Nguyen Van Thieu

Nguyen Van Thieu (1923– ), Vietnamese politician and president (1967–75) of the Republic of Vietnam (South Vietnam). Originally a supporter of Ngo Dinh Diem, first president of the Republic of Vietnam, he took part in the 1963 coup d'état that deposed Diem. Elected to the presidency, he ruled with U.S. support. Two years after the withdrawal of U.S. troops from Vietnam (1973), he resigned his office to promote peace talks between the South and North. Shortly thereafter, in April 1975, Saigon and the rest of South Vietnam fell to the North Vietnamese, and Thieu went into exile in Taiwan and Great Britain.

See also: Vietnam.