Vietnam marked its National Day on Tuesday with its largest military parade in decades, as thousands packed the streets of the capital, Hanoi, after many camped overnight to witness the grand display marking 80 years of independence.
The parade unfolded at Ba Dinh Square, the site where revolutionary leader Ho Chi Minh declared independence from French colonial rule on Sept. 2, 1945.
Fighting resumed soon after as Vietnamese forces battled the French in the First Indochina War, which ended in 1954 when the country was divided into Communist North and U.S.-backed South. The Vietnam War followed, during which the Communist North fought the South and its American allies. That conflict ended when Communist forces captured Saigon on April 30, 1975 and the country was unified.
Vietnam’s top leader, Communist Party General Secretary To Lam, paid tribute to those who died in the fight for independence and reiterated the ruling party’s goal that by 2045 Vietnam will be a “powerful, prosperous and happy nation,” calling it “the aspiration of the entire nation, the oath of honor before history” in comments carried by state media.
Columns of troops marched past as tanks, armored vehicles, and missile systems rumbled by. Helicopters flew overhead trailing giant Vietnamese flags followed by jets while a military band played martial tunes below.
Officials said nearly 16,000 soldiers joined the event, including upgraded tanks, large artillery guns on vehicles, amphibious vehicles and missile systems made by a state-owned Vietnamese company.
For the first time, it also organized a televised naval parade off the coast of the port city of Cam Ranh in southern Vietnam, featuring warships, submarines, helicopters and sea planes.
Honor guards from China, Russia, Laos and Cambodia also joined the display, which Vietnamese state media said reflected the country’s “international friendships.”
Crowds began arriving in Hanoi days in advance, and thousands camped on sidewalks Monday night to secure viewing spots.
Videos of the parade went viral on social media and many gathered were in their twenties, wearing red shirts with yellow stars and cheering wildly as soldiers marched past while sipping iced boba tea. People waved the country’s flag or painted it on their faces. Giant screens at intersections broadcast the parade while balconies across the city were draped with more flags.
“It’s something to be proud of,” said Nguyen Thi Thu Huyen, 22, who spent the night near Ba Dinh Square. “Our grandparents fought for this. Now life is better.”
Vietnam’s transformation has been among Asia’s most striking. Since opening its economy in the late 1980s, the country has become a manufacturing hub for electronics, textiles, and footwear, supplying global brands like Samsung and Nike. Poverty has dropped and the middle class is growing fast.
But new challenges loom as the country tries to balance rapid growth with reforms, aging demographics, climate risks, weak institutions and U.S. pressure over its trade surplus. And it has to do all of this while balancing relations with major powers and asserting sovereignty in the South China Sea, where it has overlapping claims with its largest trade partner, China.
