Commemorating the 61st anniversary of Dien Bien Phu victory (May 7, 1954 – May 7, 2015)

Today (May 7), marks the 61st anniversary of Dien Bien Phu victory (May 7, 1954 - May 7, 2015).

On May 7, 1954, the flag of determination to fight and win of the Vietnam People's Army flew over the bunker of General De Castries - commander of the Dien Bien Phu stronghold, ending gloriously the 9-year resistance war against French colonialism.

The Dien Bien Phu campaign lasted for 56 days and nights and achieved complete victory on the historic afternoon of May 7, 1954, ending the 9-year long resistance war against the French colonialists. With this victory, Dien Bien Phu entered world history as an event that changed the world situation established by the great powers at that time and contributed to encouraging the movement for national independence of colonial countries in Asia and Africa and re-establishing the world order in the second half of the 20th century.

The victory of Dien Bien Phu marked the end of an era of Colonialism, an era in which Europeans invaded and established their colonies on other continents that lasted from the 15th century to more than half of the 20th century.

A corner of Dien Bien Phu city today.

This victory not only changed the situation of the war, encouraging colonial peoples around the world to regain independence and freedom for their people; but also created the basis for the diplomatic struggle at the Geneva Conference, Switzerland to end the war and restore peace in Vietnam and Indochina. However, peace and independence were only established in North Vietnam after the Geneva Agreement. The whole nation had to continue on a journey of 21 years after that to achieve complete victory so that the North and South could be reunited.

Over the past 61 years, since the Dien Bien Phu victory, there have been many hot lessons of relevance in the current context, including lessons on the spirit of independence and self-reliance and promoting the people's strength to the fullest.

According to VTV