.1954 Geneva Conference Research

The Geneva Conference distinguishes itself by achieving truce in Indochina and the ensuing Geneva Agreements. Great controversy, however, still remains over its historical orientation. Consequently, this thesis focuses its textual researches on the physical process of that conference to reveal the Geneva Agreements' essence and its effects by setting the process onto a more macroscopic background of the Cold War with an attempt to further the comprehensive study on this subject.Four chapters make this thesis. Chapter One discusses the origin of the Geneva Conference. The end of the Korean War and the Sino-Russia diplomatic modulation in spring of 1954 thawed the icing globe. The resolution reached on the Berlin Conference led the countries concerned to have a further preparation. This part centers on the impacts on the Indochina issue caused by the international mitigation, expectations of the two sides on the conference and attitudes over it and failure of United Action raised by the U.S.Chapter Two and Chapter Three, which mainly explore the formation of the Agreement, bear the main weight of this thesis. The conference concerning the issue of the Indochina proceeded with two phases. Chapter Two expounds the progresses achieved by breaking the deadlock in the first phase that two agreements were reached in May 29 and June 19, that elementary solution was made on the issue of Laos and Cambodia and that the two sides negotiated directly on truce. Chapter Three deals with the recess and the fruits reaped by the succeeding negotiations. America, Britain and French reached a fundamental consensus on that solution and China, Russia and Vietnam also coordinated to bring up their project The two sides made great breakthrough based on that and terminated with an agreement, namely the final declaration. Two threads runs through the whole conference. One is the developing attitudes and policies of China, Russia and Vietnam and the other is the evolving ones of America, Britain and French. Meanwhile, these two chapters emphasize that the process is a compromise between the two sides and the result is a product of powers balancing and policies coordinating.Chapter Four discusses the effects and influence of the conference. First is the respective reaction upon the agreement and then follows the analysis on the physical aftermath posed by the conference that is putting an end the old colonialism in the Southeast, disuniting Vietnam and finally shaping the Cold War pattern in Asia.The Geneva Conference occurred as the first international meeting specializing in coping with crises confronting the two camps during the Cold War. The two allies tried to solve their conflicts in a peaceful way and managed to ease the tense international situation. The conference is actually a policy adjusting and mutual compromising course of the countries concerned, whose outcome indicates on what degree their wills can be realized under such circumstance.