French historian Alain Ruscio, who has conducted many studies on Indochina and Vietnam, has hailed the significance of Dien Bien Phu Victory, saying it had a great influence on the struggle against colonialism of peoples around the world, and the historical meaning of the event remains valid today.

Ruscio was a reporter for the French newspaper L'Humanité in Vietnam and is the author of many research works on the French colonial period in Indochina and the Indochina War. He has published many books about Dien Bien Phu such as "French War in Indochina", "Vo Nguyen Giap, a life", "Dien Bien Phu - Myth and reality", to name a few.

French historian Alain Ruscio introduces his books about Dien Bien Phu, namely "French War in Indochina", "Vo Nguyen Giap, a life", "Dien Bien Phu - Myth and reality". Photo: VNA

In an interview granted to VNA on the occasion of the 70th anniversary of the victory, the historian said at that time, the French government at that time initially thought they could crush Vietnam's independence movement. But they did not expect to face a large force of Vietnamese people supporting the struggle for independence, initiated by President Ho Chi Minh. Since then, the French colonialists have sunk deeper and deeper into bigger and bigger failures, starting with the Autumn-Winter Border Campaign in 1950, and ending with Dien Bien Phu. This journey was not easy for the Vietnamese army and people when facing a very modern and powerful French army, at that time supported by the US.

According to Ruscio, with support from socialist countries, the Dien Bien Phu campaign in 1954 was a victory for the Vietnamese people, led by the political foresight of President Ho Chi Minh.

Assessing the international significance of the Dien Bien Phu victory, historian Ruscio said that the event had a great influence on the decolonization movement in the world. The Indochina war was followed by people around the world, stressing that it was not merely a war between France and Vietnam but an international one.

French colonies such as Madagascar, Algeria, Tunisia, Morocco and Africa closely watched the war in Vietnam with the hope that the French army would be defeated, he said. Therefore, according to him, the defeat of the French army at Dien Bien Phu was considered a victory for not only Vietnam but also all colonial peoples, opening the path to liberation for oppressed nations.

In late 1953, President Ho Chi Minh and Party leaders decide to open Dien Bien Phu campaign. Photo: VNA

Lessons learned from the Dien Bien Phu campaign are still valid today in the current context of many conflicts in the world, Ruscio said. He believes that behind every war are people who always refuse violent solutions, so if only using force, or military power, one can never win, underlining that a united nation that refuses to be oppressed will always find a way, even though it may encounter many difficulties and obstacles.

He noted that during the colonial period, many French people stood up against the colonial regime and oppressive acts against the Vietnamese people as well as the Cambodian and Lao people.

Ruscio cited many examples such as Gabriel Péri, a French Communist politician, who came to Vietnam in 1934 to express his opposition to the war in the Southeast Asian nation, or journalists Andrée Viollis, Romain Rolland, and Henri Barbusse.

During Vietnam's resistance war against the US, many French people also expressed their opposition to the US invasion of Vietnam. In a speech in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, in 1966, General Charles de Gaulle of France denounced US intervention in the region, saying that they would never succeed in making the people of Indochina bend.

The French historian believes that all of this has created a very special relationship between France and Vietnam.

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