A ceremony to rebury the remains of Vietnam's voluntary experts and soldiers who laid down their lives in the national protection war in the southwestern border (Photo: VNA)

The event was organised by the Vietnam Association of Historical Sciences, the University of Social Sciences and Humanities under the Vietnam National University - HCM City, and the HCM City Association of Historical Sciences. More than 50 presentations and opinions from experts and scientists clarified the necessity and inevitability of the war protecting Vietnam at the southwestern border (1977 – 1979). They made clear that the war (before January 7, 1979) and Vietnam’s international mission in Cambodia (1979 – 1989) are two different issues which had different historical backgrounds, causes and developments but were logistically connected. At the event, participants also proved that the war at the border was directly linked with the national protection war in the northern border, and that the fights greatly altered Vietnam’s international relations and affected the country’s post-war situation.