PARIS PEACE ACCORD

The Paris Peace Accords were signed in 1973 by the governments of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam (DRV or North Vietnam), the Republic of Vietnam (RVN or South Vietnam), and the United States, as well as the Provisional Revolutionary Government (PRG) that represented indigenous South Vietnamese revolutionaries. The intent was to establish peace in Vietnam and an end to the Vietnam Conflict. The accords ended direct U.S. military involvement and temporarily ended the fighting between north and south. The negotiations that led to the accord had begun in 1968 and had been subject to various lengthy delays. The main negotiators of the agreement were United States National Security Advisor Dr. Henry Kissinger and Vietnamese politburo member Le Duc Tho; the two men were awarded the 1973 Nobel Peace Prize for their efforts, although Le Duc refused to accept it.

Provisions of the accords

The document began with the statement that "the United States and all other countries respect the independence, sovereignty, unity, and territorial integrity of Vietnam as recognized by the 1954 Geneva Agreements on Vietnam." The inclusion of this provision was a victory for the communist side of the negotiations by allowing that the war was not a foreign aggression against South Vietnam. The main military and political provisions of the agreement were:

• Beginning on 27 January at midnight, Greenwich Mean Time - in Saigon time, 08:00 on 28 January - there would be an in-place ceasefire. North and South Vietnamese forces were to hold their locations. They were permitted to resupply military materiel to the extent necessary to replace items consumed in the course of the truce.
  
• Following the ceasefire, U.S. troops (along with other foreign soldiers) would begin to withdraw, with withdrawal to be complete within sixty days. Simultaneously, U.S. prisoners of war would be released and allowed to return home. The parties to the agreement agreed to assist in repatriating the remains of the dead.
  
• There would be negotiations between the two South Vietnamese parties -- the Republic of Vietnam and the PRG - towards a political settlement that would allow the people of South Vietnam to decide their future in free elections.
  
• Reunification of Vietnam was to be "carried out step by step through peaceful means