The victory of Ap Bac signaled the failure of the "Special War" strategy(*)

(Baothanhhoa.vn) - Most local Party newspapers in the country are associated with the name of that province or city. However, in the former My Tho province and Tien Giang today, for more than 50 years, the mouthpiece of the provincial Party Committee has been named "Ap Bac Newspaper" - a village/hamlet-level place name. Because this is the place of pride, the place where the battle took place and the victory was of great significance in the process of growth as well as the combat method of the Southern armed forces against the invading enemy with the most modern means and weapons of war at that time.

The victory of Ap Bac signaled the failure of the "Special War" strategy(*)

Ap Bac Victory National Special Historical Site in Tan Phu Commune, Cai Lay Town, Tien Giang Province today. Photo: Ap Bac Newspaper

According to documents from the National History Museum, “the confrontation at Ap Bac on January 2, 1963 was the largest battle in the South since the Geneva Agreement, signaling the collapse of the “Special War” strategy that the US applied in the war of aggression against Vietnam”. Since the Dong Khoi movement in 1960, our policy has been to proactively and gradually conduct revolutionary war. However, the armed forces of the South, especially the main force of Military Region 8, were still small in number, lacking in equipment, and had not been trained according to new combat requirements, and were not prepared to deal with modern means of war and the enemy’s “helicopter transport” and “armored vehicle transport” tactics.

Taking advantage of the plain terrain, the enemy forces applied and promoted to the highest level the advantages of new means of war and tactics, causing many difficulties and losses to our armed forces in the South. Enemy aircraft made the rural situation tense, the people's living and production were disrupted, and the activities of the revolutionary movement's leaders encountered countless difficulties... It must be added that in the early 1960s, our assessment of the balance of forces was still limited, and ideological work was not good, so there was a situation of fear of the enemy, overestimating the enemy, especially fear of artillery, machinery, and helicopters, leading to many of our cadres and soldiers lacking determination and not actively fighting against sweeps. Along with that, from July to September 1962, in My Tho province at that time, the enemy continuously used helicopters to attack deep into the liberated areas and revolutionary bases, causing much damage, making the morale of some cadres, soldiers and people confused and wavering. In that situation, the Military Region Party Committee and the Commander of Military Region 8 held many conferences to analyze and evaluate the situation; at the same time, find measures to deal with the enemy's new sweeping tactics.

Faced with the new requirements, the army and people of the South showed their determination to defeat the enemy's tactics using helicopters and armored vehicles. In Military Region 8, implementing the direction of the Regional Party Committee and the Military Region Command, the agencies organized the dissemination and training of tactics against enemy sweeps, how to arrange defensive positions and techniques for shooting at aircraft and armored vehicles. On the night of December 31, 1962, Company 1, Battalion 261 (the main force of the Military Region) and Company 1, Battalion 514 of the local army of My Tho province were stationed at Ap Bac and Tan Thoi hamlets to train in how to fight helicopters and armored vehicles; how to organize and arrange forces; build a system of fortifications in combat villages and communes; coordinate with 1 engineering platoon of My Tho province, 1 local platoon of Chau Thanh district and guerrillas of Tan Phu, Tan Hoi, and Diem Hy communes to prepare to attack the strategic hamlets of Giong Dua and Long Dinh.

Discovering our forces deployed in Ap Bac, the enemy quickly mobilized forces and vehicles, organizing the "Duc Thang 1/13" operation to sweep into this area. The force included 3 battalions of the 7th Infantry Division, 1 parachute battalion, 2 commando companies, 3 security companies, 3 militia companies, 13 M113 armored vehicles, 13 warships, 32 aircraft, and artillery positions of the 7th Division on Route 4, Long Dinh, and Phuoc My.

On the morning of January 2, 1963, from many directions, by land, water, and air, the enemy organized a sweep of Ap Bac. On land, they sent a security battalion along Tan Hoi road, divided into two wings, one wing attacked Truong Ga bridge, the other wing attacked Sao bridge. Both enemy wings were intercepted and lured into prepared terrain by guerrillas. Seizing the opportunity, the unit commanders ordered to open fire to block, combining with the organization of mobile forces to attack the flank of the enemy's advancing formation. With a brave, courageous, and resourceful fighting spirit, never wavering before the enemy's threatening power, the armed forces stationed here, together with the people of Ap Bac, resolutely held out to fight the enemy and resist the sweep. Being attacked by surprise, these two enemy wings on land were quickly destroyed. Sharing the same fate as the two land attacks, the water attack along Nguyen Tan Thanh canal, consisting of 13 warships carrying enemy troops to attack from behind our defensive formation, was also fiercely blocked and suffered heavy losses.

Relying on the system of fortifications, battlefields, and prepared trenches, with all the weapons in stock, the army and people of Ap Bac defeated all the enemy's attacks, eliminating 450 enemies from the battle, including 11 American advisors and technicians, shooting down 5 helicopters, damaging many others; destroying 3 M-113 armored vehicles, sinking 1 warship, completely defeating the enemy's ambitious sweep operation.

Practice has confirmed that the victory at Ap Bac was the skillful application of military art by the commander and the squad that had been trained over a short period of time; the quality of the armed forces in the South had clearly changed, the efficiency of destroying the enemy was improved, the troops gradually adapted to the terrain, determined appropriate fighting methods, forcing the enemy to fight according to our fighting methods. Although this was an anti-sweep battle, it was a battle with harmonious coordination between the three types of troops, between the forces in the area directly confronting the anti-sweep and the forces in the neighboring communes and hamlets; smooth coordination between military and political struggles, fighting the enemy on the spot and fighting the enemy on a large scale to stretch and disperse the enemy, creating conditions for the fighting forces to win. This was also a victory of the combined strength of politics, military, and military agitation, creatively and skillfully combined, leaving many valuable lessons in theory and practice.

According to many historical documents, in the battle of Ap Bac, our forces had only 350 people, but the enemy forces had up to 1,400 soldiers of all kinds with modern means and weapons. After the battle, our side had 18 people sacrificed, 39 people were wounded, while the enemy had up to 450 dead and wounded. The victory of Ap Bac encouraged the revolutionary movement and opened up new possibilities for the Southern revolution to completely defeat the "Special War" strategy of the invading American imperialists; at the same time, it marked a new step of development for the Southern armed forces.

Writing in the People's Army newspaper at the end of 2024, Master Nguyen Ngoc Toan, Vietnam Military History Institute, reaffirmed: "The victory at Ap Bac opened the way for the defeat of the "helicopter transport" and "armored vehicle transport" tactics, which were considered "new and effective", signaling the bankruptcy of the "Special War" strategy of the US and the puppet regime, strongly encouraging the army and people of the South to promote the movement "Emulating Ap Bac, killing the enemy and making achievements". From the Dong Khoi movement in 1960 to the Ap Bac battle in 1963, the national liberation revolutionary movement spread throughout the South. These were the "shots" that led to the 1968 Tet Offensive and Uprising, the major campaigns throughout the South that followed, and then the historic Ho Chi Minh Campaign in 1975 to unify the country.

Linh Truong

(*) The article uses materials from the National History Museum, People's Army Newspaper, Ap Bac Newspaper and many other historical sources.

Source: https://baothanhhoa.vn/chien-thang-ap-bac-bao-hieu-su-that-bai-cua-chien-luoc-chien-tranh-dac-biet-245906.htm