【明報專訊】On 3 February 1959, in the midst of the Vietnam War (越南戰爭), a number of deals were signed between the governments of China and the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, which was known as North Vietnam (北越) back then.

◆The Vietnam War

The two sides

The Vietnam War broke out in 1955 between North Vietnam, which was supported by the Soviet Union, China and other Communist countries, and South Vietnam (南越), which was supported by the United States, the Philippines and other anti-Communist countries.

South Vietnam was what had been a French colony, while North Vietnam was founded by Vietnamese revolutionary leader Ho Chi Minh (胡志明) in September 1945. Ho, leader of the Viet Minh, fought against the French in the First Indochina War (第一次印度支那戰爭). After the defeat of the French in 1954, the Geneva Accords (《日內瓦協議》) were negotiated. Vietnam was granted independence. It was provisionally divided into northern and southern zones. The Geneva Accords stipulated that general elections should be held in the interests of the unification of Vietnam.

The Vietnam War happened as a consequence of the failure to end the disputes between the two sides under the Geneva Accords.

A "proxy war"

The Vietnam War was one of the proxy wars (代理人戰爭) fought in the Cold War-era, another being the Korean War (韓戰). On one side was the US, the superpower of the capitalist world; on the other were China and the Soviet Union, which were eager to spread Communism (共產主義). These proxy wars were fought because both the US and the Soviet Union had nuclear weapons, and neither of them wanted to come into direct conflict with each other.

◆The aids of the other countries

The Chinese aid package

The Chinese government was among North Vietnam's major supporters. The agreements signed on 3 February 1959 consisted of China's promises to give North Vietnam economic and financial assistance. The aid package lasted more than a decade and was worth tens of billions of yuan.

The US's escalation of the war

The US was a major player in the Vietnam War. It was determined to prevent the two Vietnams from being united under Communism. In his inaugural speech (就職致辭), John F Kennedy (約翰甘乃迪), who was elected US President in 1960, called on the nation to "pay any price, bear any burden, meet any hardship, support any friend, oppose any foe, in order to assure the survival and success of liberty". His successor, Lyndon B Johnson (林登•詹森), began the American ground war (地面戰爭).

The US troops suffered heavy casualties in Vietnam. After 1967, public opinion steadily turned against the war. By 1970, only a third of Americans believed the US made no mistake when it sent troops to Vietnam. It was Richard Nixon (尼克遜), who became President in 1969, that began troop withdrawals. He ended American involvement in the war in Vietnam.

◆End of Vietnam War

Having dragged on for nearly 20 years, the Vietnam War came to an end after Saigon (西貢), now called Ho Chi Minh City (胡志明市), fell to North Vietnam forces on 30 April 1975. This led to the unification of Vietnam under North Vietnam.

More than 2 million people (including 58,000 Americans) died in the course of the war, half of them civilians.