However, in the aftermath of Khrushchev's downfall, the Soviet government had to redefine their role in Southeast Asia, particularly in Vietnam, to compete with the growing influence of the People's Republic of China.

This time, with his victory in the 1964 presidential election secured, Johnson decided to launch Operation Flaming Dart which entailed strikes on North Vietnamese military targets.

In response to the second "unprovoked attack" on U.S. warships, on 7 August 1964 the United States Congress unanimously passed the Tonkin Gulf Resolution which gave President Lyndon B. Johnson the authority to deploy conventional U.S. military forces in Southeast Asia to "prevent further aggression" from North Vietnamese forces, without the formal declaration of war by the Congress.

[11] Early in 1965, as American and Soviet leaders were cementing their strategy in Vietnam, the VC 409th Battalion was ordered to begin their part of the Communist spring offensive by attacking the U.S. airfield at Camp Holloway near Pleiku in Gia Lai Province and the South Vietnamese Army base at Gia Hựu in Bình Định Province.

[12] In February 1965, Camp Holloway's outer perimeter was protected by a South Vietnamese security contingent which included one Ranger battalion, five Regional Force companies and one armored squadron.

[17] However, in their reconnaissance of Camp Holloway, the VC found the security barrier which surrounded the U.S. advisory compound was the real challenge, as it was protected by several layers of concertina wire fences which measured about 10 meters (33 ft) high.

The second section, led by Ngô Trọng Đãi, was ordered to attack the U.S. advisory compound and the facilities where U.S. pilots and technicians were housed.

However, the VC's mission nearly turned into a disaster when their combat engineers accidentally tripped an electrical wire after breaking through the third fence barrier, but the U.S. Military Police patrolling the area did not detect it.

[21] When news of the attack on Camp Holloway reached Saigon on the morning of 7 February 1965, General William Westmoreland, McGeorge Bundy and Ambassador Maxwell Taylor, flew out to Pleiku to survey the damage.

[27] In response to Bundy's request, Johnson hastily convened a session of the National Security Council, which involved the speaker of the House of Representatives and the Senate majority leader, to discuss the need for reprisal against the Communists in Vietnam.

[28] That afternoon, General Nguyễn Khánh arrived in Pleiku to meet with Westmoreland and Bundy, and they both informed him that recommendations for air strikes against North Vietnam had been made to the President of the United States.

[29] When informed of the strikes, Khánh reportedly opened a bottle of champagne to celebrate the occasion because it served to bolster the morale of the South Vietnamese military, and showed that the U.S. was now more determined to fight North Vietnam.

[29] The VC however were not deterred by those air strikes, as they launched another attack on a U.S. installation in Qui Nhơn on 10 February 1965, which caused the death of a further 23 U.S. military personnel.

Then in February 1964, North Vietnam joined the People's Republic of China in refusing to sign the Partial Nuclear Test Ban Treaty, which was an insult to the policy of co-existence adopted by the then Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev.

[34] Keen to counteract Chinese influence in the region, a new Soviet government led by Alexei Kosygin sought to end a defense pact with North Vietnam.

[11] Thanh Minh Tám - A Núk, a Sedang soldier of VC the 90th sapper company, who purportedly used 8 explosive charges to destroy 16 U.S. aircraft in this attack, was awarded the Hero of the People's Armed Forces on 19 September 1967.