Premiere of documentary film about Vietnam - Soviet Union - China relations during the resistance war against America

The Vietnam War as Americans call it or the Resistance War against American imperialism as Vietnamese call it is a topic that has been exploited by many filmmakers from many aspects, especially the American side. However,Vietnam War: National Interestis perhaps the first documentary film that aims to clarify Vietnam's important decisions regarding the war in the context of the Cold War; especially in the context of the complex relationship between Vietnam and two countries considered to be major allies: the Soviet Union and China.

The 3 episodes with a total duration of 90 minutes are drawn from thousands of hours of interviews with US policy makers, US generals, Vietnamese revolutionaries directly involved in the war and many leading scholars studying the war from Vietnam, Russia, China, the US and Australia; from hundreds of thousands of pages of declassified documents from the US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), the US State Department and Vietnamese archives. The Vietnam War may have many different elements but its consistent nature is a struggle for national liberation. To achieve this goal, Vietnam must not only dare to fight and defeat the US but also overcome itself and the great obstacles of the so-called allied countries.

Prof. Carl Thayer:“Vietnam was a victim of political compromise at the Geneva Conference. Vietnam’s bargaining power was very limited against the interests of the Soviet Union and China.”

Historian Duong Trung Quoc:“A new context appeared in the world, the idea of ​​peaceful coexistence was formed, but would the idea of ​​peaceful coexistence be acceptable in Vietnam? And clearly if we had compromised at that time, following the trend of the times at that time, then the goal of liberating the South would certainly have encountered many difficulties later on.”

Dr. Le Kien Thanh: “He (Le Duan) recounted that in a meeting to discuss the revolution in the South, after talking about the main issues, he stood up and gave a nearly concluding speech, telling Uncle Ho: Uncle, one of the reasons we can defeat America is that we must not fear America, but at the same time we must not fear the Soviet Union or China.”

CIA Top Secret Report of September 30, 1968 on the Sino-Soviet Controversy and Aid to North Vietnam:“The Soviet Union’s goal in providing aid to North Vietnam was to influence Hanoi. China’s goal was similar. However, both the Soviet Union and China limited their aid to Vietnam to avoid direct conflict with the United States. Moscow and Beijing regularly assessed the risks in order to determine the level of military aid to North Vietnam…”

Professor Vu Duong Ninh:“We do not deny, we are even very grateful for their help because such a material amount is not small and we affirm the spiritual support. Until now, history should record that, but on the other hand, we should not be ambiguous.”

The movieVietnam War: National InterestDirected by: Bui Chi Trung, Dang Bao Trung, Pham Trung Thanh, Vu Kim Thu and Nghiem Sy Thanh. Because they are making a historical documentary, the filmmakers do not intend to link history with the present. However, the present is always a reflection of history. With its location on the maritime route connecting the Indian Ocean and the Pacific Ocean, Vietnam is always in the sights of major countries. The biggest lesson learned from history is that in relations with other countries, it is absolutely necessary to put national interests above all as an immutable principle. National interests are the fundamental goal and the ultimate deciding factor in policy making to ensure the most vital needs of a nation, which are independence, autonomy, territorial integrity and economic prosperity.