A new research work on the people's war against America in the South

The book People's War Against the American Imperialist Invasion in the South by Colonel, Associate Professor, Dr. Ho Son Dai was published by the Truth National Political Publishing House on the occasion of the 80th anniversary of the successful August Revolution and National Day, September 2.

The People's War Against the American Imperialists in the South is the next book after the book The People's War Against the French Colonialists in the Southeast that author Ho Son Dai wrote before. Through this book, the author introduces to readers a picture with its own nuances about the people's war against the American imperialists in the Southern battlefield.

Following the general flow of the resistance war, the book People's War Against the American Imperialists in the South explains the highlights of the battlefield in the South of the Fatherland from different reference sources. People's war is the great military heritage of the Vietnamese people, forged through thousands of years of history of fighting to protect the Fatherland. During the resistance war against the US to save the country (1954 - 1975), people's war developed to a new height, becoming one of the decisive factors for the victory of the Vietnamese revolution. The author analyzes in depth the process of applying and developing people's war in the South, a fierce battlefield and playing an important role in the entire resistance war against the US to save the country of our people.

Cover of the book People's War Against American Imperialism Invasion in the South by Colonel, Associate Professor, Dr. Ho Son Dai (National Political Publishing House Truth, 2025)

MH

The book consists of 6 chapters. Chapter I - Opening the war : the author focuses on analyzing the context of the Southern battlefield, including geography, military, the arrangement of forces on both sides, the process of gathering and transferring troops, the first steps in re-establishing revolutionary armed forces in the South, the transition from political struggle to armed struggle after the Geneva Agreement. Chapter 2 - Dong Khoi : Analyzing the "Two legs, three prongs" method, the role of the people in creating position and strength for the armed struggle movement, as well as the significance of Dong Khoi for the development of people's war in the South. In Chapter 3 - "Two legs, three prongs", the author presents measures to deal with the US's "Special War" strategy, from expanding the Ho Chi Minh trail to support the South, building the Liberation Army, to bankrupting the enemy's "strategic hamlet" national policy.

Chapter 4 - "Holding the enemy's belt to fight" analyzes the formation of the main units of the region, the counterattacks and the "American-killing belts" in the direct confrontation with the US army, especially focusing on the General Offensive and Uprising in the Spring of Mau Than 1968, one of the climaxes of the people's war that forced the US to change its war strategy in Vietnam. In Chapter 5 - Indochina is a battlefield, the author analyzes the coordination between the revolutionary forces of Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia in fighting against the US's plot to expand the war. Victories such as Route 9 - Southern Laos (1971), Plain of Jars - Xieng Khouang (1972)... not only defeated the US's plans but also created a solid position and strength for the general offensive later. The people's war in the South in that context became an inseparable part of the entire Indochina strategy, contributing significantly to the common victory of the revolutions of the three countries.

Chapter 6 - From Paris to Saigon focuses on the period 1973 - 1975, when the US withdrew its troops, the Saigon army tried to implement pacification plans but failed in the face of the people's war, especially clarifying the combination of military attacks and mass uprising movements in the 1975 Spring General Offensive and Uprising, leading to the final victory with the historic Ho Chi Minh Campaign.

In the book Anatomy of a War first published in 1985 in New York, American history professor Gabriel Kolko wrote: "Few people could imagine that the Vietnam War could become one of the largest and longest internal traumas in American history... The Vietnam War is the most debated political event in the adult life of every American from the age of 35 and up." One of the contents of that debate is why Vietnam could win a war carried out by a force, including "irregular" forces to fight against the "huge arsenal" of the US. The people's war in the South as the author summarized in the book is a typical example.

Compiled based on rich sources of documents, with sharp arguments and scientific presentation, the book People's War against American imperialism in the South by Colonel, Associate Professor, Dr. Ho Son Dai is a useful document for historical researchers as well as those interested in national history, especially the history of people's war against aggression.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/mot-cong-trinh-nghien-cuu-moi-ve-chien-tranh-nhan-dan-chong-my-o-nam-bo-185250830162905053.htm