We read all the lead to present a different history.
Looking at the world, there have been many small countries in history, relying on their own advantages and historical opportunities, and eventually developed into a world power or regional power, while obtaining countless benefits and wealth, but also benefiting their own people. At the same time, there are also some very sad countries, although they are very hard, but no matter how they develop, they cannot become big countries and powers, the most typical of which is Vietnam. Some friends may wonder why Vietnam has not been able to become stronger. In Zi Yuan's view, this is actually a doomed result.
▲Old photos of Vietnamese officials at the end of the Qing Dynasty
Historically, parts of Vietnam have been under our rule or as a vassal state for a long time. From the Qin and Han dynasties to the end of the Tang Dynasty, Vietnam has always belonged to China's territory, directly ruled and governed by the Central Plains Dynasty. In the last year of the Tang Dynasty, when the Central Plains Domain was divided, Vietnam took the opportunity to become independent, and during the Northern Song Dynasty, its monarch was named "King of Jiaotong County", and since then, successive rulers of Vietnam have regarded the Central Plains Dynasty as the suzerainty and regularly sent tributes. Vietnam, which was deeply influenced by Chinese civilization, once called itself a "little China", but Vietnam was as ambitious as Japan, very restless, and even always wanted to become a regional power in East Asia.
▲"Vietnam War" old photos
The most recent one was the self-defense counterattack against Vietnam in the 1970s. After the end of the Vietnam War, the Vietnamese people thought that they really defeated the United States on their own and began to swell, and some leaders of the Viet Cong could not suppress their ambitions to become a southeast Asian power, successively invaded Cambodia, Laos and other neighboring countries, and finally attacked our country, repeatedly illegally violating the border and invading our military and civilians. This led to the outbreak of the 1979 counterattack against Vietnam, and Vietnam's dream of becoming a great power was completely shattered in this battle. In fact, Vietnam's independent statehood has a history of up to a thousand years, and it has not been able to develop into a world or regional power, which is actually inevitable, mainly for three reasons.
▲ Vietnamese farmers working in the fields
First, there are birth defects in the homeland. The total area of Vietnam is about 300,000 square kilometers, which is not small for the entire Southeast Asian region and has the foundation to become a great power. Unfortunately, Vietnam's territory is in a long and narrow state from north to south, which reduces the cohesion and connection within the territory, making it difficult for Vietnam to unite and concentrate on developing the national economy. In addition, the north-south narrow stripe can also easily lead to the occurrence of the phenomenon of separation and independence, which can easily lead to the division of the country. In addition, the narrow and long territory also gives Laos, Cambodia and other countries the opportunity, in the event of war, the two armies can stop and cut off Vietnam at any time, causing the northern and southern parts of Vietnam to lose contact, giving Vietnam a heavy blow.
▲Street scene in Hanoi, the capital of Vietnam
Second, there are fierce rivals in the geopolitical landscape. Vietnam's population today is more than 92 million, today's population is more than 90 million, and in a few years it is likely to exceed the 100 million mark, and it is one of the most populous countries in Southeast Asia. However, although the demographic advantage is large, it cannot bring about the slightest change in Vietnam's geopolitical landscape. Vietnam is surrounded by a large number of large countries, and in addition to its border with China, there are two strong rival countries in Southeast Asia – Thailand and Myanmar. Surrounded by powerful countries, the complexity and helplessness of the geopolitical pattern make it difficult for Vietnam to develop strong, even if it is populous and ambitious.
▲ Vietnamese fishermen on the beach
Third, there are obvious deficiencies in the national character. If you want to become a world power, you must have two necessary conditions, that is, you have a good foundation for development and a strong advantage of being a latecomer, which generally refers to the hard-working character and hard work of the people. The reason why China has been able to become strong rapidly after the "reform and opening up" is closely related to the arduous struggle of the broad masses of the people. Vietnam's people are not industrious without a very good foundation for development. Without the ideological preparation for hard struggle, the lack of latecomer advantage has led to Vietnam's "innovation and opening up" forty years, the country is still so backward, and it has not yet become the number one regional power, let alone surpassed China.
Resources:
Chronicles of Nations: Vietnam