Forty years ago today, RN went on national television to announce that a peace agreement had been reached, thus ending American involvement in the Vietnam War and delivering on his promise to bring peace with honor.
According to Bruce Herschensohn in his keynote remarks at the Nixon Centennial kickoff earlier this year, the Christmas bombings of 1972, as they were called, were one of several factors which were essential in reaching this end. In 1973 as the new year began, Dr. Henry Kissinger was in Vietnam to negotiate with the Vietnamese in a new round of talks, and as Dr. Kissinger noted at the Richard Nixon Centennial Gala, RN said that if the North Vietnamese stuck with the peace plan that was being negotiated, then his birthday on January 9 would be the best birthday of his life.
Exactly 14 days later, they stuck with it. RN called PN immediately after confirming the news:
And went on television that night to announce the agreement to the American people:
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In May 1973, after the agreement had been signed and implemented, the prisoners of war began coming home. Stay tuned for more on that as the anniversary approaches.