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Country :Vietnam Official name: Cong Hoa Xa Hoi Chu Nghia Viet Nam (The Socialist Republic of Vietnam) (SRV) Head of State: President Tran Duc Luong (DCSV) (since 1997; re-appointed 24 Jul 2002) Head of government: Prime Minister Phan Van Khai (DCSV) (since 1997; re-appointed 25 July 2002) Ruling party: Dang Cong San Viet Nam (DCSV) (Communist Party of Vietnam) Area: 329,556 square km Population: 83.03 million (2004) Capital: Hanoi Official language: Vietnamese Currency: Dong (D) = 100 xu Exchange rate: D15,756.00 per US$ (Nov 2004) GDP per capita: US$455 (2003) GDP real growth: 7.20% (2003) Labour force: 38.20 million (2003) Unemployment: 6.00% (2003) Inflation: 4.00% (2003) Oil production: 372,000 bpd (2003) Balance of trade: -US$5.05 billion (2003) Foreign debt: US$14.10 billion (2003)

Historical profile

The Red River (Song Hong) Delta in the north is considered the 'Cradle of the Nation'. It was from here in the tenth century that the Nam Tien Movement was begun by General Le Han. The southward expansion occurred because of the need to seek new ricelands.

The Vietnamese expanded south, during the fourteenth to eighteenth centuries, conquering the Cham people and Mekong Delta.

1428 After a long period of rule by successive Chinese rulers, Vietnam gained independence from the Ming dynasty's control. The Le dynasty ruled until 1527.

1680 The Portuguese, Dutch, English and French established trading posts in Vietnam.

1771–1802 The Tai Son Rebellion years. The Tai Son brothers wrested control from the ruling Nguyen family. They aimed to seize the wealth of the rich and aid the poor. Most of the members of the Nguyen family were killed except for Nguyen Anh, the nephew of a Nguyen lord.

1802 Vietnam was unified under the leadership of Nguyen Anh who recaptured much of Vietnam from the Tai Son brothers.

1830–40 The Nguyen dynasty tried to rid Vietnam of French missionaries by forcing the Christian movement underground and executing priests. In response, the missionaries appealed to the French government for military intervention in Vietnam.

1859 The French began their attack on the region, capturing the city of Danang.

1861 The French captured Saigon (now Ho Chi Minh city).

1862 Vietnam agreed to the Treaty of Saigon that gave the French control of three provinces and the island of Poulo Condore, free passage of French ships and freedom for the missionaries.

1883 French rule began over the whole country as part of the Indochina territory that included Cambodia. Under colonial rule, transportation and communications improved but the standard of living among the Vietnamese people remained low. Their suffering contributed to rising nationalist sentiment.

1930 A revolutionary, Ho Chi Minh, formed the Indochinese Communist Party (ICP) to fight against French rule.

1940 The French administration was replaced by Japanese occupation during the war.

1945 The Japanese were expelled by the ICP and French forces. A war of independence against France began.

1954 At a peace conference in Geneva, Vietnam was divided at the seventeenth parallel into communist Democratic Republic of Vietnam (north) and American-backed Republic of Vietnam (south). North Vietnam sponsored a growing guerrilla movement (Viet Cong) in the south, which aimed to re-unite Vietnam.

1964 US armed forces began their official intervention in support of South Vietnam after the US Gulf of Tonkin resolution. The US was committed to South Vietnam.

1967 The US military presence totalled nearly 500,000 troops.

1968 The Communists launched an attack on South Vietnam. This 'Tet Offensive' targetted five major cities. The Communists were forced to retreat within weeks. The US bombing campaign against North Vietnam ended and US troops in South Vietnam were reduced.

1973 The Paris peace accords were signed, temporarily ending hostilities between the US and North Vietnam.

1975 US troops withdrew.

1976 North and South Vietnam were combined to form the Socialist Republic of Vietnam. Saigon was renamed Ho Chi Minh City.

1979 Vietnamese troops invaded Cambodia overthrowing the Pol Pot regime and instituting their own puppet government; Chinese troops invaded Vietnam but were defeated. During this time Vietnam established close relationships with the Soviet Union, which was necessary for its economic development.

1986 Economic reform began with the adoption of the doi moi (renovation) reforms.

1992 The state constitution was introduced, which allowed for some liberalisation of the Vietnamese economy.

1993 Full Western aid resumed.

1995 A Vietnamese and American rapprochement began. Vietnam joined the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean).

1997 Tran Duc Luong was elected president by the National Assembly, and Phan Van Khai was appointed prime minister.

2000 Vietnam and the US signed an agreement enabling normal trading relations between the two countries.

2001 Nong Duc Manh was appointed secretary general of the Dang Cong San Viet Nam (DCSV) (Communist Party of Vietnam). The bilateral trade agreement between Vietnam and the US came into effect.

2002 Russia closed its naval base in Cam Ranh. Vietnam signed an accord with Russia to construct a US$100 million hydroelectric power station in Vietnam's central highlands. DCSV members won most seats in the National Assembly elections. President Tran Duc Luong was reappointed for a second term by the National Assembly.

2003 In April, the World Health Organisation (WHO) officially certified Vietnam as the first country to be removed from the danger list of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) countries.

2004 In January, Vietnam confirmed the first human deaths from bird 'flu.

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