On summarising the culture of safeguarding the country by Vietnamese people, President Ho Chi Minh affirmed: “Owing to the independence will and the desire for freedom rather than the strong armed forces, Viet Nam had made victory”. According to him, the patriotism, the independence will and the desire for freedom have become both the foundation for the spiritual culture and the great motivation for the immortality and development of Vietnamese nation, and the Victory of “Hanoi – Dien Bien Phu in the air” is one of the lively manifestations.

Considering the struggle by our people and military in the Victory of “Hanoi – Dien Bien Phu in the air” over the US's strategic air attack with B-52 bombers on Ha Noi, Hai Phong and some other important targets in the North at the end of December 1972, it can be affirmed that it is Vietnamese cultural values that played as the foundation and origin of the decisively meaningful victory, forcing the U.S. to sign the Paris Peace Accords on 27 January 1973, which ended their appearance in all Vietnamese battlefields. That victory is the convergence and the proof of Vietnamese cultural values in the Ho Chi Minh era, which is manifested in the following aspects:

Firstly, the convergence of the culture of defending the country. The Vietnamese people’s culture of defending the country has been established and developed since our ancestors, on their first stages of country building, had to fight against the invasion and assimilation by foreign countries; it is considered as the red thread passed by generations, becoming the sayings in the heart of all Vietnamese people such as: “Lost country has no undamaged homes”, “When the enemy invades, even the women must fight”, etc. It is the defending-the-country culture that has become the source of the formation of the art of the Vietnamese people’s war safeguarding the Homeland. The community unity in the Vietnamese village culture is the foundation of the safeguarding-homeland culture, and also the foundation to build the Air Defence and Air Force in the posture of people’s war in the surface-to-air battlefields including air defence, missiles, anti-aircraft guns, individual weapons of the militia and self-defence forces, etc. which construct the dense multi-layers anti-aircraft networks to strike the enemies far and near and destroy the enemy aircraft. Once our airports were destroyed, the armed forces and people on the spot, applying the people’s war posture, have made timely repair, creating suitable conditions for the air forces to fight in collaboration with other forces. Besides, the mobilisation of the general strength of the people’s air defence posture against the enemies’ wicked schemes in the important areas surrounding Ha Noi, Hai Phong has contributed to the victory of the 12-day-and-night struggle at the end of 1972.

A picture of a woman in Ngoc Ha village of Hanoi bombared in late 1972

Secondly, the affirmation of the victorious culture. In the history of struggling against foreign invaders, Vietnamese people have coped with enemies who were much superior in terms of economic and military potentials. However, our military and people, from feudal dynasties to Ho Chi Minh era, have wisely applied the political and spiritual strength to multiply the military strength in order to achieve the final victory. All of these have been contributing to the formation of the victory culture for the Vietnamese people, which is manifested in the spirit of being “determined to fight and win” and the belief of being bound to win. Such belief and cultural value have been manifested with the spirit of daring to fight, knowing to fight and being determined to win by our military and people in the fight against the strategic air strike of the U.S. with B-52s, the bombers being known as the “invincible” or “the undefeatable by any weapons”. Owning to the victory culture as the foundation, our military and people have actively prepared for the struggles and obtained victory. It was the belief of victory that assisted our diplomatic delegation in standing firm with the targets and stratagems over the US's arrogant announcement of “Bomb them  back into the Stone Age”. Accordingly, the Victory of “Hanoi – Dien Bien Phu in the air” in 1972 has been the affirmation of the everlasting value of the Vietnamese people’s victory culture .

Thirdly, reflecting the Vietnamese people’s spirit of self-reliance,  resilience and taking advantage of the assistance from international friends. In this strategic air strike, the U.S. imperialists deployed 193/400 B-52 bombers; over a thousand tactical aircraft (including  a group of around 50 F.111 jet fighters). To confront these huge forces, we consisted of the air defence, air force, the militia and self-defence forces (including 23 battalions of  SAM-2 missiles and around 50 MiG fighters). These modern weapons had been provided by the Soviet Union and the alliance of socialist countries, which expressed the unity and support from the international friends. However, as our potentials were too small in terms of the power balance, the will and spirit of self-reliance and resilience seemed to be vital for the victory. Such will and spirit have been formed for thousands of years, becoming the traditionally cultural values for the nation which “stops the storms in the morning, prevents the burning sun in the afternoon”, and constantly copes with natural calamities and enemy-inflated destruction.

With the spirit of self-reliance and resilience, the Politburo and the Central Military Commission directed the Air Defence-Air Force Service to assign main units to approach the battlefields searching for methods of how to destroy B-52 aircraft, making the basis for developing combat plans. The General Staff directed the High Command of Military Regions (including Huu Ngan, Tay Bac, Viet Bac…) to directly command the Air Defence force in each location, at the same time, closely guide the areas, especially Ha Noi, to well carrying out the prevention, evacuation, traffic security, transportation and mobilising the support forces, etc. Also bearing in mind the spirit of self-reliance and resilience, Vietnamese military technicians have proven their mind in improving the effectiveness for the aided weapons and equipment, and they have found the ways to “pull down” B-52 aircraft, making conditions for the Air Defence and Air Force to destroy 34 “super flying fortresses” of the U.S. in the 12-day-and-night Campaign contributing to the victory.

Fourthly, bringing into play the quality and personality of Vietnamese people, who are of bravery, resilience, indomitability, whole-heartedness, mutual affection and love. Vietnamese people – the creators of culture, with their precious virtues, are the great source of power in achieving the victory in all resistant wars against foreign invaders. In the 12-day-and-night Campaign at the end of 1972 against the U.S. strategic air strike, these qualities were perfectly proven. Under such terrific bombardment, the military and people in Ha Noi, Hai Phong were resilient and indomitable, repressing the heartbreak to struggle in each battlefield and ditch. After each stage of attack by the U.S. Air Force, Hanoians helped one another overcome difficulties and support the Air defence forces to consolidate the military positions. People in surrounding provinces warmly welcomed people evacuating from Ha Noi, Hai Phong like their compatriots with love. This was the important motivation for our military and people to overcome serious threats of bombs and bullets. The Vietnamese people’s bravery, resilience and indomitability have been expressed clearly in Nguyen Xuan Thieu - a martyr, pilot and a Hero of the People's Armed Forces, who turned his MiG-21 into the third bullet destroying a B-52 aircraft of the U.S.

Fifthly, bringing into play the strength of literature and art in encouraging the spirit of being determined to fight and to win. We have highly appreciated the construction of the political-spiritual factor for the military and people in the North, considering it as the decisive part of the victory over the enemies, the literature and art have efficiently contributed to the education, propaganda and encouragement of the combat morale. At the night of 27 December 1972, musician Pham Tuyen wrote the song “Ha Noi – Dien Bien Phu in the air”, anticipating the victory which was compared to the historical Bien Bien Phu victory successfully ending the resistance war against French colonialists in 1954. Many artistic and literary works by revolutionary artists which were born on the battlefields depicting the heroic struggles of our military and people in the North shook the world opinion and the progressive mankind, making the world aware of our justice and the American invaders’ crime. Painters from Ha Noi actively painted slogans and propaganda pictures, etc. expressing the spirit of “Brave death for the survival of the Homeland” on all Ha Noi streets which made an important contribution to the encouragement of our military and people’s resilience and indomitability in all furious air defence battlefields.

It is possible to say that bringing into play the Vietnamese cultural values has created a foundation for building the strength of the people’s war in the battle defeating the US's strategic air strike with B-52 bombers, making the incomparable Victory of “Ha Noi – Dien Bien Phu in the air” in the history. In the new stage, in order to continuously bring these cultural values, which contributed to the Victory of “Ha Noi – Dien Bien Phu in the air”, into the cause of building and safeguarding the Homeland nowadays, we need to attentively carry out the following missions:

Firstly, continue to bring into play the Vietnamese people’s culture of defending the country in building the all-people national defence posture connected to the people’s security posture to safeguard the Homeland. The traditional values which have been crystalised in the Vietnamese culture of defending the country such as the spirit of independence, self-control, etc…are to adhere to our Party’s policies on all-people national defence and on the people’s war to safeguard the Homeland. In this period, these values need to be transformed into policies and measures to mobilise the people’s internal strength including material and spiritual strength making the national potentials to defeat all enemies’ invading wars and firmly safeguard the Homeland.

Secondly, continue to bring into play the people’s tradition of self-reliance and resilience to reinforce and improve potentials of national defence. The present context has shown that both depending and relying on foreign forces bring about the danger of losing independence and sovereignty of the nation. Consequently, we need to continue to bring into play the will of self-reliance and resilience, ultimately mobilise working forces and creativity to improve the nation’s potentials and position; enhance the national defence potentials. It is necessary to go ahead, wait in front and master the modern technology  in order to self-produce weapons, technical equipment and strengthen the combat readiness and wining ability in all situations.

Thirdly, speed up the construction of the culture industry based on the nation’s tangible and non-tangible cultural heritages, together with acquiring the cultural quintessence of the mankind. The goals, in the coming time, of the culture industry are to create as many values as possible from Vietnamese cultural products, highly taking part in the GDP of the national economy, which contributes to the improvement of the country’s potentials and internal strength.

Fourthly, hand over authority, conserve and bring into play Vietnamese people’s characteristics such as bravery, resilience, indomitability, diligence, creativity, gratitude, loyalty, community unity, etc.  Promote the education, training for the young generations about the nation’s cultural values and Vietnamese people’s personality, making foundation to construct new socialist people who have enough quality and skills to undertake the cause of building a strong country and safeguarding the everlasting and developed Homeland in the present situation. Bring into play the factor of people and good characteristics of “Uncle Ho’s Soldiers”, making stable foundation to build the people’s revolutionary, regular, highly-skilled and modernised armed forces.

Fifthly, promote the preservation and propaganda of cultural characters of Vietnamese ethnic groups. Sustainably maintain the people’s moral standards, traditional customs, at the same time, limit and eradicate bad customs, making basis for building new cultural life in the community. It is necessary to consider the Vietnamese people’s cultural values and good lifestyles as a fulcrum in order to defeat the plot of “peaceful evolution” by hostile forces on the cultural thought. It is also a must to restrict the negative effects of foreign lifestyles and products which have penetrated into our country’s social life in the current process of renovation and international integration.

NGUYEN MINH CUONG, Ph.D., The Political College, Ministry of National Defence