What factors caused the French Indochina War. What were the major events and outcome of the war? What were the major provisions of the Geneva Accords

Abuses perpetrated against the North Vietnamese, Cambodian, and Laotian people, which began as far back as the French occupation in the 1840s, galvanized many to fight a 30-year battle for their eventual freedom from foreign occupation. The United States involvement in the struggles of French Indochina began in 1945 at the Potsdam Conference and continued through many phases, culminating in a final withdrawal from Vietnam in 1975. Billions of dollars spent in military aid and equipment from the United States ended after more than 58,000 American lives were lost and another 153,000 were wounded in what is sometimes called "The Impossible War." The Indochinese Peninsula consists of Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, formerly Burma; Peninsular Malaysia, Thailand, and Vietnam. French Indochina included Cambodia and Laos plus Tonkin, Annam, and Cochin China. The latter three later united to form Vietnam.