CHESTNUT HILL--General William C. Westmoreland told an enthusiastic Boston College audience of nearly 400 last night that, in many respects, the United States did not really lose the Vietnam War.

"People fail to consider the value of our holding on for 10 years against Communist aggression in Southeast Asia," said Westmoreland. "We protected Southeast Asian countries from Communism...by stopping the 'domino theory'" of one country after another falling to communism.

Westmoreland said Vietnam veterans, who were forced to stage their own homecoming and privately raise funds for their memorial, have been wrongly represented as unwilling to fight the unpopular war.

"In a recent Veterans Administration Study, 91 percent of Vietnam vets said they are glad to have served in Vietnam, 75 percent would serve again even knowing the eventual outcome of the war, and two-out-of-three said they enjoyed their Vietnam service," he said.

Westmoreland had been in charge of ground operations and tactical air support in South Vietnam during the Vietnam War. In January of 1982, he brought a libel suit against CBS for what he claimed was a misrepresentative portrayal of him in a "60 Minutes" segment on the Vietnam War. Earlier this year, Westmoreland withdrew the suit.

Westmoreland said he was surprised by the positive response of the Boston College students, "There wasn't a single rude question asked me tonight," he said. "Ten years ago 50 percent of the questions would have been rude."