Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara announces that 21,000 more U.S. troops are to be sent to Vietnam. He also claimed that it was now known that North Vietnamese regular troops had begun to infiltrate South Vietnam. The new U.S. troops were to join the U.S. Marines and paratroopers from the 173rd Airborne Brigade that had arrived earlier to secure U.S. airbases and facilities. These forces would soon transition from defensive missions to direct combat operations. As the war escalated, more and more U.S. combat troops were sent to South Vietnam. By 1969, there were over 540,000 American troops in Vietnam.
Also on This Day
- Lead Story
- First roller coaster in America opens, 1884
- American Revolution
- Patriot printer, publisher and postmistress, Mary Katharine Goddard, born, 1738
- Automotive
- Ford Motor Company incorporated, 1903
- Civil War
- Union thwarted at the Battle of Secessionville, 1862
- Cold War
- Russian ballet star Nureyev defects, 1961
- Crime
- SLA member captured after more than 20 years, 1999
- Disaster
- Tsunami ravages Japanese coast, 1896
- General Interest
- Leader of Hungarian uprising executed, 1958
- First woman in space, 1963
- Brezhnev is Soviet president, 1977
- Hollywood
- Charlie Chaplin marries Oona O’Neill, 1943
- Literary
- James Joyce meets his future wife, Nora, 1904
- Music
- Bob Dylan records "Like A Rolling Stone", 1965
- Old West
- Alaskan explorer Fred Fickett leaves Army, 1890
- Presidential
- Lincoln warns that America is becoming a "house divided", 1858
- Sports
- Lee Trevino wins his first U.S. Open, 1968
- Vietnam War
- Kennedy agrees to send instructors to train troops, 1961
- More troops to be sent to Vietnam, 1965
- Communists isolate Phnom Penh, 1970
- World War I
- Battle of the Piave River, 1918
- World War II
- Marshal Petain becomes premier of occupied France, 1940
Jun 16, 1965:
More troops to be sent to Vietnam
Fact Check We strive for accuracy and fairness. But if you see something that doesn't look right, contact us!
This Week in History, Jun 16 - Jun 22
- Jun 16, 1961
- Kennedy agrees to send instructors to train troops
- Jun 16, 1965
- More troops to be sent to Vietnam
- Jun 16, 1970
- Communists isolate Phnom Penh
- Jun 17, 1969
- North Vietnamese reoccupy Ap Bia Mountain
- Jun 17, 1972
- Watergate burglars arrested
- Jun 18, 1965
- SAC B-52s are used for the first time in South Vietnam
- Jun 18, 1966
- Westmoreland requests more troops
- Jun 19, 1965
- Ky becomes premier of South Vietnam
- Jun 19, 1968
- South Vietnamese president signs general mobilization bill
- Jun 20, 1964
- Westmoreland becomes Commander of MACV
- Jun 20, 1972
- Abrams appointed as Army Chief of Staff
- Jun 21, 1966
- Rolling Thunder raids continue
- Jun 21, 1969
- Communists storm U.S. base near Tay Ninh
- Jun 22, 1971
- South Vietnamese fight for Fire Base Fuller
- Jun 22, 1972
- New troops sent to An Loc
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