"[185] As a U.S. senator in 1956, Kennedy publicly advocated for greater U.S. involvement in Vietnam.[186][187] When briefing Kennedy, Eisenhower emphasized that the communist threat in Southeast Asia required priority; Eisenhower considered Laos to be "the cork in the bottle" regarding the regional threat. In March 1961, Kennedy voiced a change in policy from supporting a "free" Laos to a "neutral" Laos, indicating privately that Vietnam, and not Laos, should be deemed America's tripwire for communism's spread in the area.[188] In May, he dispatched Lyndon Johnson to meet with South Vietnamese President Ngo Dinh Diem. Johnson assured Diem more aid to mold a fighting force that could resist the communists.[189] Kennedy announced a change of policy from support to partnership with Diem to defeat of communism in South Vietnam.[190]
During his presidency, Kennedy continued policies that provided political, economic, and military support to the governments of South Korea and South Vietnam.[191][192]

We have one-million Americans today serving outside the United-States. There's no other country in history that's carried this kind of a burden. Other countries have had forces serving outside their own country, but for conquest. 