The undeclared war

From 1964 to 1973, the United States dropped more bombs on Laos than fell in all of World War II. This "Secret War" was never declared and its objectives were equally muddied.

The Ho Chi Minh Trail, connecting North and South Vietnam, runs through Eastern Laos. So one purpose of the bombing was to cut the supply line by destroying the trail. Yet to my perspective, bombing a trail is a bit like pushing a string - not all that effective.

At the same time the Pathet Lao, a Communist group, was taking root in Laos. So the bombing was also part of the US policy of containment. Yet far from containing Communism, the bombing convinced North Vietnam, China and the Khmer Rouge to support Pathet Lao, giving them resources and credibility to run the country to this very day.

To avoid US bombing sorties (over 600,000 were flown), the Lao government went underground, literally.

Laos is strewn with limestone karsts full of huge cave complexes. For almost a decade, the Lao government operated from these caves, safe from US aerial attacks.

During our time in Nong Kiew we visited one cave that served as the offices for the regional Luang Prabang governor.

Besides the caves, another legacy of US foreign policy in Laos is unexploded ordinances (UXOs) littering the hillsides. Even today, people are regularly killed or maimed when they discover one of these unstable explosive devices.

All part of a war we never declared, which until we came to Laos, we never really learned about in school.