Returning to a peaceful Vietnam to meet their old comrades is the dream of many Soviet Union veterans who fought side-by-side against the American aggressors in the 1960s and 1970s. This dream has come true, when the Vietnamese Ministry of National Defence invited them to visit the country in early December 2012.

Memories from the same combat trench

The visit becomes more meaningful, as it takes place at the time Vietnam is preparing to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the victory “Dien Bien Phu in the Air”, defeating the US Linebacker II operation.

At the reception given to the veterans from Russia, Ukraine and Belarus at the Headquarters of the Ministry of National Defence on December 4th, General Phung Quang Thanh, Vietnamese Minister of National Defence, warmly welcomed them and had informative discussions.

The minister was very happy to see the veteran's delight and excitement, although they are old and have been on a long flight. Together, the host and guests talked about their memories of the time when Vietnam rallied its strengths to fight against the enemy. At the most difficult time of the war, the Soviet friends came and helped Vietnam to fight and win.

Ugolnikov Volodimir, who was a radar expert for Hanoi Air Defence from 1968 to 1969 and is head of the Ukrainian delegation to Vietnam this time, highly valued his Vietnamese trainees during the war. He said that training for radar soldiers was very difficult at that time, due to the lack of simulation models and translators, but the Vietnamese soldiers grasped the knowledge quickly and worked hard, even at rest time.

“I am very pleased and happy to have had the most intelligent students in Vietnam. They themselves brought about the victory, shooting down the most modern aircraft of the US Air Force. Vietnam is the only nation that defeated the most powerful enemy with a lot of the most modern weapons,” he said.

Meanwhile, Dzerhachou Mikalai, head of the Belarusian delegation who had 50 years of experience in air defence training, recalled: “I was sent to Vietnam in 1971 and recognized that the US was subjective when they believed that they could win the war in Vietnam with their modern weapons and aircraft. I knew that the US was wrong when I saw Vietnamese people fighting. The Vietnamese people are the most intelligent ones and won the war. The fact is that modern weapons are just normal metal when they are in the hands of those who don’t understand.”

The Soviet veterans are also very proud that they contributed to the great victory of the Vietnamese people.

“Vietnam People’s Army and its Air Force and Air Defence grew up in the war. The support from the Soviet Union was just one part that helped Vietnam win the war. We are proud of the victory of the Vietnamese people,” said Ugolnikov Volodimir.

General Phung Quang Thanh thoroughly understands the difficulties that the Vietnamese people and soldiers had to overcome, as he himself experienced time fighting in the battle fields.

The general affirmed that without assistance from the Soviet Union, Vietnam could not wholly gain the victory. He expressed appreciation for the whole-hearted and great support of the Soviet experts, and stressed that Vietnam would never forget their support.

The Vietnamese minister also expected that the veterans would continue to share experiences in combat, and tell more about the time when they helped the Vietnam People’s Army, so the upcoming generations can learn more about it.

Written by Linh Oanh

Translated by Ngoc Hung

Source: qdnd.vn