General Huy: I still visit the place once known as the "Lime Kiln of the Century"

After the failed attack on 6 northern border provinces of our country (Lai Chau, Hoang Lien Son, Ha Tuyen, Cao Bang, Lang Son and Quang Ninh) in the early morning of February 17, 1979, China still maintained 12 divisions and dozens of independent regiments close to the Vietnamese border.

In particular, after March 18, 1979, the Vi Xuyen front, Ha Giang province (formerly Ha Tuyen province) quickly became a hot spot, with the sound of gunfire, artillery shells, and mortar shells from the enemy never stopping.

From April 1984 to October 1989, the enemy launched many attacks to encroach on part of the land in the border area of ​​Vi Xuyen district, Ha Tuyen province (now Ha Giang and Tuyen Quang).

During this period, Vi Xuyen became the fiercest battle zone in the war against border invasion. There were days when the enemy fired from 20,000 to 30,000 artillery shells into Vi Xuyen.

Our casualties in the 10-year war here were enormous. From 1979 to 1989, more than 4,000 Vietnamese soldiers were killed, thousands were wounded, and many martyrs have not yet been found.

In the battle to protect the northern border of the Fatherland, our army and people fought bravely, defending every inch of sacred land. Those feats of arms were recorded in the history of the nation.

46 years after the war to protect the northern border (February 17, 1979 - February 17, 2025), we had the opportunity to visit the family of Major General Nguyen Duc Huy (94 years old, former Acting Commander of Military Region 2, former Chief of Staff of the Vi Xuyen front, currently living in Tay Ho district, Hanoi).

Although he is at a rare age, his deep memories of the heroic and fierce battles in Vi Xuyen are still intact.

Major General Nguyen Duc Huy slowly recounted that in 1985, while holding the position of Deputy Chief of Staff of the Capital Military Region with the rank of Colonel, he received orders to reinforce the Vi Xuyen front and directly participated in commanding the combat there.

According to Major General Huy, in the war to protect the northern border, Ha Giang was a key area, damaged by the enemy in many ways compared to the entire northern border.

Especially from 1984 to 1989, fierce fighting occurred in Thanh Thuy, Minh Tan, Thanh Duc communes,... in Vi Xuyen district; Bach Dich and Phu Lung communes in Yen Minh district.

Explaining why the enemy chose Vi Xuyen as the fierce attack point in 1984, he said that this area was remote, more than 300km from Hanoi; there was only National Highway 2 running from Ha Giang town to Hanoi.

Besides, Vi Xuyen is mostly rocky mountains, high from the border and gradually lower towards the interior of Vietnam. The enemy's terrain is a large plateau, favorable for deploying large formations to attack Vietnam.

However, the terrain on the Vietnamese side made it very difficult to deploy large formations for defense and counterattack; transportation and support from the rear to the front was also very difficult.

The enemy's purpose at that time was to attract as many Vietnamese troops as possible on the border to affect economic reconstruction and weaken us.

Ha Giang (then Ha Tuyen) is a remote province on the northern border of our country, with only one road, little international exchange, and rugged terrain, creating favorable conditions for attacks from above. If Ha Giang is successfully captured, the enemy will have many opportunities to invade deeper into our country.

To protect Ha Giang, in 5 years (from 1984 to 1989), we mobilized dozens of main divisions, local infantry regiments, special forces; a number of artillery, engineering, chemical regiments and brigades...

"For nearly 10 years (1979-1989), Vi Xuyen never stopped being bombarded with artillery and bullets from across the border. From a location identified as secondary, Vi Xuyen quickly became a hot spot, a key front in the border area," Major General Nguyen Duc Huy shared.

At its fiercest, in just 3 days, the enemy fired more than 100,000 artillery shells into the Vi Xuyen area all the way to Ha Giang town. In 5 years, the enemy fired more than 1.8 million artillery shells into this front.

After the end of this war, we measured that the mountain was blown away by more than 3m. It was so fierce that many people called it "the lime kiln of the century".

"There were days when the distance from the border to the mainland of our country was only about 5km, but China fired 30,000-50,000 artillery shells, equal to the firepower that the US provided to support the puppet government to capture Quang Tri.

The Vi Xuyen front is mainly rocky mountains, so when hit by artillery shells, the rocks break into dozens of kilometers of white, so many brothers call it "the lime kiln of the century", Major General Nguyen Duc Huy explained.

By 1987, after the 3-day large-scale attack (January 5-7) failed, China gradually reduced its large-scale attacks, only organizing small-scale attacks between positions in direct contact with each other; the enemy mainly used artillery and mortars to fire at our positions to destroy them and kill our troops.

It can be said that this was the enemy's last large-scale attack.

In 1988, the enemy did not organize any large-scale attacks on our defensive positions, but mainly used artillery to bombard our defensive positions and kill our troops.

In 1989, the enemy stopped firing artillery at the Vi Xuyen front. By October 1989, the enemy withdrew all troops from Vietnam, ending 5 years of encroachment on the Vi Xuyen border.

Although the war has been over for 46 years, some are still alive, some are dead, but in his heart, Major General Nguyen Duc Huy still feels guilty for not establishing a team to collect the martyrs' remains right after the gunfire stopped.

"After establishing the National Veterans Liaison Committee of the Vi Xuyen front, it was not until 2018 that we were able to establish a team to collect martyrs' remains at this front," Major General Huy shared.

However, after the two countries normalized relations in 1991, trade goods, facilities, and infrastructure received attention and investment from the Party and State, so people's lives changed rapidly.

"Almost every year I have the opportunity to visit Ha Giang and see this place changing day by day, people's lives constantly developing.

In the past, villages did not have schools, but now things are different. Every place has boarding schools to ensure education for students," said Major General Nguyen Duc Huy.

Since the end of the war at Vi Xuyen front, the country has grown stronger and stronger in the international arena with changes.

Up to now, Major General Nguyen Duc Huy always wants the next generation to be proud of the nation's tradition of patriotism and resistance to foreign invasion. We put the past behind us and look to the future, but we do not forget the past or history.

Associate Professor Dr. Nguyen Trong Phuc, former Director of the Institute of Party History, assessed that the war to protect the northern border was a completely just cause of the Vietnamese people to protect the unity and territorial integrity of the country.

"The policy of the Party and State at that time was to establish peace in the northern border region in a sustainable manner and strengthen the good friendship between Vietnam and China," said Mr. Phuc.

He said that in 1989, the border war ended, Vietnam and China began a new period, opening up the relationship between the two countries.

In 1990 and 1991, there were consecutive meetings between senior leaders of Vietnam and China. In 1991, the two countries normalized relations.

Since 1991, Vietnam - China relations have developed well. The two sides have determined to develop relations according to the motto "Friendly neighbors, comprehensive cooperation, long-term stability, looking towards the future" and the spirit of "Good neighbors, good friends, good comrades, good partners".

According to Associate Professor Dr. Phuc, this relationship is demonstrated in all areas such as economy, culture, defense, security, education, health, etc. and is demonstrated through historical milestones.

In 1999, Vietnam and China signed the Land Border Treaty. On December 27, 2001, the two countries planted the first national border marker at the Mong Cai (Quang Ninh, Vietnam) - Dongxing (China) border gate.

On December 25, 2000, Vietnam and China signed the Agreement on the Delimitation of the Gulf of Tonkin and the Agreement on Fisheries Cooperation. By 2008, the demarcation of the land border had been completed.

Associate Professor Dr. Nguyen Trong Phuc said that these are extremely important steps, demonstrating the increasingly good relationship between the two countries. Thanks to that, it also promotes the economic development of Vietnam - China. Since 2004, China has been Vietnam's largest trading partner.

"Vietnam and China have good common perceptions, the friendly relationship between the two countries is increasingly developing, for the common interests of both sides, the people of the two countries and in accordance with the tradition of friendship, cooperation and solidarity up to now," Mr. Phuc emphasized.

He assessed that after normalizing relations in 1991, the six border provinces of Vietnam and China have made strong developments, especially in economy and trade.

This is partly due to the trade of goods between the two countries. In recent times, Vietnam and China have also opened many large border gates to facilitate the trade of goods.

Associate Professor Dr. Nguyen Trong Phuc stated that in the future, the border provinces of Vietnam and China will strengthen cooperation and friendship to strongly develop economy and trade, which will benefit the people of both countries.

"The foreign policy of our Party and State is peace, friendship, cooperation and development. Vietnam is ready to be a friend and reliable, responsible partner of the international community in the spirit of friendship, sincerity and mutual benefit," Mr. Phuc affirmed.

Vi Xuyen is a mountainous border district in northern Vietnam, surrounding Ha Giang city.   National Highway 4C and National Highway 2 run through. Vi Xuyen has a particularly important position in the socio-economic development strategy, national defense and security of Ha Giang province, and is a land with a long-standing cultural tradition.

In the district, there are 19 ethnic groups living together with a tradition of solidarity, patriotism, steadfastness and courage in struggle, diligence and intelligence in labor.

The terrain of Vi Xuyen district is mostly low hills and mountains, with gentle slopes interspersed with valleys forming large fields with a system of rivers, streams, lakes and ponds, with an average altitude of 300-400m above sea level.

Vi Xuyen has a border of more than 31km adjacent to China, so the work of protecting stable border security is always of concern. The district always maintains a regular and friendly cooperative relationship with Malypho district (Yunnan province, China) in aspects such as exchange and cooperation in crime prevention and control, and protection of national border sovereignty.

According to the Ha Giang Provincial Statistics Office, the growth rate (GRDP) in 2024 of Ha Giang province is estimated at 6.05%, higher than the increase of 2.85% in 2023. Of which, the agriculture, forestry and fishery sector increased by 3.91%, the industry - construction sector increased by 6.71%; the service sector increased by 7.30%.

Gross regional domestic product (GRDP) at current prices in 2024 is estimated at VND 35,822 billion; GRDP per capita is VND 39.3 million/person/year, an increase of VND 3.7 million compared to 2023 (in 2023 it reached VND 35.6 million/person/year).

Content: Nguyen Hai

Design: Thuy Tien

Source: https://dantri.com.vn/xa-hoi/tuong-huy-toi-van-ve-tham-noi-tung-duoc-vi-la-lo-voi-the-ky-20250217203633729.htm