The old general recalls memories of his association with General Khamtay Siphandone

Major General Huynh Dac Huong recalls memories with General, Commander-in-Chief Khamtay Siphandone.

Major General Huynh Dac Huong and General, Commander-in-Chief Khamtay Siphandone (nicknamed Tam), former Chairman of the Lao People's Revolutionary Party, former President of Laos, had a close relationship like "blood brothers". Hearing the news of General Khamtay Siphandone's passing, he was deeply moved and heartbroken, all the memories of the time of attachment and sharing with his close friend flooded back into his mind.

Major General Huynh Dac Huong is living in Hoi An city, Quang Nam province. VNA reporters visited his home while he was following the funeral of General and Commander-in-Chief Khamtay Siphandone. He flipped through the pages of a small notebook, sharing memories of his time as an expert helping Laos, especially working with Mr. Tam.

He said: "I was sent by the Central Committee to work as an expert to help the Lao revolution in 1963, during the most fierce war period in the Vietnam and Laos battlefields. When I first arrived, I did not know Lao. But right from the first meeting, Mr. Tam encouraged me. He said, don't be shy, I speak Vietnamese quite well, we are brothers, with the same aspirations...". That's why he and Mr. Tam became close to each other from the very beginning, supporting each other in everything. He discussed building local guerrilla forces and launching large and small campaigns. Mr. Tam also clearly stated all his thoughts and plans and discussed with Vietnamese experts to find the best solution.

The deepest impression that Major General Nguyen Dac Huong remembers about General Khamtay Siphandone is the Nam Bac campaign in the summer of 1972. This was an important campaign carried out by the Vietnam - Laos coalition, aiming to defeat the enemy and regain the initiative on the battlefield. At this time, the enemy was trying to find every way to destroy the Lao revolutionary army, plotting to turn a large area into a system of interconnected bases, combining the three areas of Phong Sa Li Luong, Pha Bang and the Plain of Jars, in order to consolidate forces and expand the area of ​​control. Faced with this plot, General, Commander-in-Chief Khamtay Siphandone requested that a campaign be launched immediately to resolve the situation, not allowing the enemy to gather and stay deep in our rear. Vietnamese experts and volunteer soldiers agreed to launch the Nam Bac campaign in 1972.

Before the Nam Bac campaign began, a very humane story took place. That is, General Khamtay Siphandone suggested that experts study the way of fighting so that the goal of each battle was to capture many prisoners or push the enemy out of the base, instead of destroying them with firepower. Because in order for the campaign to be successful, helping the Lao people to develop and prosper in the long term after the country is unified, it is necessary to educate and reform the prisoners, help them have the right awareness and become true citizens of Laos.

Speaking of this, Major General Huynh Dac Huong emphasized: "Just with such a point of view, it shows that Mr. Tam is a general with a far-sighted vision of the future of his country, a general with a clear revolutionary outlook on life, all his thoughts and actions are for the country of Laos."

From this perspective of General Khamtay Siphandone, Vietnamese experts changed the combat method, switching from the strategy of "destroying points" to "destroying points", creating conditions for Lao soldiers to flee and organizing ambush forces to capture prisoners. When hearing the new combat plan, General Khamtay Siphandone completely agreed, because this plan not only destroyed the enemy base, prevented their development deep into the rear but also helped save many Lao youths who were lured to follow the enemy. At the end of the battle, the ambush forces captured 3,200 Lao soldiers and sent them to re-education camps.

Through this battle, Vietnamese experts have drawn profound and humane meanings. Since the Nam Bac campaign, the unchangeable principle has been to capture as many prisoners as possible after each battle, and only destroy those who stubbornly resist. General Khamtay Siphandone was happy not only because he won a great victory but also because he helped the Vietnamese-Laotian coalition control a large area of ​​land with few enemy soldiers killed. This is also a typical battle in the Lao revolution.

Major General Huynh Dac Huong recalls memories with General, Commander-in-Chief Khamtay Siphandone.

Major General Huynh Dac Huong continued: "Vietnamese experts often plan to launch campaigns to attack the enemy in the rainy season and withdraw troops in the dry season to re-train and replenish forces. At that time, Khamtay Siphandone thought that this method was like fighting the enemy seasonally... Therefore, I told Tam, Laos is still poor, there is almost no food reserve, the roads are difficult to travel, the climate is harsh. But only with food can the soldiers be strong, so there is a way to fight the enemy seasonally... After this debate, the Vietnam - Laos coalition launched the Muong Suoi campaign and won a great victory. Tam said that from now on we will abandon the precedent of letting troops rest in the rainy season and fight in the dry season, we agree with Tam. However, we still pay attention to the basic issue of having war reserves and Tam also agrees"...

"Once, after working with General, Commander-in-Chief Khamtay Siphandone, we got in the car to go home at night. The car turned on the low beams to avoid detection by the enemy spying on the OV10 aircraft. After driving a short distance, the driver announced that the car had been detected by the enemy aircraft and needed to take urgent shelter. We had just taken cover in a cave when the car was hit by a bullet and burned down. When he received the news that I had escaped, Tam was very happy, saying that our lives were great and that we would help the Lao revolution for a long time. Every time we met, Tam reminded his brothers to consider the history of the Vietnam-Laos revolutionary struggle as the most beautiful pages of history, the most precious gem that cannot be compared to anything. We all must remember and instruct our children and grandchildren to preserve this strong and lasting relationship for future generations," Mr. Huynh Dac Huong shared.

Knowing that Vietnam will hold a two-day national mourning, General Secretary To Lam led a high-ranking delegation of the Party and State to Laos to pay their respects to former Chairman of the Lao People's Revolutionary Party and former President of Laos Khamtay Siphandone. Major General Huynh Dac Huong emphasized: This is a very meaningful act, demonstrating the special relationship and affection between the two countries and peoples. This is also a seamless continuation of the close bond between generations of leaders of the Party, State and people of Vietnam and Laos, a relationship that runs from heart to heart as Uncle Ho once said: "If we love each other, we can climb any mountain/Walk any river, cross any pass/Vietnam and Laos, our two countries/Our love is deeper than the Red River and the Mekong River".

Article and photos: Doan Huu Trung (Vietnam News Agency)

Source: https://baotintuc.vn/thoi-su/vi-tuong-gia-hoi-tuong-nhung-ky-niem-gan-bo-voi-dai-tuong-khamtay-siphandone-20250405153209635.htm