By ANIRUDDHA GHOSAL

HO CHI MINH CITY, Vietnam (AP) — Vietnam on Wednesday celebrated the 50th anniversary of the end of the war with the United States and the formation of its modern nation with a military parade and a focus on a peaceful future.

The fall of Saigon on April 30, 1975 marked the end of a Vietnam divided into the communist North and U.S.-allied South, and the country’s top official told crowds the past decades had led to ever increasing unity.

“All the Vietnamese are the descendants of Vietnam. They have the rights to live and work, to have freedom to pursue happiness and love in this country,” said To Lam, the Vietnam Communist Party’s general secretary.

“In a spirit of closing the past, respecting differences, aiming for the future, the whole party, the people and the army vow to make Vietnam become a country of peace, unity, prosperity and development,” he added.

Thousands camped overnight on the streets of the former South Vietnamese capital, which was renamed Ho Chi Minh City after it fell to North Vietnamese and Viet Cong troops, to get the best vantage point for the parade. Many lingered on the streets later in the afternoon and had picnics while waiting for drone and fireworks shows in the evening.

The red and yellow of Vietnam’s national flag was everywhere in the city — fluttering from buildings, painted on the faces of eager teenagers and on the T-shirts of those who had traveled to the city from all over the country.

“Now it’s time for peace,” said spectator Nguyen Thi Hue, a city resident. “Peace is the dream that everyone in the world wants.”

One float carried the mythical Lac bird, Vietnam’s emblem, another a portrait of Ho Chi Minh.

Chinese, Laotian and Cambodian troops marched behind Vietnamese army formations, including some wearing uniforms similar to what was worn by northern Vietnamese troops during the war. Helicopters carrying the national flag and jets flew over the parade near Independence Palace, where a North Vietnamese tank smashed through the gates on the final day of the war.

Crowds soaked in the spectacle as they gathered outside the barricades and at some street corners where giant screens had been set up. Phones raised and eyes wide, people waved and cheered at the marching soldiers. Those at home huddled over their television sets.

Sitting next to Vietnam’s leader were Cambodia’s former leader Hun Sen and Laotian Communist Party General Secretary Thongloun Sisoulith.

To Lam said beyond a victory over the U.S. and South Vietnam, the fall of Saigon was a “glorious landmark” that ended a 30-year fight for independence that began with the fight to oust French colonial troops.

He said Vietnam owes its position in the world today to support from the Soviet Union, China and solidarity from Laos and Cambodia, as well as “progressive” people all over the world including the U.S., he said.

Vietnam’s changing global approach

The emphasis on reconciliation and not, like previous years, on military victory reflected how Vietnam was approaching the changing tides of the global economy and geopolitics today, said Nguyen Khac Giang, an analyst at Singapore’s ISEAS–Yusof Ishak Institute. He added that the Vietnam War remains central to how the Communist Party framed its legitimacy, not just as a military triumph but also as a symbol of national unity. But To Lam’s comments underlined that the reconciliation remains unfinished.

“The war still defines Vietnam’s unity, and its unresolved divides,” Giang said.

For Pham Ngoc Son, a veteran who fought for the communists, today there is “only space for peace and friendship” between the U.S. and Vietnam.

“The war is over a long time ago,” said the 69-year-old who, during the war, served as an army truck driver bringing troops and supplies from the north to the south along the Ho Chi Minh trail — the secret supply route used by North Vietnam.

Passage of time has led to improved relations with U.S.

This year also marks the 30-year anniversary of diplomatic ties between Vietnam and the U.S.

In 2023, Vietnam upgraded its relations with the U.S. to that of a comprehensive strategic partner, the highest diplomatic status it gives to any country and the same level of relations as China and Russia.

There are new signs of strain in the relationship with Washington, however, with President Donald Trump’s imposition of heavy tariffs and the cancellation of much foreign aid, which has affected war remediation efforts in Vietnam.

Vietnamese officials say the relationship with the U.S. is anchored in American efforts to address war legacies such as Agent Orange contamination and unexploded ordnance in the countryside that still threaten lives.

The future of those projects is now at risk because of the Trump administration’s broad cuts to USAID.

Moreover, the export-dependent country is vulnerable in a global economy made fragile amid Trump’s tariff plans.

Vietnam was slammed with reciprocal tariffs of 46%, one of the highest. This puts a “big question mark” on what the U.S. wants to achieve in Asia, said Huong Le-Thu of the International Crisis Group think tank.

Previously, close ties with Washington have helped Vietnam balance its relations with its much larger and more powerful neighbor China, she said.

Vietnam is one of the countries, along with the Philippines, that has been involved in direct confrontations with China over conflicting maritime claims in the South China Sea.

Focus on economic and not strategic competition may mean that Vietnam and other countries in Southeast Asia become less important for the U.S.

“It really will be shaping up (on) how the new administration sees the strategic picture in the Indo-Pacific and where countries like Vietnam would fit in,” she said.

In Washington, State Department spokeswoman Tammy Bruce on Tuesday refused to comment on reports that the Trump administration had discouraged diplomats from attending anniversary events. “I’m not going to discuss what has been suggested or not suggested,” she said.

The Embassy in Hanoi said U.S. consul general in Ho Chi Minh City Susan Burns had attended the event. U.S. ambassador Marc E. Knapper didn’t attend.

Who took part in the parade?

About 13,000 people, including troops, militias, veterans and local citizens took part in the parade. The route followed the main boulevard leading to the Independence Palace before branching into city streets and passed the U.S. Consulate.

A video of Chinese troops singing the iconic song “As If Uncle Ho Were With Us on Victory Day” during a rehearsal was shared widely on social media. Chinese leader Xi Jinping had visited Vietnam earlier in the month in a bid to present the country as a force for stability in contrast with Trump.

Hau Dinh in Ho Chi Minh City, and Matthew Lee in Washington, contributed to this report.

For more coverage of the 50th anniversary of the Vietnam War’s end, visit https://apnews.com/hub/vietnam-war.