American desire to modernise third world countries fuelled the Vietnam Research Paper

American desire to modernise third world countries fuelled the Vietnam war - Research Paper Example Therefore third world countries such as Vietnam rebelled because it needed more freedom and political independence (Darby 2007). Mark Berger, in his article: â€Å"Decolonisation, modernization and nation building† explains that the US fused pacification and modernization theory in its search for the appropriate combination of civil and security reforms in the hamlets of Vietnam. The US sought a coherent plan to jumpstart the economic and social development in Vietnam. The military was perceived to play a major role in modernization and pacification. This was because the US believed that security was a precondition for growth and sustained development (Escobar 2005). As such, the US built and strengthened the Vietnamese army over the period of modernization and economic intervention. The army was trained in US military bases on how to keep peace and fight insecurities in all areas of the country. The US combined efforts with the United Nations Security Council in strengthening the army. This resulted in capable armed forces that kept the country secure. With time, the Vietnamese army became powerful and needed to gain autonomy from the US policies and intervention. The army manufactured its own military weapons and was able to fund its own programs. This made it easy to wage the Vietnam War and resist US imperialism. The article further argues that modernization theory gained policy and academic prominence in Vietnam.