At the ceremony (Photo: VNA)

Addressing a ceremony in Dong Xoai city of Binh Phuoc on May 10 to announce the decision, Vice Chairman of the provincial People’s Committee Nguyen Tien Dung recalled that during the war, the nearly 17,000km Ho Chi Minh Trail helped transport weapons and soldiers to the battlefields, contributing to the success of the Ho Chi Minh Campaign in 1975 to liberate and reunite the country.

The strategic trail started from the central province of Nghe An and ran through Ha Tinh, Quang Binh, Quang Tri, Thua Thien-Hue, Quang Nam, Kon Tum, Gia Lai, Dak Lak, Dak Nong and ended in Binh Phuoc. It passed through dense areas of jungle, and served the supply of weapons, goods, food, and military equipment from the North to the South during the country’s resistance war.

The ending point of the trail, about 35km from Dong Xoai city and 80km from Ho Chi Minh City, was recognised as a special national relic on December 24, 2018 following the Prime Minister’s Decision 1820/QD-TTg, he noted.

The section witnessed the sacrifices of soldiers, volunteer youngsters and frontline porters who shed blood to open the road and increase supply to the southern battlefields in the 1973-1975 period, said Dung.

He said that the trail is not only a symbol for the Vietnamese people’s wish for independence, freedom and national reunification, but it has helped develop socio-economic situation in remote areas along the road, while contributing to ensuring national security and defence./.

VNF/VNA