LYCOS RETRIEVER 
Vietnam: South Vietnam
built 630 days ago
Vietnam, officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, is a communist state in Southeast Asia. Situated in eastern Indochina—bordering China, Laos, Cambodia, as well as the South China Sea. It is the most populous country among the mainland Southeast Asian countries. In 1986, the Sixth Party Congress of the Communist Party of Vietnam formally abandoned its centralized planned economy and began introducing market elements as part of a broad economic reform package called "Renovation". In many ways, this followed the Chinese model and achieved similar results. On one hand, Vietnam achieved around 8% annual GDP growth from 1990 to 1997 and continued at around 7% from 2000 to 2002, making it the second-fastest growing economy in the world.
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Vietnam is a country filled with captivating natural beauty and tranquil village life. Its highlands and rainforest regions, continue to yield new species and team with exotic wildlife. Its islands and beaches are among the finest in all of Southeast Asia, and its cuisine is very possibly the most delicious you will ever find. Over two decades have passed since Vietnam was officially united, and in that time it has done a remarkable job of healing its wounds. Today, this gracious and graceful country is an outstanding travel destination.
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South Vietnam ... had a population of 16 million. Its first proper leader was Ngo Dinh Diem who was a fanatical catholic. As communism hated religion, Diem hated all that communism stood for. This is why he got America's support - he had a poor record on human rights but his rule was in the era of the "Domino Theory" and anybody who was anti-communist in the Far East was likely to receive American backing - regardless of their less than savoury background. Ngo ruled as a dictator along with his brother - Nhu. Their government was corrupt and brutal but it was also backed by America.
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Vietnam has four major geographic regions. The country’s northernmost section consists of a tangled mass of rugged and heavily forested mountains that extend into Vietnam from China’s Yunnan Plateau. In Vietnam, these mountains attain a maximum elevation of 3,143 m (10,312 ft) at Fan Si Pan, the country’s highest point. To the east and southeast of these mountainous highlands is the Red River Delta, a triangular-shaped alluvial plain that stretches along the Gulf of Tonkin, an arm of the South China Sea. The Truong Son (Annam Highlands) lies to the south of the delta and forms the backbone of Vietnam. Also in this region are the Central Highlands, a vast upland plateau situated between the Cambodian border and the South China Sea.
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In December 1961, at the request of South Vietnamese President Ngo Dinh Diem, President Kennedy sent U.S. military advisers to South Vietnam to help the government there deal with the Viet Cong campaign. In the wake of escalating political turmoil in the south after a 1963 generals' coup against President Diem, the United States increased its military support for South Vietnam. In March 1965, President Johnson sent the first U.S. combat forces to Vietnam. The American military role peaked in 1969 with an in-country force of 534,000. However, the Viet Cong's surprise Tet Offensive in January 1968 deeply hurt both the Viet Cong infrastructure and American and South Vietnamese morale. In January 1969, the United States, governments of South and North Vietnam, and the Viet Cong met for the first plenary session of peace talks in Paris, France.
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Beginning in late 1972, National Security Advisor Henry A. Kissinger's negotiations with North Vietnam began to move seriously towards a settlement. To build up the military of South Vietnam, Secretary of Defense Melvin R. Laird initiated Project Enhance Plus on 20 October 1972. The Pentagon ordered rush deliveries of some $2 billion worth of military equipment, including over 600 aircraft. The program gave South Vietnam the fourth largest air force in the world, with over 2,000 aircraft. Only the United States, the Soviet Union, and the Peoples' Republic of China maintained larger air forces. By this time South Vietnam ... floated the fifth largest navy in the world (with 1,500 ships) and fielded the fourth largest army in the world (with 1.1 million troops).
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South Vietnam