Reunification and reforms
1970s
On 2 July 1976, North and South Vietnam were merged to form the Socialist Republic of Vietnam.[157] The war had devastated Vietnam and killed 966,000 to 3.8 million people.[158][159][160] A 1974 US Senate subcommittee estimated nearly 1.4 million Vietnamese civilians were killed or wounded between 1965 and 1974—including 415,000 killed.[161][162] In its aftermath, under Lê Duẩn's administration, there were no mass executions of South Vietnamese who had collaborated with the US or the defunct South Vietnamese government, confounding Western fears,[163] but up to 300,000 South Vietnamese were sent to reeducation camps, where many endured torture, starvation, and disease while being forced to perform hard labour.[164] The government embarked on a mass campaign of collectivisation of farms and factories.[165] Many fled the country following the conclusion of the war.[166] In 1978, in response to the Khmer Rouge government of Cambodia ordering massacres of Vietnamese residents in the border villages in the districts of An Giang and Kiên Giang,[167] the Vietnamese military invaded Cambodia and removed them from power after occupying Phnom Penh.[168] The intervention was a success, resulting in the establishment of a new, pro-Vietnam socialist government, the People's Republic of Kampuchea, which ruled until 1989.[169] However, this worsened relations with China, which had supported the Khmer Rouge. China later launched a brief incursion into northern Vietnam in 1979, causing Vietnam to rely even more heavily on Soviet economic and military aid, while mistrust of the Chinese government escalated.[170]
1980s to present
At the Sixth National Congress of the Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV) in December 1986, reformist politicians replaced the "old guard" government with new leadership.[171][172] The reformers were led by 71-year-old Nguyễn Văn Linh, who became the party's new general secretary.[171] He and the reformers implemented a series of free-market reforms known as Đổi Mới ("Renovation") that carefully managed the transition from a planned economy to a "socialist-oriented market economy".[173][174] Although the authority of the state remained unchallenged under Đổi Mới, the government encouraged private ownership of farms and factories, economic deregulation, and foreign investment, while maintaining control over strategic industries.[174][175] Subsequently, Vietnam's economy achieved strong growth in agricultural and industrial production, construction, exports, and foreign investment, although these reforms also resulted in a rise in income inequality and gender disparities.[176][177][178]
In 2021, General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam, Nguyen Phu Trong, was re-elected for his third term in office, meaning he was Vietnam's most powerful leader in decades.[179] He died 19 July 2024, and was followed by To Lam as General Secretary of the Communist Party.