[6] He played a key role in the last desperate attempt to secure US$700 million in military aid to defend South Vietnam against the North in 1975.

[9] Diem had been active in politics since he studied at Pomelo School and joined the Nationalist Party of Greater Vietnam (Đảng Đại Việt) in 1944 through the introduction of a friend.

[8] He also founded the Saigon Post newspaper in South Vietnam, which operated from 1963 to 1975,[12][13] and was a member of the negotiating team appointed by President Nguyễn Văn Thiệu at the Paris Peace Accords.

[23] He wrote articles and worked for the RAND Corporation, then borrowed money and was a part- owner of Goldberg's Delly in downtown Washington until 1982.

[25] Bui Diem was the author of the book In the Jaws of History (1987),[26] and appeared as a witness in Ken Burns's series The Vietnam War, produced by PBS in 2017.