Expeditionary· Vietnam War
Operation MILLPOND
Operation MILLPOND was an American contingency operation mounted during the Laotian crisis of the early 1960s, when the prospect of a Communist victory in Laos drew the United States toward intervention in the landlocked kingdom.
As fighting between the Royal Lao government and the Pathet Lao threatened to tip the country, American forces were positioned and prepared for possible action in support of the Laotian government, part of the wider effort to shore up Southeast Asia against Communist advance. The operation belonged to the tense, largely covert maneuvering surrounding Laos, where the United States sought to influence the outcome without committing to open warfare, an approach that ultimately gave way to a negotiated neutralization of the country. For the Marines, the Laotian crisis and its associated contingency planning formed part of the regional backdrop, a reminder that the struggle in Southeast Asia extended well beyond Vietnam's borders during these formative years.
Record no. 661