# What if the U.S. had allowed Vietnam its national referendum in 1956?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-if-the-u-s-had-allowed-vietnam-its-national-referendum-in-1956/444771>\
**Category:** Great Debates\
**Created:** [April 10, 2008, 4:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-if-the-u-s-had-allowed-vietnam-its-national-referendum-in-1956/444771 "2008-04-10T16:15:54Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 1\
**Page:** 2

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**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\
**Post date:** [April 16, 2008, 8:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-if-the-u-s-had-allowed-vietnam-its-national-referendum-in-1956/444771/21 "2008-04-16T20:46:17Z")

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It was the Brezhnev Doctrine, by which the Soviet Union said that it would use military force if necessary to protect a communist regime from being overthrown by “counter-revolutionary forces”. Once a country went communist, the Soviet Union would keep it communist.

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