There is nothing more precious than independence and freedom
The achievements of today are based on a solid foundation, which is the spirit of great national unity with people who put national interests and national interests above all.
In the stories about National Day on September 2, 1945, there is a story about the house at 48 Hang Ngang - the place chosen by President Ho Chi Minh to write the Declaration of Independence giving birth to the Democratic Republic of Vietnam.
That was the house of one of the richest traders, located on the busiest street in Hanoi at that time. Historists explain: Uncle Ho believes that the rich also have patriotism. The poor also have patriotism. Everyone is patriotic. This demonstrates the spirit of great national unity, the spirit of putting national interests and national interests above all.
The August Revolution broke out at a time when the potential of the country and people was almost exhausted. Exhausted because nearly 2 million people had just died in a terrible hunger. However, when the general uprising order was issued by Viet Minh, it immediately received strong support from the people of the whole country.
If there is no support from the people and no great strength from the people, how can it be successful so quickly in such a short period of time? That is the uncompromising and unmeasurable commitment and sacrifice of generations of Vietnamese people at that time.
When national and ethnic interests are placed above all, they will certainly be supported by the people. When leaders are truly for the people, for the country, the people will support, trust and follow. When the hearts and minds of the leadership forces are in harmony with the beat and thoughts in the joy and pain of their nation, they will certainly be supported by the people. And when the leadership force is at the source, national affection, compatriotism, and solidarity of all classes of people - the greatest strength that makes the country rise will be aroused.
On September 2, 1945, in front of many nationals and compatriots, President Ho Chi Minh read the Declaration of Independence, opening with:
concerned citizens,
All people are born equal. Create for them unenforceable rights; in those rights, there is the right to life, freedom and the right to seek happiness".
That historic Declaration ends with a truth: Vietnam has the right to freedom and independence, and the truth has become a free and independent country. The entire Vietnamese people are determined to devote all their spirit and strength, their lives and property to maintain that freedom and independence.
Less than a month after Vietnam declared its independence, the French occupation army launched an offensive into Vietnam, in order to bring our people back into slavery. To protect the achievements of the revolution and protect independence and freedom, our Party and President Ho Chi Minh have persisted in taking peaceful measures to avoid the war caused by the fighting colonial forces.
The sound of the All-National Resistance gun demonstrates the continuation of the nation's indomitable tradition of resilience against foreign invaders, opening the timeless heroic song of the Vietnam People's War under the Ho Chi Minh era, affirming the dignity of the nation determined to fight and sacrifice for the country's freedom and independence that has been formed and further affirmed through the journey of fighting against foreign invaders, becoming the core value of the Vietnamese nation.
With that dignity of the nation, in the winter of 1946 President Ho Chi Minh called for national resistance with a strong declaration: "I would rather sacrifice everything, but I would definitely not lose my country, I would definitely not be a slave".
The national resistance exploded, marking a major turning point for the Vietnamese revolution. Originating at a special historical moment, President Ho Chi Minh's "Appeal to the National Resistance War" has deeply affected the patriotism and indomitable will of the nation, becoming a great symbol of the power of great solidarity.
The 9 years of resistance ended with the victory over Dien Bien Phu - a victory that the whole world affirmed as "famous in five continents, shaking the world" along with the signing of the Geneva Agreement on suspending war in Vietnam and Indochina. The participants at the conference pledged to respect the basic national rights of independence, sovereignty, unity and territorial integrity of the three countries of Laos, Vietnam and Cambodia. The successful end of the resistance war against French colonialism affirms the strength and tradition of the Vietnamese people against foreign invasion.
That was the time when "the land of hardship has never been at peace", the struggle for national liberation had only won half: The North has been liberated but in the South, the new colonialism has built a Saigon regime, denied the Geneva Agreement, and long-term divided the country. Therefore, the Vietnamese people continue the national democratic revolution, aiming at national liberation and national reunification, and that struggle takes place in a new historical context.
In the South, the Dong movement began in 1959-1960 with the main political force, the people and comrades of the South stood up to fight the second resistance war and the resistance war against the US to save the country of the Vietnamese people against the most violent enemy of the times became extremely fierce.
The Northern Socialism with the slogan "All for the Carne Southern Region" is the motto of action, the conscience of all classes of people. generations of young people volunteered to join forces in the South to destroy the enemy. Millions of mothers, sisters, and wives and children in the back sector carry out "three assurance", "three readiness", "For the South, the whole body", so the people of the North are determined to contribute "The rice is not lacking in one scale, the army is not lacking in one person" to the front line. The spirit of "Streading along Truong Son to save the country" is a vivid expression of the determination to destroy the enemy and reclaim the river of the heroic young generations of Vietnam who have fought for 20 years.
There is nothing more precious than independence and freedom - that immortal saying of President Ho Chi Minh rang out on the radio from the capital Hanoi in July 1966, at a time when the North was struggling with wartime bombs and bullets, while the South was in the blood of fire. This is not only a slogan of resistance, but an immortal declaration of the right to life and the desire to be a people of a nation that has gone through thousands of years of loss, division and sacrifice.
Then, in early 1975, before the historic opportunity, our Party made determination to implement the strategy of liberating the South and unifying the country. Under the wise leadership of the Party Central Committee, in a short time, with strong will and strength, our army and people successfully carried out the campaigns to liberate the Central Highlands, Hue, Da Nang and finally the historic Ho Chi Minh Campaign to liberate Saigon, creating the Great Victory in the Spring of 1975, winning the arduous resistance war against the US, saving the country, completing the glorious cause of national liberation, bringing the whole country to socialism.
The great victory of Spring 1975 was a brilliant milestone, one of the most glorious feats in the history of building and defending the country of the Vietnamese people and "entering the world history as a great feat of the 20th century, an event of great international importance and profoundly contemporary.
The 40-year journey of innovation
After the war, our country's economy was extremely difficult. Vietnam is bombed. The Soviet Union and Eastern Europe began reforming and opening up, so they cut off aid. Domestic production is sluggish, people's lives are difficult. Economic potential is extremely small. In that situation, General Secretary Truong Chinh conducted field surveys and gathered scientists for advice. From there, it is realized that it is time to innovate theoretical thinking as well as economic thinking: We must eliminate the mechanism of subsidized bureaus, there must be a mechanism of self-accounting, financial autonomy, and we must start applying an economy under state management.
The 6th Party Congress in December 1986, when setting out the guidelines for innovation, the Party started with a new way of thinking, which was "primaost of all, economic thinking". The economy is regulated according to market movements - an issue that seems to be the principle but is placed in the context of starting a Doi Moi in 1986 when the country was in a socio-economic crisis, only to see the full value of the roadmap, novelty and modernity of policies that had never been in the thinking of the Communists.
This is a turning point for the Vietnamese economy to have quite impressive growth. If in 1986, the GDP of the economy only reached 8 billion USD, by 2024 it had reached 476.3 billion USD, 59.5 times higher. The national brand value in 2024 will reach 507 billion USD, ranked 32nd out of 193 countries.
The Ministry of Finance assessed: The period of 1986 - 2000 is the period of economic management innovation and spectacular changes. With the birth of the Doi Moi process, the 6th Congress of the Communist Party of Vietnam (in 1986) proposed a comprehensive innovation policy, shifting from a concentrated planned economy to a socialist-oriented market economy.
Vietnam has implemented many strong reforms, such as ending the subsidy mechanism and developing a multi-component economy. Recognize and encourage private economic sectors and foreign-invested economies, creating strong momentum for production and business.
Economic growth has increased from a low level of about 4.97% on average in the period of 1987 - 1990 to 7.73% in the period of 1991 - 2000. In particular, in the period of 1992 - 1997, the average GDP growth rate reached 8.89%. This shows the spectacular transformation of the economy, from stagnation to dynamic development.
In particular, the period 2001 - 2025 is a period of rapid development, deep integration and future orientation. This is the period when Vietnam promotes economic development towards modernization and extensive international integration. With solid foundations from the Doi Moi period, Vietnam has implemented many important institutional reforms, expanded foreign relations and actively participated in global economic playgrounds. In 2025, Vietnam strives to grow by 8.3 - 8.5% under the direction of the Party and State; GDP per capita will reach about 5,000 USD, bringing Vietnam from the low-income group to the low-middle-income group and moving towards the high-middle-income group.
Vision towards the 100th anniversary of the founding of the country
Looking back on the nation's 50-year journey since President Ho Chi Minh read the Declaration of Independence at Ba Dinh Square, we can be confident that: After 80 years, Vietnam has risen from an emerging economy to a comprehensively integrated nation, laying the foundation to realize the aspiration set by the 13th National Party Congress: Become a developed country with high income by 2045 - after 100 years of Vietnam's independence.
In March 2025, in the article "Future for generations to rise up", General Secretary To Lam raised the issue: "After 80 years of founding the country and 50 years of completely unifying the country and nearly 40 years of implementing the renovation process, our country is entering a period of breakthrough in development, opening up opportunities but at the same time facing unprecedented challenges. The country is increasingly deeply integrated into the global economy, facing strong changes from breakthroughs in science and technology and global fluctuations.
Towards 2045, the important milestone of celebrating the 100th anniversary of the founding of the country, we set a strategic goal of becoming a developed country with high income. To achieve that, Vietnam needs to have a young generation that is not only excellent in intelligence but also superior in physical strength, rich in cultural identity, capable of competing and standing shoulder to shoulder with the world powers, affirming the country's position in the international arena.
The consistent viewpoint of our Party and State is to take people as the foundation for sustainable development, because people are both the ultimate goal and the main driving force for social development. And, socio-economic development must aim to satisfy the increasingly high spiritual and material needs of the people. Human development becomes a key and strategic issue that determines the success of the country.
Creating the premise for the country to enter a new era, 1 year before the 14th National Party Congress, many revolutionary decisions were implemented synchronously and drastically.
That is the revolution of streamlining the apparatus initiated, comprehensively changing the political system from the central to local levels in the direction of streamlining - compactness - strength. The Constitution was amended with high consensus among the people, implementing two-level local government... The breakthrough in thinking has exceeded the vision in the term, aiming for the 100th anniversary of Vietnam's independence in 2045.
Along with that is the birth of a series of Resolutions, including 4 pillar resolutions: Resolution No. 57-NQ/TW dated December 22, 2024 of the Politburo on breakthroughs in science, technology, innovation and national digital transformation; Resolution No. 59-NQ/TW dated January 24, 2025 of the Politburo on "international integration in the new situation"; Resolution No. 66-NQ/TW on innovation in law-making and enforcement to meet the requirements of national development in the new era; Resolution No. 68-NQ/TW dated May 4, 2025 of the Politburo on private economic development.
The four important Resolutions issued by the Politburo in recent times will be the foundational institutional pillars, creating a strong driving force to move our country forward in the new era, realizing the vision of Vietnam developing and achieving high income by 2045, the General Secretary emphasized at the National Conference to disseminate and implement the Party's Resolutions in mid-May 2025.
The Party's consistent viewpoint is to invest in and develop the young generation to become a top strategic priority in the new period. Building and nurturing a strong, intellectual and civilized generation of youth is a solid foundation for Vietnam to continuously rise up, becoming a developed country, a symbol of aspiration, strength and national will.
Therefore, a breakthrough and strategic resolution was issued by the Politburo right before the 80th anniversary of National Day. That is Resolution 71-NQ/TW dated August 22, 2025 on breakthroughs in education and training development with many specific goals for each stage, in which by 2045 Vietnam will have a modern, fair and quality national education system, ranking in the top 20 countries in the world. Every citizen has the opportunity to study for life, improve qualifications, skills and maximize personal potential. High-quality human resources, scientific and technological talents become the core driving force and competitive advantages of the country, contributing to making Vietnam a developed country with high income. Strive for at least 5 higher education institutions in the top 100 universities in the world in some fields according to prestigious international rankings.
Resolution 71 was issued promptly, creating a long-term foundation in the future. Also in the article "The future for the generation to rise up", General Secretary To Lam emphasized: "The period from 2025 to 2045 is only exactly 20 years. The children born during this period will be the young generation of the new generation, the future owners of a thrivingly developing Vietnam. Towards 2045 with the vision of a comprehensive Vietnam, the orientation of human development, especially the young generation, becomes a strategic priority and To build an elite force, we also need to have special policies to attract young talents to return from abroad, build a team of human resources with global competitiveness.
From 80 years of independence, nearly 40 years of innovation and a 100-year vision, every Vietnamese person today, in the atmosphere of celebrating National Day, can be proud. Proud of Vietnam's position.
