It took place in the shadow of the dramatic evacuation from Saigon, which signaled the close of an era and the end to a U.S. presence in Vietnam. However, the fall of Phnom Penh proved to be an even greater tragedy, as it paved the way for a takeover by the ruthless Khmer Rouge, whose leader Pol Pot orchestrated the Cambodian Genocide, in which an estimated two million people died from 1975 to 1979. On that day in April 1975, the U.S. embassy had to respond to try to save as many people as it could.
Cambodia had received its independence from France in 1953, effectively making King Norodom Sihanouk its ruler. Sihanouk's Vietnam War policy was to preserve Cambodia's neutrality and prevent it from being drawn into the war by its neighbors. In 1965, however, he made a deal with China and North Vietnam that allowed the latter to establish permanent bases in eastern Cambodia and the transshipment of military supplies from China. In March 1970, while Sihanouk was out of the country, Prime Minister Lon Nol convened the National Assembly, which voted to depose Sihanouk as head of state and give Nol emergency powers. Prince Sirik Matak (Sihanouk's cousin) retained his post as Deputy Prime Minister. The newly formed Khmer Republic was immediately recognized by the United States, with Lon Nol as its self-proclaimed President. The capital of Phnom Penh was the last bastion of the Khmer Republic in 1975 and by April of that year, the Khmer Rouge, as the Communist Party of Kampuchea was also known, completely surrounded the city. Phnom Penh was dependent on receiving supplies via air support.
It became readily apparent that the Khmer Republic would collapse at any time. Operation Eagle Pull was the helicopter evacuation of Phnom Penh that was carried out on April 12, 1975. John Gunther Dean was Ambassador to Cambodia during the evacuation. In his oral history (excerpted from his autobiography, Danger Zones), he talks about his differences with Secretary Kissinger over last-ditch efforts to broker a “negotiated solution,” the preparations involved in the massive evacuation, and a heart-wrenching letter from Sirik Matak, accusing the U.S. of abandoning the Cambodian people.
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