Duong Van Minh

The French government thought that Minh could broker a cease-fire and had advocated his ascension to power. Minh was spared the lengthy incarceration meted out to South Vietnamese military personnel and civil servants and lived quietly until being allowed to emigrate to France in 1983. He had them arrested claiming that they were part of a neutralist plot with the French.

In 1963 he became president of the Republic after leading a coup in which Diệm was assassinated. It was thought that Minh would be able to negotiate a cease-fire due to his policy stance but the communists were on the verge of gaining absolute power so they puDuong Van Minhd on. [citation needed]
In 1963 the authoritarian Diệm became increasingly unpopular due to the Buddhist crisis and the ARVN generals decided to launch a coup which Minh eventually led.