The U.S. imperialists are confronted with a tragic war situation. On the military front, the U.S. imperialists’ strategy has showed that it is ineffective and failing.
Following the failure of the two large-scale strategic counteroffensives, the U.S. imperialists are now at a crossroad: Must the war be limited or expanded? If the war is to be expanded, to what degree must it be expanded? Must efforts be mainly concentrated on stepping up the war of aggression in the south or seeking a turning point by attacking the north? Since the quick victory strategy met with failure and since it is necessary to fight a protracted war, how long will it drag on? What is to be done to increase the U.S. troops’ fighting efficiency, which is very poor, to strengthen the puppet troops, who have increasingly declined, and to escape a passive, scattered, and defensive position, and to carry out an offensive strategy?
All these strategic problems are puzzling and very urgent for the U.S. imperialists. From Johnson and McNamara to Westmoreland, they all have clearly realized their bogged down and deadlocked situation in Vietnam but have not yet found any new solution. They have, at last, resorted to the troop-reinforcement measure. However, they are encountering big difficulties with this problem. If small reinforcements are sent in, it will be impossible to remedy the situation of the U.S. troops who are endangered on the battlefields. If large reinforcements are sent in, this will greatly influence the U.S. people’s political and economic life and the U.S. strategy in the world and will not succeed in saving the U.S. imperialists from complete failure.
On the political front, the pacification mission has met with increasingly greater failure and has made no progress. The puppet troops have been increasingly weakened and have lost more and more of their strategic efficiency. Following the deceitful election, the puppet administration remains unable to escape their conflicting, confused, and lost situation. The contradictions among the lackeys of the Americans, among the puppet generals, and between the military faction and the civilian cliques have become ever more acute.
The U.S. imperialists resorted to the deceitful election farce with the aim of applying a new layer of paint on the Thieu-Ky clique. However, through this farce, the Thieu-Ky clique’s face of country-selling Vietnamese traitors and lackeys of the Americans has been exposed ever more clearly. U.S. public opinion also acknowledged that Thieu and Ky are shameless and inefficient. The puppet Saigon administration has become increasingly isolated and imperiled in the face of the widespread and vigorous development of the struggle of the heroic southern army and people.
In the international arena, the U.S. imperialists are also confronted with new difficulties. Since they have been tied firmly to the war of aggression in Vietnam and have suffered one failure after another, the U.S. imperialists have increasingly revealed their weaknesses and flaws. Revolutionary people the world over have more clearly realized that the U.S. imperialists are wealthy but not strong and that their economic and military potential, although great, are nonetheless limited. The U.S. imperialists are being defeated by a small but heroic people. The more they prolong the war of aggression in Vietnam, the more the U.S. imperialists are isolated politically in the world.
In the present conflict in the Middle East and Near East, the U.S. imperialists have to cope with a new front. The temporary military victories of the Israeli mercenaries, the lackeys of the Americans, did not put an end to the boiling national liberation movement of the Arab countries in this area but were an event that marked a new step of this movement. The people in the Arab countries are firmly pursuing their struggle and will certainly pursue it to liberate themselves.
The temporary victories of the U.S. imperialists and the Israeli mercenaries have become their [word indistinct] mistakes and are causing them increasingly greater difficulties in all fields.
In Latin America, which the U.S. imperialists have always considered (?an extension of their territory), the revolutionary movement has been developed vigorously, and the Latin American people have stood up to struggle against the U.S. imperialists’ interventionist and aggressive policy and the reactionary governments, the lackeys of the Americans, in this part of the world.
In the United States itself, the Johnson government is confronted with the contradictions among the U.S. ruling clique and the U.S. people’s increasingly stronger protest. The U.S. Negroes’ boiling and widespread struggle is a fierce offensive blow dealt both at the Johnson clique’s domestic and foreign policies. Never before has U.S. President Johnson been so deadlocked as he is now. On 14 August 1967 U.S. NEWS & WORLD REPORT admitted that war, racial conflict, the growing budget deficit, and troubles with the Congress, with the allies, and with the dollar are bad news which are pressing the government from all directions. Suddenly, the situation at the White House has become like that of a building whose roof is about to cave in.
Although they are encountering difficulties and stalemate in Vietnam, in the world, and even in the United States because of their stubborn, warlike, and aggressive nature and because they possess economic and military potentials, the U.S. imperialists still continue to adopt a policy of military strength in prosecuting their war of aggression in our country. What are the U.S. imperialists’ plans?
A--They will continue to step up the limited war on a large scale by increasing the number of U.S. troops in the south and staging fierce raids against the north. After making extensive calculations and weighing the pros and cons, Johnson has decided to increase the number of U.S. troops in the south by another 50,000 men, thus bringing the total number of U.S. forces in South Vietnam to over half a million by July 1968.
Yet, the U.S. imperialists are in a difficult and stalemated situation in Vietnam not because they lack troops, but because their war of aggression is unjust, because they have committed many errors in exerting leadership over the war, and because they have been in a strategic stalemate and tactical crisis. For this reason, even if they increase their troops by another 50,000, 100,000, or more, they cannot extricate themselves from their comprehensive stalemate in the southern part of our country. They cannot overcome their scattered, passive, and defensive battle position, cannot achieve any turning point favorable to them, and can by no means cope with the increasingly vigorous and resolute offensive thrust of the heroic southern armed forces and people.
It can be asserted that even if they increase the number of U.S. troops in the south by another 100,000, 200,000, or more, the U.S. imperialists will certainly sustain more serious defeats in the southern part of our country.
Recently, on his ninth trip to Saigon, McNamara urged Westmoreland to improve the efficiency of the present number of U.S. troops in the south, in order to raise the present combat ratio of one out of eight U.S. servicemen. Yet, how can Westmoreland do so at a time when U.S. and puppet troops are scattered in many areas and performing many tasks? This situation is irremediable. The organization of the U.S. troops depends heavily upon war equipment and technology and, as a result, it is very cumbersome and requires enormous logistical support. If weaponry, technology, and logistical support were reduced, the U.S. troops would not be able to perform their combat mission, because they would be deprived of what they regard as their strength. After all is said and done, the ratio of U.S. expeditionary troops actually engaged in combat will continue to be low. This is a bitter fact, a weakness, and a major difficulty for the U.S. imperialist aggressors.
The U.S. imperialists are planning to build a barrier along the temporary military demarcation line. Yet, no well-fortified barrier can avoid collapsing in the face of our people’s strength. As a result of the construction of this barrier, (?U.S.) troops would become more scattered and would be trapped in a passive and defensive situation.
The U.S. imperialists hold that to rapidly settle the war, it is necessary for their air and naval forces to intensify their raids against the north. They are stepping up their strikes at our lines of communications on land and on waterways, industrial establishments, cities and towns, populated areas, and so forth. Yet, McNamara himself recently admitted that with the bombing of new targets in the north, no matter what results it may bring, the United States cannot win or shorten the war and that the problem is that the war must be settled on the ground in South Vietnam.
At present, in their stalemated situation, the U.S. imperialists will writhe even more frantically. They may stage fierce strikes against our cities, villages, and populated areas, further intensify their strikes against our lines of communications, step up their bombing and strafing of our dams and dikes, and strengthen their blockade of our coastal areas. Nevertheless, they definitely cannot shake our people’s determination to completely defeat the U.S. aggressors in order to protect the north, liberate the south, and proceed toward reunifying the fatherland.
Our people are not afraid of undertaking sacrifices and hardships and are not afraid of any threat of the Americans. With their intense patriotism, their intelligence and creativeness, and their tremendous organizational ability, our people are resolved to make the north more and more powerful economically and in the field of national defense to insure that production achieves further progress amid the flames of war, to insure uninterrupted communications and transport under all circumstances, and to insure that all our people’s needs, especially the requirements of the frontline, are met.
Using a large expeditionary corps to wage aggression in the southern part of our country is one of the most serious strategic errors in the history of U.S. imperialism. In this strategic error, the use of air and naval forces to extend the war to the northern part of our country is also one of the most serious errors and one of the most stupid measures adopted by the U.S. imperialists. Regardless of this fact, the U.S. general and field grade officers at the Pentagon have claimed that only by escalating the war against the north can the initiative be regained and the situation reversed.
It is obvious that, faced with continuous defeats, the stupid U.S. imperialists have become more stupid. The more they increase the number of their troops and the further they escalate the war of destruction against the north, the more isolated they become politically, and the more ignominious defeats they will sustain not only in the north, but also in the south, and mainly in the south.
B--The U.S. imperialists may adventurously expand their limited war all over our country. We have adequately prepared ourselves to cope with this possibility. If the U.S. imperialists expand the limited war to the north, it is certain that they will rapidly meet with complete defeat. Although they have more than 1 million troops at their disposal, the U.S. imperialists have been defeated in the south. If they expand the war to the north with infantry troops, how many more troops would be sufficient? Attacking the north means opening another large battlefield. The U.S. imperialists’ forces would become more scattered and would be annihilated more easily.
We have adequately prepared ourselves and are ready to deal annihilating blows at the U.S. imperialists if they adventurously send infantry troops to the north. If they expand the war to the north, the war would become more complex, because by attacking the north they would be attacking the mainland of a member country of the socialist camp. In this enlarged war, the U.S. imperialists would meet with incalculable serious consequences.
The war would not develop according to the U.S. imperialists’ subjective expectations. It would also depend on the policy and actions of their adversary. Our people are prepared to annihilate the aggressors. The U.S. imperialists may extend the war to the Royal Kingdom of Laos and intensify their provocations against the Royal Kingdom of Cambodia.
The U.S. imperialists have been passive and defeated in their aggression in South Vietnam. If they expand the war all over the Indochinese peninsula, they will certainly encounter greater difficulties and sustain more serious defeats. The Vietnamese, Laos, and Cambodian peoples, united in life as well as in death, will fight side by side against the common enemy, the U.S. imperialist aggressors, to gain complete victory for the three brotherly peoples on its beloved Indochina peninsula. All the activities of the U.S. imperialists clearly prove that they are very obdurate. Despite their bitter defeats, they still persist in continuing their aggression against the southern part of our country. They are striving to step up their criminal war of aggression.
Faced with this situation, the anti-U.S. national salvation resistance of our people sets forth new great and urgent tasks and requirements. With the great victories they have scored, our people in both zones will closely unite, overcome all difficulties and hardships, strongly develop their offensive position, resolutely smash all war attempts of the U.S. imperialists, rush ahead and completely defeat over 1 million U.S., rebel, and satellite troops, fulfill the glorious historical mission, and lead the anti-U.S. national salvation enterprise to final victory.
In South Vietnam, the great frontline of the fatherland, the compatriots and heroic Liberation Armed Forces have not ceased enhancing their indomitable spirit, bravery, and intelligence, overcoming all hard tests, and writing the most glorious pages of history of the heroic Vietnamese people. The South Vietnamese people have raised high their victorious banner and have shown themselves worthy of the indomitable traditions of Nguyen Dinh Chieu, Truong Dinh, Thu Khoa Huan, worthy of the Nam Ky uprising traditions, worthy of the title of the brass fortress of the fatherland, and worthy of the confidence of the whole nation and of beloved President Ho.
The South Vietnamese people are heroic. The whole nation is directing its eyes toward the compatriots and combatants of South Vietnam and is closely uniting with South Vietnam in an unshakable belief that the South Vietnamese people will certainly be victorious and the Vietnamese people will certainly be victorious. Under the national liberation front’s leadership, the armed forces and people of South Vietnam are striving to develop their victories, harassing the enemy, developing their initiatives, and stepping up the people’s warfare on the various battlefields.
Following the victorious 1966-1967 winter-spring campaign, the armed forces and people of South Vietnam are rushing forward and attacking the enemy on both fields, military and political, in the mountain and delta regions as well as in urban centers. From Tri Thien, the Fifth Zone, and Tay Nguyen high plateau, to eastern, central, and western Nam Bo, the guerrilla and large-size forces are strongly developing their effectiveness, inflicting heavy losses on the enemy, and further driving the enemy into a stalemate.
On the South Vietnam battlefield, the Liberation Armed Forces are clearly showing their ability in destroying U.S. battalions and rebel battle groups. In the days ahead, the Liberation Armed Forces will certainly hit hard and score great victories. They will repeatedly harass the enemy and destroy many large U.S. and rebel units and achieve more resounding victories. On the South Vietnam battlefield, the guerrilla activities have been further developed. In the days ahead, the guerrilla activities will clearly show their ability in annihilating the enemy everywhere, scattering the enemy in order to fight them, and together with large-size battles, scoring many greater victories.
Along with military activities in South Vietnam, the political struggles are directly affecting the enemy, destroying the fighting will of the U.S. troops, and dismantling the rebel administration and armed forces. In the days ahead, the political struggle of the South Vietnamese people, especially those in the urban centers, will certainly score more glorious victories. In developing the victorious 1966-1967 campaign, along with the repeated and overall attacks against the enemy, the armed forces and people of South Vietnam are striving to strengthen and develop the liberated areas and to mobilize more manpower and wealth to further step up and lead the resistance to final victory.
In mid-August, in an enthusiastic atmosphere of the resounding victories throughout the South Vietnam battlefields, the national liberation front held an extraordinary session to approve the front’s political program, aimed at further developing the past great victories of the South Vietnam revolution, meeting the present requirements of the situation and the revolution, and paving the way for greater victories in the anti-U.S. national salvation struggle of the heroic South Vietnamese people.
The political program set forth the national salvation objectives and tasks of our southern people: to unite all the people, to resolutely defeat the U.S. imperialists’ war of aggression, to overthrow the puppet administration, to form a broad national and democratic coalition administration, to build an independent, democratic, peaceful, neutral, and prosperous South Vietnam, and to proceed toward peaceful reunification of the fatherland. The front’s political program is the heroic southern people’s great national unity banner, a banner of determination to fight and win, and a banner of determination to completely defeat the U.S. aggressors.
It is a bugle call which urges the 14 million southern people to take advantage of their victories to surge forward to defeat more than 1 million U.S., puppet, and satellite troops and win great and (?heroic) victories.
In the light of the political program recently proclaimed by the front, the heroic southern people will certainly develop vigorously all the potential capabilities of the people, develop their offensive thrust, step up their armed and political struggle, make the great people’s war develop to a new degree, and completely defeat the U.S. aggressors and their lackeys.
In the north, under the leadership of the party Central Committee and government, headed by respected and beloved President Ho, our armed forces and people are simultaneously engaged, wholeheartedly and to the best of their ability, in production and combat and in resolutely fulfilling the large rear base’s obligation toward the large frontline. For more than two years, our northern armed forces and people have overcome all difficulties, fought courageously, and scored many great achievements in production and combat and in serving the frontline. Our fight will be more violent in the days ahead. Therefore, the tasks of our armed forces and people will be heavier and require us to make outstanding efforts to achieve greater successes in all fields.
The present glorious and heavy tasks of the north, which have been set forth by our party, government, and President Ho, are: To simultaneously perform production and combat, to pool human and material resources, to contribute toward defeating the enemy’s war of destruction against the north, to determinedly step up production under all war circumstances, to support the southern revolution wholeheartedly and to the best of our ability, and, at the same time, to take precautionary measures against the U.S. imperialists’ schemes to expand the limited war all over our country. We must thoroughly and deeply grasp these tasks and strive resolutely to carry them out by every means. Concerning combat, we must step up the people’s war, resolutely defeat the U.S. imperialists’ war of destruction against the northern part of our country, and hold aloft the banner of determination to defeat the U.S. aggressors through valiant and skillful acts.
Our armed forces and people must appropriately punish all new war escalation steps taken by the U.S. imperialists. We must vigorously develop the moral, material, political, and military strength of the socialist north and, at the same time, effectively use the assistance of the socialist countries in order to defeat the U.S. aggressors. We must regularly heighten our vigilance and firmly grasp the continuous, protracted, and resolute character of our task of fighting against the U.S. imperialists’ war of destruction. We have never nourished any illusions about the U.S. imperialists’ good will for peace. Only by dealing vigorous and continuous blows at their air, naval, and artillery forces, conflicting heavy losses on them, and reducing their forces and aggressive determination can we check their criminal hands. Dealing vigorous and continuous blows at the U.S. imperialists’ air, naval, and artillery forces constitute the most realistic and most effective act aimed at insuring coordination with the heroic southern armed forces and people and, at the same time, is a great encouragement for the armed forces and people all over our country.
We must strive to develop the fighting capacity of our armed forces and the various branches of the people’s army and make our fire nets against U.S. aircraft, warships, and artillery units increasingly highly effective in order to destroy as many U.S. aircraft, warships, and artillery units as possible and to protect the socialist north more satisfactorily.
We must invent more methods of fighting the U.S. air force. For more than two years, as of 14 September 1967 the U.S. imperialists had suffered about 2,300 aircraft shot down over the north. This indicates the tragic bankruptcy of the U.S. air force’s tactics and proves that we have had creative and appropriate tactics developed by each of our forces and branches.
Now faced with the U.S. imperialists’ new plots and acts of sabotage, it is all the more necessary for us to devise more brave and resourceful tactics in order to constantly take the enemy by surprise and to cause him to sustain heavy defeats. We must also pay great attention to improving and developing methods of fighting the U.S. naval force and artillery units. With a steadfast militant determination, heroism, courage, and intelligence, we must do our best to develop the superiority of our existing weapons and be determined to invent highly effective tactics in order to punish the U.S. naval force and artillery units appropriately.
Along with positively fighting the enemy, we must better perform our air defense tasks. It is necessary to continue consolidating our people’s air defense system, to consolidate and develop our alert network against the enemy’s aircraft and warship attacks, and to consolidate and build more shelters and communication trenches, especially in densely populated places like factories, hospitals, schools, and so forth. It is necessary to promptly commend and reward individuals, units, and localities for their achievements in people’s air defense. At the same time, appropriate disciplinary measures must be taken against individuals, units, and localities for their negligence of air defense tasks, negligence which may cause avoidable damage and losses.
On the communications and transportation front, our soldiers and people have made great efforts, have fought valiantly and heroically, and have scored outstanding achievements. In the days to come, we must make greater efforts in order to achieve more glorious victories on this front. No matter how fierce and ruthless enemy attacks may be, we must be resolved to insure smooth communication operations, to meet the demands of the frontline and the demands for combat and production, and to insure the people’s livelihood.
While continuing their resistance against the U.S. imperialists’ war of destruction, the northern armed forces and people have not stopped preparing to fight and defeat the enemy if he ventures to expand the local war to North Vietnam. We must continue making more careful and urgent ideological and organizational preparations for vanquishing the U.S. ground force, as well as any of the enemy’s armed services, on whatever scale. We must closely combine our fighting against the war of destruction with those preparations in order to defeat the enemy under all other war circumstances.
With regard to production, we must positively implement the policies and plans of the party and the state concerning the change of trends for building and developing the economy and continue building the material and technical base for socialism. We must do our utmost and resolutely fulfill the state plan in order to meet the immediate demands of the anti-U.S. national salvation struggle, the demands for building socialism, and the demands of the people’s everyday life.
We must step up agricultural and industrial production, attach importance to developing local industries, and endeavor to increase the economic potentials and national defense force of our people. During the past two years, under the correct leadership of the party and the government and under the violent fighting conditions, North Vietnam’s economy has indicated the superiority of socialism.
North Vietnam’s socialist agriculture is settling with good results such problems as food, irrigation, intensive cultivation designed to increase production, increases in yearly crops, land clearing, and so forth. Our new-born industry has made very positive contributions to developing production, insuring the people’s livelihood, and serving national defense.
On the basis of these achievements, our people can and will surely achieve socialist construction in North Vietnam more satisfactorily under the violent fighting conditions. The anti-U.S. national salvation struggle of our people in the entire country has entered a very urgent state. As a large rear of the entire country, North Vietnam is resolved to mobilize all of her manpower and wealth to carry out the slogan: “Everything for the frontline, everything for victory.”
The clearsighted leadership of the party and the government, the unbroken solidarity of the people, the determination to fight to win, the spirit of sacrificing everything for the fatherland’s independence and freedom, and the outstanding efforts of our people are the most basic guarantees for our people to have sufficient strength to fight tenaciously and protractedly to score greater achievements and advance toward the final victory.
Our people’s armed forces must be fully and deeply aware of the enemy’s schemes and their present revolutionary and military tasks, uphold the spirit of resolutely fighting to achieve victory, and increase their fighting capacity in order to become the truly invincible armed forces of the heroic Vietnamese people. “In the past, under the leadership of the party and President Ho, our people’s armed forces have upheld revolutionary heroism, developed their “determination to fight and win” tradition, incessantly heightened their fighting strength, fought in an extremely valiant and heroic manner, and won glorious victories on all battlefields. Never before were our people’s armed forces so strong as they are now. Our people’s armed forces are a heroic community of a heroic people.” On all anti-U.S. battlefields, officers and enlisted men and units of our people’s armed forces have performed thousands of heroic acts. On all anti-U.S. battlefields, our people’s armed forces have stood side by side with the people in raising high President Ho’s banner of resolutely fighting to defeat the U.S. aggressors and have achieved glorious victories.
As the shock force of our people in the present anti-U.S. national salvation resistance war, our people’s armed forces are highly enthusiastic over their achievements and feats of arms in building their ranks and fighting the enemy. We must not be subjective and conceited and must endeavor to struggle without respite to improve our fighting quality, to develop our fighting force, and to make our people’s armed forces, which have fought well, fight better and resolved to fight to vanquish the U.S. imperialist aggressors under all war circumstances.
The present tasks of our people’s armed forces is to fight and at the same time build themselves into an invincible steel-like force for completely defeating the U.S. aggressors. We know that to defeat the enemy, the armed forces must have a certain number of troops and at the same time be of high quality. Of these two aspects, special emphasis must be paid upon quality. To be of high quality, a company must be as strong as 10 ordinary companies.
The military theory of Marxism-Leninism points out that the power of a revolutionary force must not be measured by the number of its troops alone. Quantity is necessary, but on the basis of a certain quantity, quality plays a decisive role. The problem of improving quality is a precious tradition and a great experience of our people’s armed forces. From the guerrilla units of the pre-1945 general uprising period to the army units during the resistance against the French colonialist aggressors, our people’s armed forces, thanks to their high fighting quality, have used small units to defeat larger enemy units and achieved victories everywhere.
The drives for training troops for achieving victories, for training officers and improving soldiers, and for political and military reeducation have helped our People’s Armed Forces fulfill in an outstanding way all fighting tasks during the anti-French resistance. During the past few years, the “three first” drive and the campaign for building “determination to win” units have made important contributions to making the People’s Armed Forces grow quickly and win glorious victories. The burning lesson of the southern army and people who are using a force of high quality to defeat an enemy who is superior numerically and who is equipped with stronger weapons is encouraging us to struggle continually and improve the quality of our People’s Armed Forces.
In the struggle against the U.S. imperialists’ war of destruction, we have clearly realized the important influence of the task of improving our fighting quality. The Nguyen Viet Xuan anti-aircraft artillery battalion, the sixth missile regiment, the first and second companies of the air force, the seventh detachment of the navy, many artillery units, many self-defense militia units, and so forth have fought very well: they are typical examples of units having high fighting quality. The anti-French resistance of our people in the past, in its entire process as well as in the development of various combats and campaigns, has brought forth brilliant examples of the great influence of troop quality.
In the present anti-U.S. national salvation resistance, we do not have as many troops and modern weapons as the U.S. imperialists and their lackeys; yet we have defeated the enemy. This proves the great influence of troop quality. After carefully studying the strategic and fighting efficiency of the armed forces in general as well as of each category of troops, each military service, and each unit in particular, we have clearly realized the great influence of troop quality. Therefore, the problem of improving troop quality and developing their fighting power is now a task of strategic significance having a decisive meaning for the task of achieving our people’s great determination to completely defeat the U.S. aggressors. To strive to struggle and improve troop quality and to develop the fighting power of all three categories of troops will surely increase by many times the strategic and fighting efficiency of the People’s Armed Forces, achieve great progress and a big leap forward and bring about great changes in the political and military situation of the resistance.
The problem of improving the armed forces’ quality must be raised in a comprehensive way, embracing all fields: political, military, logistic, ideological, organizational, and efficiency. We must implement this policy in all three categories of troops-regulars, local troops, and self-defense militiamen--in all military services and branches, and in all military organs at all echelons with the aim of developing the power of all the components of the People’s Armed Forces in order to defeat the U.S. aggressors in all war circumstances.
We must endeavor to further increase the regulars’ fighting, making all regular units fight better and actually become the iron fists which will win every battle and continually and quickly and completely annihilate the enemy everywhere in our country. We must pay more attention to increasing the fighting power of local troops in order to make the local units from the mountainous region to the coastal areas become strong units having great fighting capacity in the localities and being able to fight well independently as well in cooperation with militiamen and regulars, fulfill all tasks in an outstanding way, annihilate the enemy forces, launch the guerrilla war, and protect the people.
We must pay great attention to increasing the fighting power and numerical strength of the self-defense militia, thus making the self-defense militia become a strong, stable, and widespread armed force ready to fight the enemy and fight him well with all weapons on hand or to be obtained, play the role of a shock force in production, and supply the local and regular forces with good officers and soldiers.
We must pay greater attention to increasing the quality of the armed forces’ military organs and schools so that these organs can be of great help to military leaders and commanders, so that these schools can train and improve many officers of high quality, thus actively contributing to the fulfillment of the building and fighting task of the people’s armed forces. We must endeavor to satisfy the following requirements:
A--To heighten the political and ideological levels of officers and men so that they can more deeply understand the sacred anti-U.S. national salvation duty, have a boiling revolutionary spirit, have a strong offensive spirit and a high fighting will, unite closely around the party Central Committee, the government, and President Ho, thoroughly implement the policies and lines of the party and the instructions and orders of higher echelons, fulfill all fighting, building, and other tasks, and have the determination to completely defeat the U.S. aggressors and win the greatest victories on the battlefield under any war circumstances.
B--To heighten their technical and tactical levels, it is necessary to pursue the training of officers and men so that they can maintain and cleverly use their weapons and equipment, and flexibly and efficiently apply the tactical principles and fighting methods of the people’s war. It is necessary to lay emphasis on the quality of resoluteness, courage, resourcefulness, and creativeness in combat and study. We must also pay special attention to training units so that they can launch military operations, station troops, and fight continually on all battlefields under arduous and fierce conditions.
C--To rearrange and improve organizations and equipment in order to fit them to the combat requirements, to the characteristics and duties of different units, to battlefield conditions, and to our capacity, in order to make the various units become orderly, light, and strong organizationally and have great fighting power. It is necessary to streamline the organization, arrange the forces rationally, and build for various organizations work habits and systems to be applied in military operations and combat.
D--To streamline party organizations and mass organizations; to streamline party committees and branches in order to make them strong and stable in all fields; to regularly develop the party; to improve party members so that they will have a high political level and be able to mobilize the masses; to build leading methods for various party echelons from top to bottom; to continuously heighten the leading role of the party under all circumstances; to continue streamlining the mass organizations so that these organizations can fulfill all their tasks and missions, fully develop the intelligence and capacity of all their members, and become a great force in each unit.
E--To improve the troops’ material life, heighten their technical level, and improve their stamina and endurance; to strictly enforce the systems of preserving and repairing weapons and military equipment; to rationally use spare weapons, ammunitions, and equipment; to strictly enforce the principle of taking weapons from the enemy to equip ourselves; to satisfactorily organize the feeding of troops, their physical training, the improvement of their endurance and stamina, and the improvement of their health, thus insuring a high percentage of fighting men; to satisfactorily organize the treatment of wounded and sick troops so that they will be restored and returned to their units quickly.
F--To develop and increase the efficiency of cadres at all levels. The cadres have played a very important role in building the armed forces and in improving their fighting ability. Only when the cadres are good can units become good and fulfill their fighting task and other tasks. Therefore, it is necessary to strive to develop and increase the efficiency of cadres at all levels and to pay attention to heightening the troop units’ leadership, command, and management level and the organizational level in order to fulfill all concrete tasks under difficult, complicated circumstances, especially under urgent, fierce fighting circumstances.
We must have a very high determination and many effective measures in order to swiftly increase the efficiency of cadres at all levels. Only on this basis can we satisfy the early maturity of the armed forces and the war development. At present, the movement to heighten the quality and to develop the fighting strength of the people’s armed forces and to increase their determination to fight and defeat the U.S. aggressors is highly significant with regard to the fighting and building task of our people’s armed forces. This movement requires all cadres and combatants to make strenuous efforts and to devote themselves to increasing the fighting strength of all units to a new higher degree.
The leading and commanding cadres bear a very great responsibility. Cadres and party members must certainly take the lead in this important movement. All cadres at all levels must have a great determination. This is the determination to fight and completely defeat the U.S. aggressors. It is necessary to see all the enemy’s setbacks, difficulties, confusion, and deadlock, and, at the same time, it is necessary to see all the great successes and capabilities of our army and people, to make a detailed study of the enemy and ourselves, and to firmly grasp the laws of the resistance and the skilled military art of the people’s war. Let all cadres at all levels enthusiastically move forward, be more determined and valiant, and resolutely fight and defeat and know how to defeat the aggressors in order to make valuable contributions to the glorious task of our people and people’s armed forces.
On the vast frontline, the southern liberation armed forces are simultaneously fulfilling the fighting and building tasks and have incessantly increased their fighting strength. The resounding feats of arms, the swift maturity, the outstanding progress, and the abundant achievements of the heroic southern liberation armed forces are vigorously encouraging all cadres and combatants of our people’s armed forces. It is hoped that the heroic southern liberation armed forces will score great achievements in fulfilling their fighting task as well as in fulfilling the task of increasing their fighting strength and will, together with all our people, move forward to completely defeat the U.S. aggressors.
In carrying out President Ho’s sacred anti-U.S. national salvation appeal in order to completely defeat the more than 1 million U.S., puppet, and satellite troops, our people’s armed forces must have in mind and carry out his advice: be loyal to the party and the people, fulfill all tasks, overcome all difficulties, and defeat all aggressors. All our cadres and combatants must clearly understand their tasks, strive to struggle, swiftly increase the fighting strength of the people’s armed forces, and resolutely fulfill their glorious task as shock forces of all our people in the anti-U.S. national salvation struggle.
The victories on the battlefields are encouraging us and filling us with enthusiasm. All our people are awaiting from our people’s armed forces new steps of progress and more resounding and greater feats of arms in the days ahead. The history of our people is the history of a victorious people. Tran Hung Dao, Le Loi., Nguyen Trai, and Quang Trung fiercely fought an enemy of greater strength and were gloriously victorious.
Since the party and President Ho assumed leadership, our people have brought to success the August Revolution and the resistance and successively defeated the Japanese fascists, the French imperialists, and the U.S. interventionists. In the past 10 years, our people have successively defeated all the aggressive schemes of the U.S. imperialists, their neocolonialist aggressive policy with their traditional tricks, and their special war with more than half a million puppet troops, and have defeated and are defeating their local war strategy with more than l million U.S., puppets, and satellite troops in the south and have, at the same time, defeated and are defeating their war of destruction with air and naval forces in the north.
It is obvious that our Vietnamese people have sufficient determination and capabilities and will certainly and completely defeat the U.S. invaders’ war of aggression. In the fierce fight against the U.S. aggressors, the most cruel and barbarous imperialist ringleaders in the present war, our Vietnamese people will certainly achieve complete victory, because our great national salvation resistance has been glowing with just cause, has enjoyed correct political and military lines and the unity strength of our people who rose up to struggle, has possessed a firm determination and skilled fighting methods, and has enjoyed great assistance from the brotherly socialist countries and strong sympathy and encouragement from progressive people in the world, including the U.S. people.
The anti-U.S. national salvation resistance of our people is the continuation and development of the August Revolutionary struggle and the anti-French resistance in the past. This resistance must overcome a great many sacrifices and hardships but will certainly score glorious successes. This is the great struggle, which has never been seen before in the country-building and country-protecting history of our people. This struggle is also of great international significance, because it contributes to protecting the socialist bloc and stepping up the movement to liberate the peoples and to protect peace in the world. This struggle is a great contribution of our Vietnamese people to the common revolutionary struggle of the people in the world to oppose imperialism headed by the U.S. imperialists and to achieve peace, national independence, democracy, and socialism.
Under President Ho’s “determination to defeat the U.S. aggressors” flag, let all our army and people take advantage of victories to move forward. The Vietnamese people are determined to completely defeat more than a million U.S., puppet, and satellite troops. The U.S. imperialists’ neocolonialist war of aggression will certainly be defeated. The people’s war of the heroic Vietnamese people will certainly win complete victory!