The northern vietnamese, ruled by Ho Chi Minh, shared the same ideolegy as the Soviets. These groups were both communist. So support was given to North Vietnamese troops by the Soviet Union. Also, because of the nuclear tension between USSR and USA, the support of the Soviets in Vietnam prvented a major intervention of American troops. Americans feared the Soviets would pose nuclear threat. The Soviets also dispatched a reported 3,000 troops to Vietnam.