Korean and Vietnam Wars By 18laguera4776 Jun 8, 1950 Gen. Douglas MacArthur designated commander of unified UN forces Jun 25, 1950 North Korea invades South Korea Jun 27, 1950 UN asks for UN members to aid South Korea Nov 2, 1950 President Truman sends 35-man military advisory group to aid French fighting to maintain colonial power in Vietnam. Apr 11, 1951 Gen. Matthew B. Ridgway replaces MacArthur after he threatens Chinese Jul 27, 1953 Armistice signed Nov 2, 1965 U.S. planes begin combat missions over South Vietnam. In June, 23,000 American advisers committed to combat. By end of year over 184,000 U.S. troops in area. May 1, 1970 U.S. troops invade Cambodia in order to destroy North Vietnamese sanctuaries Dec 1, 1972 Nixon orders “Christmas bombing” Apr 30, 1975 South Vietnamese government surrenders to North Vietnam. U.S. Marine embassy guards and U.S. civilians and dependents evacuated