DETAIL ABOUT VIETNAM

Flag Description

The flag of Vietnam, officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, is also known as "Red flag with Yellow star". This flag was adopted as the National flag of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam (North Vietnam) on November 30, 1955. It became the national flag of Vietnam following reunification with South Vietnam on July 2, 1976.
The flag ratio is 2:3 with a yellow five-pointed star in the center, yellow represents the ethnicity of Vietnamese people.[1] The five points of the stars represent the workers, the peasants, the soldiers, the intellectuals, and the merchants.
The flag was designed by Nguyen Huu Tien (Vietnamese: Nguyễn Hữu Tiến), a communist revolutionary of the 1940 Cochinchina Uprising ("Nam Kỳ Khởi nghĩa") against French colonialism, when the flag was seen on the first time. The uprising failed, and he was arrested and executed along with other leaders of the uprising.
The Western heraldric blazon is Gules, a mullet Or.
The flag of North Vietnam in the period of 1945–1955 was similar to the current flag of Vietnam but with a fatter star.

Modern History
-Vietnam War-
The communist-held North Vietnam was opposed by the United States for its proximity to the Soviet Union and the People's Republic of China. Disagreements soon emerged over the organizing of elections and reunification, and the U.S. began increasing its contribution of military advisers even as Soviet-supplied arms and munitions strengthened communist forces. The controversial attack on U.S. ships in the Gulf of Tonkin triggered a U.S. military assault on North Vietnamese military installations and the deployment of more than 500,000 troops into South Vietnam. U.S. forces were soon embroiled in a vicious guerrilla war with the Viet Cong, the South Vietnamese communist militia. North Vietnamese forces unsuccessfully attempted to overrun the South during the 1968 Tet Offensive and the war soon spread into neighboring Laos and Cambodia. With casualties mounting, the U.S. began transferring combat roles to the South Vietnamese military in a process known as Vietnamization.
The effort had mixed results, but with US support the South Vietnamese were able to hold their own. The Paris Peace Accords on January 27, 1973 formally recognized the sovereignty of both sides. Under the terms of the accords all American combat troops were withdrawn by March 29, 1973. Limited fighting continued, but all major fighting ended until the North once again invaded in strength and overpowered the South on April 30, 1975. South Vietnam briefly became the Republic of South Vietnam, a puppet state under military occupation by North Vietnam, before being officially reunified with the North under Communist rule as the Socialist Republic of Vietnam on July 2, 1976.
-Post War-
Upon taking control, the Vietnamese communists banned other political parties, arrested suspects believed to have collaborated with the U.S. and embarked on a mass campaign of collectivization of farms and factories. Reconstruction of the war-ravaged country was slow and serious humanitarian and economic problems confronted the communist regime. In 1978, the Vietnamese Army invaded Cambodia to remove their erstwhile allies, the Khmer Rouge from power. This action worsened relations with China, which launched a brief incursion into northern Vietnam in 1979. This conflict caused Vietnam to rely even more heavily on Soviet economic and military aid.
In a historic shift in 1986, the Communist Party of Vietnam implemented free-market reforms known as Đổi Mới (Renovation). With the authority of the state remaining unchallenged, private ownership of farms and companies, deregulation and foreign investment were encouraged. The economy of Vietnam has achieved rapid growth in agricultural and industrial production, construction and housing, exports and foreign investment. However, the power of the Communist Party of Vietnam over all organs of government remains firm.



Background Information :

Head of State
:President Nguyen Minh Triet

Head of Government
:Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung

Capital
:Ha Noi

Land area
:330,363 sq.km

Population
:82,222 thousand (2003)

Language
:Vietnamese

Religion
:Buddhism, Christianity

Member of
:ASEAN, IBRD, IDA, IFC, IMF, ASEM, MIGA, UNDP, UNCTAD, GSPT, UNIDO, FAO, IFAD, ICAO, EALAF

Currency
:Dong

GDP
:US$ 39,021 million (2003) at current market prices

Major Industries
:Agriculture, forestry, fishery, industrial construction

Major Exports
:Crude oil, coal, chromium, tin, cements, woolen carpet, jute carpet, rice cinnamon, marine products

Major Imports
:Motors, petroleum products, diesel oil, fertilizers