Gulf of Tonkin
Southeast Asian inlet
The Gulf of Tonkin is an arm of the South China Sea off the coasts of Vietnam and southern China.
It entered American vocabulary through the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution (1964), which authorized military action in Vietnam following reported attacks on U.S. naval vessels—later revealed to be largely fabricated or exaggerated.
The Gulf of Tonkin incident now serves as shorthand for manufactured pretexts for war.
Southeast Asian coastal nation
- South China SeaWestern Pacific marginal sea
- HainanChinese island province
- HaiphongVietnamese coastal metropolis
- HanoiVietnam's seat of government
coastline · shipping lanes · fishing grounds · China · tropical waters · monsoon
Fast military torpedo vessels
- torpedoesSelf-guided underwater explosives
- signals intelligenceEspionage via intercepted transmissions
- North VietnameseCitizen of divided nation's top
- engagementCommitment to wed or attend
disputed · provocation · destroyer · skirmish · radar · sonar · gunfire · retaliation
U.S. lawmaking body
- war powersExecutive military control rights
- escalationProgressive increase in intensity
- authorizationFormal permission granted
- SenateLegislative body, often bicameral's elder
Lyndon B. Johnson · blank check · repeal · 1964 · Vietnam War · presidential authority · legislative
Vietnam
Southeast Asian coastal nation
- South China SeaWestern Pacific marginal sea
- HainanChinese island province
- HaiphongVietnamese coastal metropolis
Hanoi · coastline · shipping lanes · fishing grounds · China · tropical waters · monsoon
PT boats
Fast military torpedo vessels
- torpedoesSelf-guided underwater explosives
- signals intelligenceEspionage via intercepted transmissions
- North VietnameseCitizen of divided nation's top
engagement · disputed · provocation · destroyer · skirmish · radar · sonar · gunfire · retaliation · fog of war
Congress
U.S. lawmaking body
- war powersExecutive military control rights
- escalationProgressive increase in intensity
- authorizationFormal permission granted
Lyndon B. Johnson · Senate · blank check · repeal · 1964 · Vietnam War · presidential authority · legislative
- watersoceans, seas, Red Sea, lakes, Black Sea
- VietnamVietnam, Saigon, Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, Da Nang
- Vietnam WarVietnam War, Vietnam, Tet Offensive, My Lai Massacre, Viet Cong
- 1964Beatles, Tokyo Olympics, Civil Rights Act, Ford Mustang, British Invasion
- Asian SeasSouth China Sea, East China Sea, Sea of Japan, Yellow Sea, Bay of Bengal
- China SeasSouth China Sea, East China Sea, Yellow Sea, Taiwan Strait
Gulf of Tonkinopen ocean
Sea far from shore
high seas · Pacific Ocean · Atlantic Ocean · mid-Atlantic · deep ocean
Gulf of TonkinCamp David Accords
1978 peace framework
Paris Peace Accords · Geneva Conventions · détente · Helsinki Accords · armistice
Gulf of TonkinGulf of Mexico
Partially enclosed Atlantic basin
Mediterranean Sea · North Sea · Caribbean Sea · Bay of Biscay