37 years ago, the Socialist Republic of Vietnam was proclaimed.3 张照片

37 years ago
the Socialist Republic of Vietnam was proclaimed.

15 months after the withdrawal of American forces from South Vietnam — which had been defeated in the war against the North Vietnamese army and the South Vietnamese guerrillas — the National Assembly declared the reunification of the country and the establishment of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam.

In the summer of 1954, the Geneva Accords were signed. These agreements guaranteed Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia complete independence and stipulated that free and universal elections should be held as soon as possible.Before the elections, Vietnam was temporarily divided into two halves by the Ben Hai River. However, this arrangement did not satisfy the United States, which were determined to prevent the spread of communism in Southeast Asia.

With U.S. support, the election process in Vietnam was disrupted. In the south, the Republic of Vietnam was established, with Ngo Dinh Diem as its leader. In 1959, the leaders of the North Vietnamese Democratic Republic decided to reunify the country by force.

The National Front for the Liberation of South Vietnam (also known as the Viet Cong) was formed. This organization launched guerrilla operations in an attempt to undermine the influence of the “Saigon regime” in the rural areas.p>In response, the United States used the Tonkin Incident as a pretext to launch systematic bombings of North Vietnamese targets and begin deploying troops in South Vietnam to combat the Viet Cong.

The Vietnam War thus began. However, the vigorous efforts of the southern guerrillas and the effective resistance of the North Vietnamese Democratic Republic against air attacks — with substantial support from the Soviet Union — resulted in heavy losses for the Americans and forced Washington to sign the Paris Peace Accords in 1973, leading to the withdrawal of U.S. troops from Vietnam.

Without American support, the Saigon regime, facing a severe crisis, quickly collapsed under the assault of the North Vietnamese forces.

On April 30, 1975, the South Vietnamese army surrendered Saigon, and the reunification of the country was completed. Although formally, the Temporary Revolutionary Government remained in power until 1976, it was actually under the complete control of the North Vietnamese government.

On July 2, 1976, the Socialist Republic of Vietnam was officially proclaimed, and its new constitution was adopted. At the same time, in honor of Ho Chi Minh, the first communist leader of North Vietnam, Saigon was renamed Ho Chi Minh City.