The Paris Agreement - A great milestone in history.

(Baonghean.vn) - The signing of the Paris Agreement in 1973 was not only of great significance in Vietnamese history, but also a milestone in the history of international relations.

Exactly 44 years ago, on January 27, 1973, in Paris, the "Agreement on Ending the War and Restoring Peace in Vietnam," also known as the Paris Agreement on Vietnam, was signed. The agreement compelled the United States to recognize the independence, sovereignty, unity, and territorial integrity of Vietnam, and to withdraw all US and allied troops from South Vietnam.

Overview of the Paris Conference on ending the war in Vietnam.

This international legal document is the result of the most arduous and protracted diplomatic struggle in the more than 50-year history of Vietnam's revolutionary diplomacy. The US's signing of the Paris Agreement was an enormous victory, creating a favorable situation for the Vietnamese people's struggle for the liberation of South Vietnam and the reunification of the country.

The Paris Peace Accords lasted five years, from March 15, 1968, to January 27, 1973. The period of negotiations under President Johnson took place from March 15, 1968, to October 31, 1968. At the end of this period, Johnson announced an end to the bombing and agreed to allow the National Liberation Front of South Vietnam (NLF) to participate in the Paris Conference.

Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Provisional Revolutionary Government of the Republic of South Vietnam, Nguyen Thi Binh, signs the Paris Agreement on Vietnam (January 27, 1973). (Archival photo)

In January 1969, Nixon assumed the presidency of the United States. On January 18, 1969, the first session of the four-party conference was held in a round-table format, with the delegation of the National Liberation Front of South Vietnam (NLF) placed on equal footing with the other delegations. At the negotiating table, a fierce battle of wits ensued between the negotiating parties, particularly between Special Advisor Le Duc Tho and US Presidential Assistant Kissinger.

On October 8, 1972, the Vietnamese delegation presented the US with a draft agreement containing provisions requiring the complete withdrawal of US troops from South Vietnam. Initially, the draft was agreed upon by all parties, but on October 22, 1972, the US reneged on its agreement, citing the Nguyen Van Thieu government's demand for revisions to the draft.

On December 12, 1972, negotiations had to be suspended. On the night of December 18, 1972, President Nixon ordered the devastating bombing of Hanoi and Hai Phong by B-52s. The historic 12-day and 12-night confrontation, dubbed the "Dien Bien Phu in the air," ended with 38 B-52 bombers and 43 other American fighter planes exploding in the skies over Hanoi. This was the decisive blow that forced Nixon to declare a halt to bombing north of the 20th parallel and propose a meeting between the US and the Vietnamese delegation in Paris to sign an agreement ending the war.

From left to right: Mr. Xuan Thuy, Mr. Le Duc Tho, and Mr. Henry Kissinger wave to the people after the final meeting between the parties at the International Conference Center in Paris concluded on January 23, 1973.

On January 23, 1973, advisor Le Duc Tho and US President's assistant Kissinger initialed the agreement. The official signing ceremony took place in Paris on January 27, 1973, forcing the US to withdraw from South Vietnam, simultaneously collapsing US neocolonialism, ending the war, and restoring peace in Vietnam.

The source of the victory at the Paris Conference was the spirit of unwavering determination to fight and win, the indomitable will of the entire Vietnamese nation to defend the truth and win independence and freedom. This struggle fully reflected the brilliant leadership of the Communist Party of Vietnam and President Ho Chi Minh, the wisdom of Vietnamese revolutionary diplomacy, and the just cause of the national liberation struggle.

Mr. Le Duc Tho shakes hands with Mr. Henry Kissinger after the parties initialed the Paris Agreement on January 23, 1973. The US's forced signing of the Paris Agreement was a tremendous victory, creating a favorable situation for the struggle to liberate the South and unify the country. Photo: AFP

The Paris Conference and the Paris Agreement will forever be etched in the history of the Vietnamese revolution in general and Vietnamese diplomacy in the Ho Chi Minh era in particular as an indelible milestone. The Paris Agreement is also essential evidence of the just struggle of the Vietnamese people, strongly supported by progressive people worldwide.

Unlike diplomatic events around the world such as the Teheran, Yalta, and Potsdam Conferences, the success of the Paris Agreement negotiations was closely linked to the global movement of solidarity and support for Vietnam. Vietnam was able to secure immense assistance from the Soviet Union, China, and other socialist countries, as well as the sincere support of the French Communist Party, the French people, the left-wing movement, the Non-Aligned Movement, the people of capitalist countries, the American people, and the anti-war movement of American soldiers.

On March 29, 1973, the US Command in Saigon held a flag-lowering ceremony. The last group of American troops withdrew from South Vietnam.

The formation of the global people's front in support of the Vietnamese people demonstrated the principle of combining national strength with the strength of the times, national strength with international strength, and combining state diplomacy with people-to-people diplomacy.

Forty-four years have passed, and like many members of the two Vietnamese negotiating delegations of that time, the French friends and Vietnamese people in France are now either still alive, deceased, or elderly and frail. But history records that they – with their individual actions as separate pieces of a puzzle – formed a solid wall, along with the will of the Vietnamese people, successfully protecting peace for the Vietnamese nation. History will never forget their contributions.

Peace

(Synthetic)