Vietnam
Vietnam or the Socialist Republic of Vietnam is a socialist state in Southeast Asia. Vietnam was a French colony until the 20th century, when the Vietnamese fought a war of colonial independence which gave way to a proxy war between the United States and the Eastern Bloc (the Vietnam War). The country is governed by the Communist Party of Vietnam.
History
Democratic Republic of Vietnam (1945-1975)
The Democratic Republic of Vietnam (abbreviated DRV, and unofficially known as North Vietnam) was a people’s republic in Asia that existed from 1945 to 1975, when it was succeeded by the Socialist Republic of Vietnam.
Politics
Military
The DRV’s force defence consisted of forces such as the Vietcong (VC) and the North Vietnamese Army (NVA). The Vietcong was low-budget and technologically unsophisticated, but survived the U.S.’s military with tactics such as digging and using multitudes of tunnels. While the DRV’s numbers were decimated after the ill-advised Tet Offensive, it helped win them the war in the long-term by demoralizing the enemy’s homefront.
Economy
Land reform programs resulted in the end of feudalism’s remnants, and improved economic conditions for the people. Food production also increased steadily during this reformation.[1]
Infrastructure
Health
The Democratic Republic of Vietnam achieved massive improvements in its health conditions (in contrast to the abysmal conditions that the Vietnamese lower classes suffered as a result of colonial occupation).[2]
Economy
Vietnam mostly spent the 1970s and '80s rebuilding, and their economy, and in particular agriculture, began to stagnate in the mid-'80s leading to market reforms. However, the Vietnamese government has never claimed they've ever built socialism, describing themselves nowadays as a socialist-oriented market economy.
Foreign relations
Relations with China
Vietnam has had a rivalry with China going back hundreds of years, stemming from the desire of the latter to incorporate or subjugate the former. This has carried over into the period where both countries have called themselves socialist, with (the People's Republic of) China finding issue with Vietnam for being backed by the USSR, which the PRC had another rivalry with. This led the PRC to support Democratic Kampuchea, which attacked Vietnam in what came to be the beginning of the Third Indochina War, but then got pushed back. As Vietnam had already occupied a large section of Cambodia, the PRC attacked to Vietnam's north in hopes of distracting it and advanced a little, however the Khmer Rouge was overthrown by Vietnam regardless and a new communist government was installed in Cambodia, the People's Republic of Kampuchea, as the PRC retreated and both sides announced some kind of victory. To this day Vietnam is at odds with the PRC, however in terms of projects like the Belt and Road Initiative it is somewhat neutral. Perhaps the greatest animosity between the two countries in modern times is due to the South China Sea dispute, an oil- and gas-rich area that involves also the interests of Taiwan, Malaysia, the Philippines, and Brunei. The exact borders of control are rather unclear and so there are occasional clashes between the PRC and Vietnam, largely by fishermen.
References
- ↑ E. Moise, Edwin (1976). "Land Reform and Land Reform Errors in North Vietnam". Pacific Affairs. Pacific Affairs, University of British Columbia. 49 (1): 70–92. doi:10.2307/2756362.
- ↑ L. Ladinsky, Judith; E. Levine, Ruth (1985). "The Organization of Health Services in Vietnam". Journal of Public Health Policy. Palgrave Macmillan UK. 6 (2): 255–268. doi:10.2307/3342. ISSN 1745-655X.