orld War II, but France continued to rule until
its 1954 defeat by Communist forces under Ho Chi MINH. Under the
Geneva Accords of 1954, Vietnam was divided into the Communist North
and anti-Communist South. US economic and military aid to South
Vietnam grew through the 1960s in an attempt to bolster the
government, but US armed forces were withdrawn following a
cease-fire agreement in 1973. Two years later, North Vietnamese
forces overran the South reuniting the country under Communist rule.
Despite the return of peace, for over a decade the country
experienced little economic growth because of conservative
leadership policies. However, since the enactment of Vietnam's "doi
moi" (renovation) policy in 1986, Vietnamese authorities have
committed to increased economic liberalization and enacted
structural reforms needed to modernize the economy and to produce
more competitive, export-driven industries. The country continues to
experience protests from various groups - such as the Protestant
Montagnard ethnic minority population of the Central Highlands and
the Hoa Hao Buddhists in southern Vietnam over religious
persecution. Montagnard grievances also include the loss of land to
Vietnamese settlers.

Geography
Vietnam

Location:

Southeastern Asia, bordering the Gulf of Thailand, Gulf of Tonkin,
and South China Sea, alongside China, Laos, and Cambodia

Geographic coordinates:

16 00 N, 106 00 E

Map references:

Southeast Asia

Area:

total: 329,560 sq km
land: 325,360 sq km
water: 4,200 sq km

Area - comparative:

slightly larger than New Mexico

Land boundaries:

total: 4,639 km
border countries: Cambodia 1,228 km, China 1,281 km, Laos 2,130 km

Coastline:

3,444 km (excludes islands)

Maritime claims:

territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin

Climate:

tropical in south; monsoonal in north with hot, rainy season (May to
September) and warm, dry season (October to March)

Terrain:

low, flat delta in south and north; central highlands; hilly,
mountainous in far north and northwest

Elevation extremes:

lowest point: South China Sea 0 m
highest point: Fan Si Pan 3,144 m

Natural resources:

phosphates, coal, manganese, bauxite, chromate, offshore oil and gas
deposits, forests, hydropower

Land use:

arable land: 20.14%
permanent crops: 6.9