Over four decades of peace: A very different Vietnam.

(Baonghean.vn) - The historic day of April 30, 1975, marks the final moment of the painful war that lasted for decades in the S-shaped country of Vietnam.

That was the moment when the Vietnamese people were united as one family, and also the beginning of recovery and reconciliation. Forty-one years after that time, Vietnam now presents a completely different image in the eyes of the international press.

Ho Chi Minh City, more than four decades after reunification, continues to be the economic engine of Vietnam (Source: Los Angeles Times).

Remember the war, learn from the war.

More than four decades after becoming a unified nation, Vietnam has undergone many changes. This is evident in a country where every citizen looks towards the future and hopes for a better life.

Time magazine noted that this is reflected in the eyes of young people – a generation far removed from a painful past.

That's what you see in young photographers like Maikan Elan, who hunt for images depicting life in contemporary Vietnam. Time magazine interviewed Maikan Elan about her thoughts on the country's distant past.

“Americans and Vietnamese people still seem to have different perceptions of this war,” Elan told reporter Alice Gabriner. “While America is still preoccupied with many other wars, Vietnam is no longer a battlefield. It is truly a peaceful country.”

Born more than 10 years after the war ended, Elan only experienced its brutality through photographs and television shows. Her father, despite bearing the consequences of the war, rarely spoke about it.

He taught his daughter how to "overcome difficulties rather than complaining or whining about the past." The daughter told a Time reporter, "To me, Dad was always a happy and optimistic person."

From another perspective, the painful story of the past is now described by Channel News Asia as a lesson for Vietnam to confront new challenges in its development process. The article states: "There has always been a steadfast belief in peace in Vietnam, and everything is based on that foundation."

“The Vietnamese people have had to rise up and fight in at least 13 wars throughout the country's history. The nation's need for peace is therefore understandable. Everyone is trying their best to overcome the losses of war.” A prestigious television channel in Southeast Asia quoted Professor Nguyen Minh Thuyet, a sociologist and former member of the Vietnamese National Assembly, as saying.

“So what does this mean in today’s world?” – “The danger is if the younger generation of Vietnamese people underestimate the country’s rather sensitive geopolitical position and become complacent about larger neighbors,” Professor Thuyet told Channel News Asia.

America is no longer the enemy. Freedom and the allure of material values ​​have brought America closer to the Vietnamese people. (Source: Time)

A very different Vietnam

Al Jazeera television channel has once again focused on the story of the country's economic transformation after more than four decades of liberation from war. The article suggests that the Vietnamese people, having defeated the United States in a life-or-death war, are now welcoming the return of America with the power of capitalism.

The ideological dilemma is over; the question now is simply how much economic growth will be achieved and what level of luxury goods sales will reach. More than four decades since reunification and 30 years of reform and opening up to the outside world, it is clear that Vietnam has truly transformed into a rising star.

"Based on its free market foundation, Vietnam's economy has leapfrogged from its lowest point to become the hottest market in Southeast Asia over the past 20 years," Al Jazeera reporter Kevin Doyle asserted.

But the most dramatic change is the shift in Vietnam's diplomatic relations. America is no longer the enemy, and American culture seems to have won the hearts and minds of the new generation in Vietnam as peacefully as possible.

The combination of propaganda banners featuring the hammer and sickle with signs from Chanel and Cartier fashion stores demonstrates the strong and unique integration of the Vietnamese economy.

USA Today sought answers amidst the wave of startups in major cities. Nguyen Huu Tuan Thanh, the owner of three Caztus Coffee fast-food outlets in Ho Chi Minh City, seems to have learned from the spirit of global Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz and applied it to the Vietnamese environment.

Young people like Denise Thi, CEO of Emerald Consultant, are a portrait of a changing Vietnam. (Source: USA Today)

Denise Thi, 30, founder and CEO of a digital marketing company with six years of experience, is busy with her projects. Thi's company has now been acquired by Dentsu Aegis Network, a multinational giant.

She shared her view with USA Today that this anniversary should be a reason to look forward, not to the past. “It’s about being proud of your country, of what we’ve accomplished, of how we fought for freedom,” she said. “But now it’s about looking to the future.”

Thanh Son