The images of helicopters over Kabul remind us of similar scenes from Saigon in 1975, but that is about where the similarities end. Is it accurate to compare the fall of Kabul to the Taliban in Afghanistan to the fall of Saigon in Vietnam? Biggs’ most recent book is 2018’s “ Footprints of War: Militarized Landscapes in Vietnam.” A free, downloadable, open-access version of the book is also available. We asked UC Riverside history professor, award-winning author, and Vietnam scholar David Biggs to reflect on the recent, troubled exodus from Kabul, and what lessons Vietnam may hold for post-occupation Afghanistan. Similarly, the capture of Saigon was preceded by the evacuation of almost all American civilian and military personnel in Saigon, along with tens of thousands of South Vietnamese civilians who had been associated with the Republic of Vietnam. The 20-year American presence in Afghanistan ended this week with the mass evacuation of 120,000 Americans and Afghan citizens in only 17 days. ![]() ![]() For students of history and those old enough to remember, the rapidity with which the Taliban captured the Afghan capital of Kabul evoked memories of the April 1975 fall of Saigon, the South Vietnamese capital.
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