Newly Declassified National Security Agency History Questions Early The second Tonkin Gulf incident was claimed to have taken place on August 4, 1964. Undersecretary of State George Ball told a British journalist after the war that "at that time many people were looking for any excuse to initiate bombing". Increase. National Archives and Records AdministrationPresident Johnson signs the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution. People on Reddit say the Gulf of Tonkin incident is an example of a Domestically speaking, a large-scale false flag such as . Yes 9/11 was a false flag there were so many "successful" false flag missions like Operation Northwoods, The Gulf of Tonkin, Pearl Harbor, The USS Maine, The Libyan War, The Great Fire of Rome,The Manchurian Incident, The Luisitania, The Reichstag Fire, The Gleiwitz Invasion, etc. RES 1145), titled the Southeast Asia Resolution, which granted Johnson the authority to conduct military operations in Southeast Asia without the benefit of a declaration of war. Stockdale was always adamant that no attack ever occurred on August 4. [57], In 1995, retired Vietnamese Defense Minister, V Nguyn Gip, meeting with former Secretary McNamara, denied that Vietnamese gunboats had attacked American destroyers on August 4, while admitting to the attack on August 2. [26] Another P-4 received a direct hit from a five-inch shell from Maddox; its torpedo malfunctioned at launch. A skirmish and confused reports of a second engagement two days later led President Lyndon B. Johnson to order airstrikes against North . "[53], Johnson commented privately: "For all I know, our navy was shooting at whales out there."[54]. 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 original account from the Pentagon Papers has been revised in light of a 2005 internal NSA historical study,[5] which stated on page 17: At 1500G, Captain Herrick (commander of Maddox) ordered Ogier's gun crews to open fire if the boats approached within ten thousand yards. [43] It was not until after the United States became more involved in the war that his claim began to gain support throughout the United States government. Shortly after the attack was reported, President Johnson made his decision to retaliate. U.S. Navy Naval History and Heritage Command/Wikimedia CommonsCaptain John Herrick aboard the Maddox, on the left, alongside Commander Herbert Ogier, right. Gulf of Tonkin incident - Wikipedia Please help support Dispropaganda by clicking on the "Donate" button and making a. [50], John McNaughton suggested in September 1964 that the U.S. prepare to take actions to provoke a North Vietnamese military reaction, including plans to use DESOTO patrols North. About 40,000 communist soldiers infiltrated the south from 1961 to 1963. Suggest complete evaluation before any further action taken. Nations have often done this by staging a real or simulated attack on their own side. Answer (1 of 6): No, that's not true. The whole thing was entirely fabricated (lying, deceit). L. Paul Epley/National ArchivesTwo soldiers next to a fallen man during the Vietnam War. Originally American claims blamed North Vietnam for both attacks. Herrick proposed a "complete evaluation before any further action taken. Liberty Waco Oklahoma City 9/11 London 7/7 Sandy Hook Globalism U.N. [10] Gip confirmed that the attack had been imaginary. Reply . [32][5], At 01:27 local time (13:27 Washington time), Herrick sent a cable in which he acknowledged that the second attack may not have happened and that there may actually have been no Vietnamese craft in the area: "Review of action makes many reported contacts and torpedoes fired appear doubtful. According to National Security Agency documents declassified in 2005 The overwhelming body of reports told the story that no attack had happened. Lawrence, A. T. (2009). [34] Although information obtained well after the fact supported Captain Herrick's statements about the inaccuracy of the later torpedo reports as well as the 1981 Herrick and Scheer conclusion about the inaccuracy of the first, indicating that there was no North Vietnamese attack that night, at the time U.S. authorities and all of the Maddox's crew stated that they were convinced that an attack had taken place. How The Gulf Of Tonkin Incident Sparked The Vietnam War - All That's Gulf of Tonkin - National Security Agency Cecil Stoughton/U.S. Is it possible Lyndon Johnson was attempting another one with Israel to finish off Egypt once and for all? [19], A highly classified program of covert actions against North Vietnam, known as Operation Plan 34-Alpha, in conjunction with the DESOTO operations, had begun under the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) in 1961. As a result, planes from the aircraft carriers Ticonderoga and Constellation were sent to hit North Vietnamese torpedo boat bases and fuel facilities during Operation Pierce Arrow. He did not like to deal with uncertainties. U.S. Navy Naval History and Heritage CommandThe North Vietnamese torpedo boats under fire, as photographed on board the USS Maddox. Were We All Brainwashed by The Cia With Sex, Drugs and Rock & Roll? 30-Year Anniversary: Tonkin Gulf Lie Launched Vietnam War 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. [21], Although the boats were crewed by South Vietnamese naval personnel, approval for each mission conducted under the plan came directly from Admiral U.S. Grant Sharp Jr., CINCPAC in Honolulu, who received his orders from the White House. Within 24 hours, though, the Maddox resumed its normal patrolling routine. However, President Johnson and Secretary of Defense McNamara treated these original, purposefully distorted reports as crucial evidence during their arguments for retaliation, ignoring the majority of reports that concluded that no attack had occurred. America had entered in the Vietnam War. Top US officials also distorted the facts in the lead-up to the Vietnam War and the media dutifully reported the official narrative as absolute fact, . [36][37] Johnson's speech repeated the theme that "dramatized Hanoi/Ho Chi Minh as the aggressor and which put the United States into a more acceptable defensive posture. The next day, the USS Maddox once again resumed its normal patrol, this time alongside another U.S. Navy destroyer, the USS Turner Joy. Aurora CO shooting. The Gulf of Tonkin Resolution was passed unanimously in the Senate. Did you know that the Gulf of Tonkin Bay incident that led the US to wage all out war on Vietnam was based on a false flag, or in other words, a lie? This initial action was never reported by the Johnson administration, which insisted that the Vietnamese boats fired first. [64], Reviewing the NSA's archives, Hanyok concluded that the August 4 incident began at Phu Bai Combat Base, where intelligence analysts mistakenly believed the destroyers would soon be attacked. [47] George Ball stated that the mission of the destroyer warship involved in the Gulf of Tonkin incident "was primarily for provocation. ZOMBIE APOCALYPSE! [56], Squadron Commander James Stockdale was one of the U.S. pilots flying overhead during the second alleged attack. There were 18 witnesses, both enlisted and officers, who reported various aspects of the attack; smoke from the stricken torpedo boat, torpedo wakes (reported by four individuals on each destroyer), sightings of the torpedo boats moving through the water and searchlights. [34], In the face of growing uncertainties over the course of the day regarding whether the attack had occurred, the Johnson administration ended up basing its conclusion that it had mostly on communications intercepts erroneously assessed to be North Vietnamese preparations to carry out an attack and a North Vietnamese after action report. In August 1964, the United States entered the Vietnam War after reports of an unprovoked attack in the Gulf of Tonkin. Via: ibtimes.co.uk. [62], In October 2005, The New York Times reported that Robert J. Hanyok, a historian for the NSA, concluded that the NSA distorted intelligence reports passed to policy makers regarding the August 4 incident. 26, No. But false flags are a very real and very present feature of geopolitics and denying that is simply denying reality. 1964 naval confrontation between North Vietnam and the United States, Shipwrecks and maritime incidents in 1964. 88408, 78 Stat. Gulf of Tonkin. But not every event is a false flag . [23], Daniel Ellsberg, who was on duty in the Pentagon the night of August 4, receiving messages from USSMaddox, reported that she was on a DESOTO mission near Northern Vietnamese territorial waters. Though LBJ knew there was no second battle, he kept this information secret and beat the drums of war. Debunking the myths and propaganda behind 'D-Day'. The sinking of the USS Maine in 1898 and the Gulf of Tonkin incident in 1964 - each of which was a critical part of a casus belli - have been claimed as possible false flag attacks, though. An incredible 15 percent of American soldiers were addicted to heroin, while others were so desperate for escape that they ate C-4 explosives just to get high. Tonkin Gulf Resolution (1964) | National Archives This time their orders indicated that the ships were to close to no less than 11 miles (18km) from the coast of North Vietnam. At about 1505G, Maddox fired three rounds to warn off the communist [North Vietnamese] boats. Everyone knew how volatile LBJ was. On August 2, Capt. Soon thereafter theGulf of Tonkin Resolutionwas approved by the U.S. Congress, which gave LBJ the go to initiate a war against North Vietnam. 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. The incident served as the justification for the Gulf of Tonkin resolution passed by Congress Aug. 10, which authorized the subsequent U.S. build-up of forces. Gulf of Tonkin confirmed as False Flag | 911Blogger.com President Lyndon Johnson and Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara meet with Prime Minister Nguyen Cao Ky in Honolulu. Two well-known incidents in American history the explosion of the U.S.S. Suggest complete evaluation before any further action taken.. It was a false alarm, and he soon rescinded the report. He later said he was concerned that his captors would eventually force him to reveal what he knew about the second incident. Instead, through these public releases, we intend to make as much information as possible available for the many scholars, historians, academia, and members of the general public who find interest in analyzing the information and forming their own conclusions. Still, U.S. intelligence reportedly intercepted messages indicating that the North Vietnamese forces were planning offensive operations on the Tonkin Gulf. Fri, 07/16/2010 - 10:33 . After he was captured, this knowledge became a heavy burden. [47], By early afternoon of August 4, Washington time, Herrick had reported to the Commander in Chief Pacific in Honolulu that "freak weather effects" on the ship's radar had made such an attack questionable. False Flags Nero Ft. Sumter USS Maine RMS Lusitania Reichstag Fire Pearl Harbor Operation Gladio Operation Paperclip Operation Northwoods Gulf of Tonkin U.S.S. Gulf of Tonkin Resolution - Definition, Cause & Significance - HISTORY National Archives and Records Administration. I think it is now clear [the second attack] did not occur" Defense Secretary Robert McNamara[7], One hour later, Herrick sent another cable, stating, "Entire action leaves many doubts except for apparent ambush at beginning. This final release includes additional articles, chronologies of events, oral history interviews, and other related memoranda. [5] In the ensuing engagement, one U.S. aircraft (which had been launched from aircraft carrier USSTiconderoga) was damaged, three North Vietnamese torpedo boats were damaged, and four North Vietnamese sailors were killed, with six more wounded. Sweden and Denmark said that they had detected underwater blasts in the area. As at least two millennia have proven, false flag operations, with healthy doses of propaganda and ignorance, provided a great recipe for endless war. Milestones: 1961-1968 - Office of the Historian This territorial limit was unrecognized by the United States. . The Gulf of TonkiMonday, May 31, 2010 n Incident, in 1964, was a major turning point in US military involvement in Vietnam. The Council on Foreign Relations Read Watch Free Gun Permit 1984 Brave New World STORE Links About Contact Ft. Sumter Updated: Aug 4, 2022 Did you know that the Gulf of Tonkin Bay incident that led the US to wage all out war on Vietnam was based on a false flag, or in other words, a lie? [60], In 2014, as the incident's 50th anniversary approached, John White wrote The Gulf of Tonkin EventsFifty Years Later: A Footnote to the History of the Vietnam War. While intelligence collected by DESOTO missions could be used by OPLAN-34A planners and commanders, they were separate programs not known to coordinate mission planning except to warn DESOTO patrols to stay clear of 34A operational areas. And while the Maddox remained in international waters, three North Vietnamese patrol boats began tracking the destroyer in early August. Was the Gulf of Tonkin Incident a false flag operation? - Quora Please Note: These historical documents are PDF images of formerly classified carbon paper and reports that have been declassified. According to Edwin Mose, the Hanoi government (which, unlike the U.S. government, had to give permission at the highest levels for the conduct of such missions) probably assumed that they were all a coordinated effort to escalate military actions against North Vietnam. A map of the Gulf of Tonkin, where the supposed attacks took place on Aug. 4, 1964.