Quang Ninh marks Navy's first victory against US forces

Lieutenant General Nguyen Van Bong, Political Commissar of the Navy, emphasized that this was the first victory of the Navy in the national struggle against the US army, which demonstrated the political and spiritual strength of the entire nation and the strong will of the Navy and the northern people.

The Lieutenant General said the Navy’s duty of defending the sovereignty of sea and islands is getting more urgent as the global and regional situation is forecast to be more complicated.

He called on the naval force to promote solidarity, consensus, combat readiness, and combat capacity to successfully fulfill its mission of being the core force in safeguarding national sea and islands.

In 1946, in order to prepare for the launch of a destruction war against the North of Vietnam, US destroyers were sent deep into the Gulf of Tonkin to provoke, harass, and set up the "Gulf of Tonkin Incident" as an excuse to launch aerial attacks against the North.

From August 2-5, 1964, the US mobilised dozens of jet fighters and attackers to bombard economic targets, military bases, and shelters of the Vietnam People’s Navy ships along the coast of Song Gianh in central Quang Binh province to Bai Chay of Quang Ninh.

In the first battle, the Vietnam People’s Navy coordinated with the Anti-Aircraft and other forces and local residents to shot down many aircraft and arrest the first US pilot.