5 - Meeting the Enemy

Summary

Chapter 5 examines the dynamics in veterans’ meeting with Vietnamese. A common goal of returnees was to meet “the enemy,” and the solidarity they found with fellow soldiers in Việt Nam became a key theme in veterans’ narratives. This chapter unpacks a near-uniform claim made by veterans that the Vietnamese bore no grudge for the war and welcomed veterans back to Việt Nam wholeheartedly. Because many American veterans positioned themselves as atoning for wartime participation, they viewed this reaction as forgiveness. Australian veterans, conversely, drew from Australia’s national mythology to argue that the Vietnamese welcomed them back because they loved and respected Australian soldiers. This chapter situates veterans’ claims about forgiveness, solidarity, and belonging in Việt Nam in the context of Vietnamese diplomacy, examines the inclusion and exclusion of different Vietnamese groups from veterans’ solidarity narratives, and explores concealed hostility on both sides.