HO CHI MINH CITY, Vietnam — The leader of Vietnam's ruling Communist Party called Wednesday for reconciliation and national unity during celebrations marking the 50th anniversary of the end of the Vietnam War.
Additionally, the private sector should be the leading force for Vietnam's economy, said To Lam, general secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam. His speech marked a noticeable shift from the previous prioritization of central planning and state businesses. as well as to rally support for the party's economic policies
"We are on the threshold of a new historic era," said Lam, "We need to eradicate all obstacles, tap into all potentials in order to rapidly develop the economy and the society."
"All of us are Vietnamese," he told the attending crowds, "we all have the right and the responsibility to contribute and build our motherland."
In advance of Wednesday's celebrations, U.S. diplomats in Vietnam were reportedly told by the Trump administration not to attend the parade, but the restriction appeared to be eased at the last minute. Susan Burns, the U.S. consul general in Ho Chi Minh City, attended the event, the U.S. Embassy in Hanoi said.
Vietnam and the United States normalized relations in 1995 and in 2023, former U.S. President Joe Biden deepened the ties during a visit to Hanoi.
Wednesday's events marked a war commemoration unlike any before in this Southeast Asian country.
Month-long preparations for the 50th anniversary of the end of the Vietnam war culminated on Wednesday, April 30, the date in 1975 that communist North Vietnam took over Saigon, then-capital of South Vietnam and renamed to Ho Chi Minh City.
Thousands of troops from multiple branches of the military rehearsed for weeks under the adoring eyes and feverish applause from the local people.
Girls equipped with selfie sticks and live-streaming smartphones swooned and screamed hysterically at the sight of shy young soldiers as if they were K-pop idols. In today's Vietnam, there are internet forums dedicated to good-looking servicemen and servicewomen, and the military-style crew cut has become one of the most popular haircuts in Vietnamese barber shops.
The carnival-like excitement, amplified by social media, reflected a respect for the army and a growing sense of modern national pride that the ruling Communist Party has been eager to foster.
Sea of red
Large, cheerful crowds of flag-waving people had been gathering in central Ho Chi Minh City since early Wednesday morning, many of them having camped here overnight.
The city became a sea of red – the color of Vietnam's national flag.
After an official ceremony attended by the country's top leaders and international guests, came the most anticipated event – the military parade.
For more than an hour, soldiers carrying modern military equipment – domestically made assault rifles have replaced Russian Kalashnikovs – marched in perfect formations as loudspeakers blasted out revolutionary songs.
Above in the sky, detachments of helicopters and Sukhoi fighter jets conducted flyover exercises.
"It's a grand celebration and I see in the Vietnamese a tremendous pride. They are proud to have defeated the French, the Americans and the Chinese," said Jim Laurie, a veteran American journalist, who witnessed the fall of Saigon and who has returned to Vietnam many times over the years.
"All of this is a show of strength that they can do it," he added.
Party's legitimacy
Laurie noted that "there's no real sense of history in what's going on today."
There has been very little talk about the former South Vietnamese government, as it remains one of the subjects deemed "sensitive."
"It's a celebration of what they, the Vietnamese, have become and not what they were," he said.
Vietnam has come a long way since the end of the war 50 years ago. Now a middle-income country, To Lam says he aims for Vietnam to be a fully developed one by 2045. In order to achieve such ambitious goals, To Lam has said the country needs to attain a high economic growth rate: 8% or more for 2025.
Communist Party General Secretary To Lam, who took office last August, has previously emphasized that the party's "biggest, most important, and most urgent goal at this time" is to develop the economy.
But Vietnam, being heavily reliant on exports, faces serious challenges as the global trade war escalates and tension rises between Hanoi's two biggest trade partners – China and the United States.
The party, with a decades-long experience in public mobilization, is striving once again to rally the people's support for its causes through occasions like this 50th war anniversary.
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