AHC: Vietnam War analog in South America

I came across a very interesting thread recently about possible Vietnam War analogs if Vietnam itself didn't pan out:

https://www.alternatehistory.com/fo...-conflict-can-affect-the-us-similarly.409056/

Without the Vietnam War (say, Nationalists retain Southern China and the Communists Manchuria), what similar foreign fiasco can produce similar effects in the United States? Like effects for example, the New Deal coalition threatened, the counterculture, the disaster that was the 1968 DNC, the collapse of the Cold War consensus, the rise of the New Left, etc., Nixon 1968, etc.?

I was particularly intrigued by the concept of a guerrilla war against communist insurgents in South America, though many were quick to point out that this might not work due logistical problems with China and/or the Soviets shipping aid to the continent.

A gurrelia war in Cuba or South America aganist communist rebels in the jungles led by Che Guevara.

Since it's in the US's backyard, the US would use the same amount of force used in Vietnam. Maybe Guevara's forces start a full blown communist rebellion across South America. The US would be stretched thin supporting all its puppets in power while patrolling the amazon jungle and Andes mountains. Maybe have moles in the Brazilian and Argentinan governments allow soviet subs and ships dock in Buenas Aires of Rio De Janeiro and then transport supplies to the rebels.

Eventually the us will withdraw and communist governments sweep across Latin America causing a HUGE blow to American prestige as Castro chairs a conference of global communist leaders.

Latin America doesn't really work. For a successful insurgency, you need a base area the counter insurgent cannot reach and a secure supply line. Nobody in South America is going to tell the US to go screw itself, and no major Latin American country will let its ports be used to ship Communist bloc arms to shoot at the US. Of the Latin American countries Cuba is literally the worst as it is an island, the US can search every ship that comes in and cut off supplies

with Vietnam, supplies could just go in by train or freighter to the North, and the US could not launch major incursions easily. South America is afraid enough of the US they won't willingly let their borders be used as a sanctuary or act as an arms pipeline. Absent that yes you can get an insurgency, but it won't be a Vietnam level insurgency. And even a Vietnam level insurgency is not enough to inflict a Vietnam level defeat on the US, you need an equivalent of the NVA Regulars moving down into the South

For a Vietnam level defeat, probably only Vietnam, elsewhere in South East Asia, propping up a Nationalist China that holds the South, or someplace in Africa like Congo

My question is this: what would be required to make this scenario workable? That is, how could it be made logistically possible for a Vietnam-style conflict to occur in South America during the 1960s, with aid shipments and all? And for that war to have the same level of difficulty and casualties for US coalition forces as OTL's Vietnam?
 
I came across a very interesting thread recently about possible Vietnam War analogs if Vietnam itself didn't pan out:

https://www.alternatehistory.com/fo...-conflict-can-affect-the-us-similarly.409056/



I was particularly intrigued by the concept of a guerrilla war against communist insurgents in South America, though many were quick to point out that this might not work due logistical problems with China and/or the Soviets shipping aid to the continent.





My question is this: what would be required to make this scenario workable? That is, how could it be made logistically possible for a Vietnam-style conflict to occur in South America during the 1960s, with aid shipments and all? And for that war to have the same level of difficulty and casualties for US coalition forces as OTL's Vietnam?
Latin America, even with Cuba is really dam far away from any help that any group could get, and the US dam near turned every nation against them and by proxy the populations against the US. I could see lots of easily crushed insurgencies but to have a Vietnam style conflict, you need an incredibly weakened US and a strong hold in the Mountains, Andes or Serrias your choice.
 
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