircraft launched from U.S. carriers reached North Vietnamese targets. China is destroying our world, and no one seems to mind. Following this incident, President Johnson ordered retaliatory air strikes against North Vietnamese military targets and bases and authorized sending US troops into Vietnam and by late 1965 some 180,000 American troops were on the ground, with more on the way. President Johnson barely won the election in 1964. false. 1. contribution. "[61] The story discusses Lt. White reading Admiral Stockdale's In Love and War[57] in the mid 1980s, then contacting Stockdale who connected White with Joseph Schaperjahn, chief sonarman on Turner Joy. "[33][5], "And ultimately it was concluded that almost certainly the [August 4] attack had occurred. Yoichi Okamoto/U.S. Six were wounded. A map of the Gulf of Tonkin, where the supposed attacks took place on Aug. 4, 1964. U.S. Navy Naval History and Heritage Command, Three North Vietnamese torpedo boats approaching the USS, The North Vietnamese torpedo boats under fire, as photographed on board the USS, U.S. Navy Naval History and Heritage Command/Wikimedia Commons. On August 5, at 10:40, these planes bombed four torpedo boat bases and an oil-storage facility in Vinh.[42]. Freak weather effects on radar and overeager sonarmen may have accounted for many reports. Lawrence, A. T. (2009). Though LBJ knew there was no second battle, he kept this information secret and beat the drums of war. L. Paul Epley/National ArchivesTwo soldiers next to a fallen man during the Vietnam War. [5], By August 1, North Vietnamese patrol boats were tracking Maddox, and several intercepted communications indicated that they were preparing to attack. History of American False Flag Operations . Gulf of Tonkin incident, complex naval event in the Gulf of Tonkin, off the coast of Vietnam, that was presented to the U.S. Congress on August 5, 1964, as two unprovoked attacks by North Vietnamese torpedo boats on the destroyers Maddox and Turner Joy of the U.S. [25], In July 1964, "the situation along North Vietnam's territorial waters had reached a near boil", because of South Vietnamese commando raids and airborne operations that inserted intelligence teams into North Vietnam, as well as North Vietnam's military response to these operations. The destroyer was ordered to fire warning shots if the enemy vessels closed within 10,000 yards. Despite this, he led a strike of 18 aircraft against an oil storage facility located just inland of where the alleged Gulf of Tonkin incident had occurred. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. In so doing then create a template on how to study an event and determine if it is a false flag. The U.S. Navy destroyer didnt attack the North Vietnamese directly, but it did gather intelligence in sync with South Vietnamese attacks on the North. President Lyndon Johnson had deliberately lied and misled the American public into the Vietnam War when he used the justification of the non existent 4th of August attack on the "Maddox" and "Turner". Historians have concluded that the attack never happened and Johnson's ploy is now seen as the quintessential false flag operation. There was nothing there but black water and American fire power." . Later analysis showed those communications to have concerned the recovery of torpedo boats damaged in the August 2 attack and North Vietnamese observations of (but not participation in) the August 4 U.S. Winter War. Even the US Navy had came out later and declared that it's clear that North Vietnamese naval forces did not attack Maddox and Turner Joy that night, on August 4, 1964.. But false flags are a very real and very present feature of geopolitics and denying that is simply denying reality. They do not necessarily represent the official views of the National Security Agency. Further, it shows he lied about the incident, using it as a catalyst to go to war. What was happening at the time were aggressive South Vietnamese raids against the North in the same general area. Shortly after the attack was reported, President Johnson made his decision to retaliate. About 40,000 communist soldiers infiltrated the south from 1961 to 1963. 1898, on a flag-showing mission . [45] Time reported: "Through the darkness, from the West and south intruders boldly sped at least six of them they opened fire on the destroyers with automatic weapons, this time from as close as 2,000 yards. This territorial limit was unrecognized by the United States. On 30 November 2005, the National Security Agency (NSA) released the first installment of previously classified information regarding the Vietnam era, specifically the Gulf of Tonkin incident. "Dispropaganda" - An independent and politically unbiased website which strives to tell historical, political and contemporary, unfashionable, hidden truths through the use of satire and humor.