View source for Communist Party of Vietnam

{{Short description|Sole legal party of Vietnam}}
{{Use Oxford spelling|date=October 2021}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=June 2022}}
{{Use shortened footnotes|date=June 2022}}
{{Infobox political party
| name             = Communist Party of Vietnam
| native_name      = Đảng Cộng sản Việt Nam
| native_name_lang = vi
| governing_body   = [[Central Committee of the Communist Party of Vietnam|Central Committee]]
| logo             = Communist Party of Vietnam flag logo.svg
| colorcode        = {{party color|Communist Party of Vietnam}}
| abbreviation     = CPV<br>{{lang|vi|ĐCS / ĐCSVN|italics=no}}
| founder          = [[Hồ Chí Minh]]
| split            = [[Indochinese Communist Party]] (1945)
| leader1_title    = [[General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam|General Secretary]]
| leader1_name     = [[Tô Lâm]]
| leader2_title    = [[Executive Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam|Executive Secretary]]
| leader2_name     = [[Trần Cẩm Tú]]
| foundation       = 3 February 1930<br>({{age in years and days|1930|2|3}})
| merger           = {{plainlist|
* [[Communist Party of Indochina]]
* [[Communist Party of Annam]]
* [[Communist League of Indochina]]
* [[People's Revolutionary Party (Vietnam)|People's Revolutionary Party]] (1975)
}}
| newspaper        = ''[[Nhân Dân]]''
| ideology         = <!--Do not add "Ho Chi Minh thought" here without proper discussion, as it is not a universal communist ideology-->{{ubl|class=nowrap
 | [[Communism]]
 | [[Marxism–Leninism]]
 | [[Vietnamese nationalism]]
 }}
| Political position = Far-Left
| headquarters     = 1A, Hùng Vương Street, [[Ba Đình district|Ba Đình]], [[Hanoi]]
| website          = {{URL|https://dangcongsan.org.vn/|dangcongsan.org.vn}}
| membership       = 5,300,000
| membership_year  = 2021
| national         = [[Vietnamese Fatherland Front]]
| international    = [[International Meeting of Communist and Workers' Parties|IMCWP]]
| womens_wing      = [[Vietnam Women's Union]]
| student_wing     = Vietnam National Union of Students
| youth_wing       = [[Ho Chi Minh Communist Youth Union]]
| wing2_title      = [[Pioneer movement|Pioneer organization]]
| wing2            = [[Ho Chi Minh Young Pioneer Organization]]
| wing3_title      = [[Military|Armed wing]]
| wing3            = [[Vietnam People's Armed Forces]]
| wing4_title      = [[Think tank|Research office]]
| wing4            = [[Central Theoretical Council of the Communist Party of Vietnam|Central Theoretical Council]]
| seats1_title     = [[National Assembly of Vietnam|National Assembly]]
| seats1           = {{composition bar|464|483|{{party  color|Communist Party of Vietnam}}}}
| colors           = {{color box|{{party color|Communist Party of Vietnam}}|border=silver}} Red <!-- Do not link colors per [[MOS:OL]] -->
| anthem           = "[[The Internationale]]"<ref>{{cite news |last1=Van |first1=Yves Dam |title=Vietnam communists meet in secrecy to pick country's new leader |url=https://www.ctvnews.ca/world/article/vietnam-communists-meet-in-secrecy-to-pick-countrys-new-leader/ |access-date=15 May 2024 |work=CTV News |date=21 January 2016 |language=en}}</ref><br />({{Audio|Internationale-Vi.ogg|Vietnamese version}})
| flag             = Flag of the Communist Party of Vietnam.svg{{!}}200px
| country          = Vietnam
}}

The '''Communist Party of Vietnam''' ('''CPV'''){{efn|{{langx|vi|Đảng Cộng sản Việt Nam}} {{IPA|vi|ʔɗaːŋ˧˩ koŋ˧˨ʔ ʂaːn˧˩ viət̚˧˨ʔ naːm˧˧|}}; abbr. {{lang|vi|ĐCS}} or {{lang|vi|ĐCSVN}}. Sometimes translated as the '''Vietnamese Communist Party''' ('''VCP''').}} is the [[One-party state|sole legal party]] of [[Vietnam]]. Founded in 1930 by [[Ho Chi Minh]], the CPV became the [[ruling party]] of [[North Vietnam]] in 1954 after the [[First Indochina War]] and all of Vietnam in 1975 after the [[Vietnam War]]. Although it nominally exists alongside the [[Vietnamese Fatherland Front]], it maintains a [[Unitary state|unitary government]] and has centralized control over the state, [[Vietnam People's Armed Forces|military]], and media. The supremacy of the CPV is guaranteed by Article 4 of the [[Constitution of Vietnam|national constitution]]. The Vietnamese public generally refer to the CPV as simply "the Party" ({{lang|vi|Đảng}}) or "our Party" ({{lang|vi|Đảng ta}}).

The CPV is organized on the basis of [[democratic centralism]], a principle conceived by [[Russian Empire|Russian]] Marxist revolutionary [[Vladimir Lenin]]. The highest institution of the CPV is the party's [[National Congress of the Communist Party of Vietnam|National Congress]], which elects the [[Central Committee of the Communist Party of Vietnam|Central Committee]]. The Central Committee is the supreme organ on party affairs in between party congresses. After a party congress, the Central Committee elects the [[Politburo of the Communist Party of Vietnam|Politburo]] and [[Secretariat of the Communist Party of Vietnam|Secretariat]], and appoints the [[General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam|General Secretary]], the highest party office. In between sessions of the Central Committee, the Politburo is the supreme organ on party affairs. However, it can only implement decisions based on the policies which have been approved in advance by either the Central Committee or the party's National Congress. {{As of|2017}}, the [[12th Politburo of the Communist Party of Vietnam|12th Politburo]] has 19 members.

In history, the party [[August Revolution|overthrew]] the [[Nguyễn dynasty|monarchy]] peacefully and [[Civil conflicts in Vietnam (1945–1949)|clashed]] with opposing factions during the period 1945–46. It later fought the [[French Union]] then [[South Vietnam]] for control of the entire country. From 1941 to 1950, the party operated under the non-communist banner. During the [[Cold War]], its power as the [[Democratic Republic of Vietnam]] was challenged by existence of the [[Western Bloc|pro-Western]] Saigon regime ([[State of Vietnam]] and [[Republic of Vietnam]]) from 1949 to 1975, and it was also aligned with the [[Soviet Union]] and allies. After [[Fall of Saigon|taking power]] in all of Vietnam, the party officially unified the country as the [[Socialist Republic of Vietnam|Socialist Republic]] in 1976. The party had implemented a [[command economy]] in North Vietnam and later all of Vietnam since 1954, before introducing economic reforms, known as {{lang|vi|[[Đổi Mới]]}}, in 1986. The party is currently known for its advocacy of what it calls a "[[socialist-oriented market economy]]" and [[Ho Chi Minh Thought]].<ref>https://mjp.univ-perp.fr/constit/vn.htm</ref>

While continuing to nominally hold to [[Marxism–Leninism]], most independent sources have argued that it has lost its monopolistic ideological and moral legitimacy since the introduction of a [[mixed economy]] in the late 1980s and 1990s.{{sfn|Gillespie|2006|p=91}} In recent years, the party has stopped representing a specific class, but instead the "interests of the entire people", which includes entrepreneurs.{{sfn|Gillespie|2006|p=91}} The final class barrier was removed in 2006, when party members were allowed to engage in private activities.{{sfn|Napier|Hoang|2013}} De-emphasising Marxism–Leninism, the party has placed emphasis on [[Vietnamese nationalism]], [[developmentalism]], and ideas from the [[American Revolution|American]] and [[French Revolution|French]] Revolutions, along with Ho Chi Minh's personal beliefs.{{sfn|Gillespie|2006|pp=91–92}} The CPV participates in the annual [[International Meeting of Communist and Workers' Parties]] (IMCWP). In 1988, the party became the sole political party in Vietnam when it abolished its two satellite parties. The party's regime has been opposed by the [[Vietnamese democracy movement]], especially anti-communist [[overseas Vietnamese]].<ref>{{cite web|archive-date=2011-04-14 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110414165855/http://www.cpv.org.vn/cpv/Modules/News/NewsDetail.aspx?co_id=30296&cn_id=434269 |access-date=2012-07-01 |title=www.cpv.org.vn - Ngăn chặn âm mưu "tự diễn biến hòa bình" trên lĩnh vực tư tưởng, lý luận trước thềm Đại hội Đảng |url=http://www.cpv.org.vn/cpv/modules/news/newsdetail.aspx?cn_id=434269&co_id=30296 |url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.latimes.com/local/california/la-me-ff-south-vietnamese-flag-20141228-story.html|title=Nearly 40 years after war's end, flag of South Vietnam endures|first=Anh|last=Do|website=[[Los Angeles Times]]|date=28 December 2014}}</ref>

{{TOC limit|3}}

== History ==
{{main|History of the Communist Party of Vietnam}}

=== Rise to power (1925–1945) ===
The Communist Party of Vietnam traces its history back to 1925, when [[Ho Chi Minh]] established the [[Vietnamese Revolutionary Youth League]] ({{lang|vi|Hội Việt Nam Cách mạng Thanh niên}}), commonly shortened to the Youth League ({{lang|vi|Hội Thanh niên}}).{{sfn|Huỳnh Kim Khánh|1982|pp=63–64}} The Youth League's goal was to end the colonial occupation of Vietnam by France.{{sfn|Huỳnh Kim Khánh|1982|p=64}} The group sought political and social objectives—national independence and the redistribution of land to working peasants.{{sfn|Huỳnh Kim Khánh|1982|p=64}} The Youth League's purpose was to prepare the masses for a revolutionary armed struggle against the French occupation.{{sfn|Huỳnh Kim Khánh|1982|p=70}} His efforts in laying the groundwork for the party was financially supported by the [[Comintern]].{{sfn|Moise|1988|p=11}}

In 1928 the headquarters of the Youth League in Canton (present-day [[Guangdong]]), China, were destroyed by the [[Kuomintang]] (Chinese Nationalist Party) and the group was forced underground.{{sfn|Huỳnh Kim Khánh|1982|p=76}} This led to a national breakdown within the Youth League,{{sfn|Huỳnh Kim Khánh|1982|p=114}} which indirectly led to a split.{{sfn|Huỳnh Kim Khánh|1982|p=119}} On 17 June 1929, more than 20 delegates from cells throughout the [[Tonkin (French protectorate)|Tonkin]] (northern) region held a conference in [[Hanoi]], where they declared the dissolution of Youth League and the establishment of a new organization called the [[Communist Party of Indochina]] ({{lang|vi|Đông Dương Cộng sản Đảng}}).{{sfn|Huỳnh Kim Khánh|1982|p=120}} The other faction of the Youth League, based in the [[Cochinchina]] (southern) region of the country, held a conference in [[Saigon]] and declared themselves the [[Communist Party of Annam]] ({{lang|vi|An Nam Cộng sản Đảng}}) in late 1929.{{sfn|Huỳnh Kim Khánh|1982|p=120}} The two parties spent the rest of 1929 engaged in polemics against one another in an attempt to gain a position of hegemony over the radical Vietnamese liberation movement.{{sfn|Huỳnh Kim Khánh|1982|p=122}} A third Vietnamese communist group which did not originate from the Youth League emerged around this time in the [[Annam (French protectorate)|Annam]] (central) region, calling itself the [[Communist League of Indochina]] ({{lang|vi|Đông Dương Cộng sản Liên Đoàn}}).{{sfn|Huỳnh Kim Khánh|1982|p=122}} The Communist League of Indochina had its roots in another national liberation group which had existed in parallel with the Youth League, and saw itself as a rival to the latter.{{sfn|Huỳnh Kim Khánh|1982|p=122}}

The Communist Party of Indochina and Communist Party of Annam, together with individual members of the Communist League of Indochina, merged to form a united communist organization called the Communist Party of Vietnam ({{lang|vi|Đảng Cộng sản Việt Nam}}), founded by Ho Chi Minh at a "Unification Conference" held in [[Wah Yan College, Kowloon|Wah Yan College]] in [[Kowloon]], [[British Hong Kong]], from 3–7 February 1930.{{sfn|Kolko|1994|p=27}} At a later conference, per the request of the Comintern, the party changed its name to the '''[[Indochinese Communist Party]]''' ({{lang|vi|Đảng Cộng sản Đông Dương}}), often abbreviated as ICP. During its first five years of existence, the ICP attained a membership of about 1,500 and had a large contingent of sympathizers. Despite the group's small size, it exerted an influence in a turbulent Vietnamese social climate. Poor harvests in 1929 and 1930 and an onerous burden of debt served to radicalize many peasants. In the industrial city of [[Vinh]], [[May Day]] demonstrations were organized by ICP activists, which gained critical mass when the families of the semi-peasant workers joined the demonstrations to express their dissatisfaction with the economic circumstances they faced.{{sfn|Kolko|1994|p=28}}

As three May Day marches grew into mass rallies, French colonial authorities moved in to quash what they perceived to be dangerous peasant revolts. Government forces fired upon the crowds, killing dozens and enraging the population. In response, councils were organized in villages in an effort to govern themselves locally. Repression by the colonial authorities began in the autumn of 1931; around 1,300 people were eventually killed by the French and many more were imprisoned or deported as government authority was reasserted and the ICP was effectively wiped out in the region.{{sfn|Kolko|1994|p=28}} General Secretary Tran Phu and a number of Central Committee members were arrested or killed. [[Lê Hồng Phong]] was assigned by the Comintern to restore the movement. The party was restored in 1935, and Lê Hồng Phong was elected its general secretary. In 1936, [[Hà Huy Tập]] was appointed general secretary instead of Lê Hồng Phong, who returned to the country to restore the Central Committee. In the mid 1930s the party was forced publicly to abandon much of its opposition to French colonialism as Soviet leader [[Joseph Stalin]] cared more about strengthening a left-inclined government in France. Ho Chi Minh was also removed from the party leadership in the early 1930s.{{Sfn|Moise|1988|p=11–12}} Ho Chi Minh was criticized within the party and by the Communist International for his use of nationalism as a means.<ref name="mqt">[http://phapluattp.vn/20100517023132446p0c1013/tinh-than-dan-toc-o-chu-tich-ho-chi-minh.htm Tinh thần dân tộc ở Chủ tịch Hồ Chí Minh] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100520061732/http://phapluattp.vn/20100517023132446p0c1013/tinh-than-dan-toc-o-chu-tich-ho-chi-minh.htm |date = ngày 20 tháng 5 năm 2010}}, có dẫn nguồn ''Hồ Chí Minh - Con người của Sự sống'', GS-TS Mạch Quang Thắng, Nhà Xuất bản Chính trị Quốc gia, Hà Nội, 2009</ref>

The French colonial apparatus in Vietnam was disrupted during [[World War II]].{{sfn|Moise|1988|pp=18–19}} The fall of France to [[Nazi Germany]] in June 1940 and the subsequent collaboration of [[Vichy France]] with the Axis powers of Germany and Japan served to delegitimize French claims of sovereignty. The European war made colonial governance from France impossible and Indochina was occupied by Japanese forces.{{sfn|Kolko|1994|p=30}} As a result, the communists also sought the opportunity to establish a grassroots organization throughout most of the country.{{Sfn|Moise|1988|pp=18–19}}

At the beginning of the war, the ICP instructed its members to go into hiding in the countryside. Despite this, more than 2,000 party members, including many of its leaders, were rounded up and arrested.{{sfn|Kolko|1994|p=30}} Party activists were particularly hard hit in the southern region of [[French Cochinchina|Cochinchina]], where the previously strong organization was wiped out by arrests and killings. After an uprising in Cochinchina in 1940, most of the Central Committee, including Nguyễn Văn Cừ (general secretary) and Hà Huy Tập, were arrested and killed, and Lê Hồng Phong was deported to [[Côn Đảo]] and later died.{{sfn|Kolko|1994|p=31}} A new party leadership, which included [[Trường Chinh]], [[Phạm Văn Đồng]], and [[Võ Nguyên Giáp]] emerged. Together with Ho Chi Minh, these individuals would provide a unified leadership over the next four decades.{{sfn|Kolko|1994|pp=30–31}}

Ho Chi Minh returned to Vietnam in February 1941 and established a military-political front known as the League for the Independence of Vietnam ({{lang|vi|Việt Nam Độc Lập Đồng Minh Hội}}), commonly known as the [[Viet Minh]] ({{lang|vi|Việt Minh}}).{{sfn|Kolko|1994|p=30}} The Viet Minh was a broad organization that included many political parties, military groups, religious organizations and other factions who sought independence for Vietnam. The Viet Minh was heavily influenced by the leadership of the ICP. It was the most uncompromising fighting force against the Japanese occupation and gained popular recognition and legitimacy in an environment that would become a political vacuum.{{sfn|Kolko|1994|p=32}} Despite its position as the core of the Viet Minh, the ICP remained very small throughout the war, with an estimated membership of between 2,000 and 3,000 in 1944.{{sfn|Kolko|1994|p=32}} In May 1945, the Viet Minh started to operate in the Tonkin provinces bordering China no longer under the banner of the Viet Cach, a pro-Chinese nationalist organization in exile founded in 1942 of which they were then a member.<ref>David G. Marr, [http://books.google.com.vn/books?id=CVMA0mk6_6kC&pg=PA410&hl=vi&source=gbs_toc_r&cad=3#v=onepage&q&f=false Vietnam: State, War, and Revolution (1945–1946)], page 410 - 412, California: University of California Press, 2013</ref>

===Left opposition===
The party, particularly in the south, was rivalled by other nationalist and left-wing groups, notably [[Trotskyism in Vietnam|Trotskyist organisations]]. In November 1931, dissidents emerging from within the party formed the October Left Opposition ({{lang|vi|Tả Đối Lập Tháng Mười}}) around the clandestine journal ''{{lang|vi|Tháng Mười}}'' (October). These included Hồ Hữu Tường and [[Phan Văn Hùm]] who, protesting a leadership of "Moscow trainees", had formed an Indochinese group within the Communist League ({{lang|vi|Liên Minh Cộng Sản Đoàn}}), the French section of the International [[Left Opposition]], in Paris in July 1930.{{sfn|Văn|2010|p=52}} Once considered "the theoretician of the Vietnamese contingent in Moscow",{{sfn|Tai|1992|p=242}} Tường was calling for a new "mass-based" party arising directly "out of the struggle of the real struggle of the proletariat of the cities and countryside".{{sfn|Văn|2010|p=168}} Tường was joined in endorsing [[Leon Trotsky]]'s doctrines of "[[proletarian internationalism]]" and of "[[permanent revolution]]" by [[Tạ Thu Thâu]] of the Annamite Independence Party ({{lang|vi|Đảng Việt Nam Độc Lập}}). Rejecting (in the wake of the [[Shanghai massacre]]) the Comintern's "Kuomintang line", Thâu argued against a nationalist accommodation with the indigenous bourgeoisie and for immediate "proletarian socialist revolution".{{sfn|Văn|2010|p=160}}

Recognizing the Trotskyists' relative strength in organizing Saigon's factories and waterfront, the ICP cells in the city maintained a unique pact with the Trotskyists for four years in the mid-1930s. The two groups published a common paper, ''[[La Lutte (newspaper)|La Lutte]]'' ("The Struggle"), and presented joint "workers' lists" for Saigon municipal and colonial-council elections.{{sfn|Bousquet|1991|pp=[https://books.google.com/books?id=EpuLWVqCC1AC&pg=PA34 34–35]}}{{sfn|Alexander|1991|pp=[https://books.google.com/books?id=_eUtQjseKaIC&pg=PA961 961–962]}}{{sfn|Trager|1959|p=134}} After they rallied in August 1945 with other non-Communist forces demanding arms against the French, the Trotskyists were systematically hunted down and eliminated by their former party collaborators under the direction of Tran Van Giau,{{sfn|Đức|1999}} a fate shared by large numbers of [[Caodaism|Caodaists]], independent nationalists and their families.{{sfn|Văn|2010|pp=128–129}}

=== First Indochina War (1945–1954) ===
Following the [[August Revolution]], Ho Chi Minh became Chairman of the Provisional Government (Prime Minister of the [[Democratic Republic of Vietnam]]) on 28 August 1945 and issued a [[Proclamation of Independence of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam]] on September 2.{{sfn|Zinn|1995|p=460}} Although he convinced Emperor [[Bảo Đại]] to abdicate, his government was not recognized by any country. He repeatedly petitioned American President [[Harry S. Truman]] for support for Vietnamese independence,{{sfn|Price}} citing the [[Atlantic Charter]], but Truman did not respond due to his anti-communist stance.{{sfn|Zinn|1995|p=461}} After the successful establishment of an independent [[Democratic Republic of Vietnam]] in [[Hanoi]], Vietnam was occupied by Kuomintang forces in the north and Anglo-French forces in the south. 

As an effort to alleviate the fears of a communist takeover, the ICP was officially dissolved and was downgraded to the "'''Institute for Studying Marxism in Indochina'''" ({{lang|vi|Hội Nghiên cứu Chủ nghĩa Marx tại Đông Dương}}) in November 1945. In fact, the party still operated. However, this did not eliminate [[Civil conflicts in Vietnam (1945–1949)|tensions]] between communists and nationalists due to the monopoly of Viet Minh. The [[First Indochina War]] between the Viet Minh and France broke out in late 1946, ending their negotiations. In practice, the Viet Minh became the leading force in the struggle against the French [[neo-colonialism|neo-colonialists]] and their anti-communist sympathizers. After being recognized by [[China|Communist China]] and the [[Soviet Union|USSR]] in January 1950, the Viet Minh demonstrated a stance of [[class struggle]] of [[communism]]. The ICP was ostensibly dissolved, but its core was still functioning. According to the United States' [[Central Intelligence Agency]] (CIA), membership in the Viet Minh grew to about 400,000 members by 1950. In 1951, during the war for independence, the officially dissolved Indochinese Communist Party was officially re-established and renamed the '''Worker's Party of Vietnam''' ({{lang|vi|Đảng lao động Việt Nam}}), often abbreviated as the WPV. The Soviet Union of [[Joseph Stalin|Stalin]] was unhappy with the Vietnamese communists' displays of neutrality in relations between communist and capitalist blocs, their pretense of dissolving the party, and their failure to implement land reform in the past, despite Hồ Chí Minh's explanation that these were only temporary tactics in [[Moscow]] in February 1950. They opposed France's granting of independence and unity to the [[State of Vietnam]] of anti-communist nationalists as an [[associated state]] within the [[French Union]] in June 1949. China supported the Viet Minh and the US supported the French Union. At Stalin's urging, the Vietnamese communists implemented [[Land reform in North Vietnam|land reform]] under Chinese model and the control from Chinese advisors in 1953, even though they had not yet defeated the French. The [[First Indochina War]] against French Union forces lasted until July 1954, two months after the big Viet Minh victory at the [[Battle of Dien Bien Phu|Battle of Điện Biên Phủ]].{{sfn|Leifer|1994|pp=175–176}}{{sfn|Central Intelligence Agency|1956}}<ref name="pent5">{{cite web|archive-date=2011-08-06 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110806004651/http://www.mtholyoke.edu/acad/intrel/pentagon/pent5.htm |access-date=2011-07-23 |title=The Pentagon Papers, Chapter 2, "U.S. Involvement in the Franco-Viet Minh War, 1950-1954", U.S. POLICY AND THE BAO DAI REGIME |url=http://www.mtholyoke.edu/acad/intrel/pentagon/pent5.htm |url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>https://nghiencuulichsu.com/2014/06/16/hiep-dinh-phap-viet-ngay-8-thang-3-nam-1949-hiep-dinh-elysee/</ref>

Vietnam was partitioned at 17th parallel following the [[1954 Geneva Conference]], with the communists ruling the northern half of the country. Almost immediately, the party's Marxist ideologues believed that their party had lost sight of its real Marxist purpose of guiding the working class in a struggle against the bourgeoisie in its efforts of national independence. By 1955, they had launched a significant campaign to promote personnel with a background in class struggle, at the cost of communists whose claims to authority were based on their leadership in the resistance against the French.{{sfn|Moise|1988|p=19}}<ref>{{cite web|archive-date=November 29, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161129211034/http://www.vanhoanghean.com.vn/chuyen-muc-goc-nhin-van-hoa/nhung-goc-nhin-van-hoa/viet-nam-dan-chu-cong-hoa-tranh-thu-su-ung-ho,-vien-tro-cua-trung-quoc,-lien-xo-trong-khang-chien-chong-phap-1950-1954 |access-date=2015-05-17 |title=VIỆT NAM DÂN CHỦ CỘNG HÒA TRANH THỦ SỰ ỦNG HỘ, VIỆN TRỢ CỦA TRUNG QUỐC, LIÊN XÔ TRONG KHÁNG CHIẾN CHỐNG PHÁP &#91;1950 - 1954&#93; |url=http://www.vanhoanghean.com.vn/chuyen-muc-goc-nhin-van-hoa/nhung-goc-nhin-van-hoa/viet-nam-dan-chu-cong-hoa-tranh-thu-su-ung-ho,-vien-tro-cua-trung-quoc,-lien-xo-trong-khang-chien-chong-phap-1950-1954 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

=== Vietnam War (1955–1975) ===
At the second party congress it was decided that the Communist Party would be split into three; one party for each of Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia. However, in an official note it said that the "Vietnamese party reserves the right to supervise the activities of its brother parties in Cambodia and Laos".{{sfn|Stuart-Fox|1997|pp=80–81}} The [[Communist Party of Kampuchea|Khmer People's Revolutionary Party]] was established in April 1951 and the [[Lao People's Revolutionary Party|Lao People's Party]] was formed four years later on 22 March 1955.{{sfn|Stuart-Fox|1997|p=81}} The third party congress, held in Hanoi in 1960, formalized the tasks of constructing socialism in what was by then [[North Vietnam]], or the Democratic Republic of Vietnam (DRV), and committed the party to the "liberation" of South Vietnam.{{sfn|Van|Cooper|1983|p=55}} In the south, the [[United States]] supported an anti-communist state, the [[Republic of Vietnam]] (RVN), successor of the [[State of Vietnam]], established in October 1955. In 1960 the DRV established a military-political front in the south called the [[Viet Cong|National Liberation Front of Southern Vietnam]] ({{lang|vi|Mặt trận Dân tộc Giải phóng Miền Nam Việt Nam}}) or NLF for short. American soldiers commonly referred to the NLF as the Viet Cong ({{lang|vi|Việt Cộng}}) or VC for short.

As [[Proxy war|part]] of the [[Cold War]] and due to [[Civil war|conflicts]] between two Vietnamese states, the [[Vietnam War]] (or Second Indochina War) happened between the communists which included the Democratic Republic of Vietnam (North Vietnam) and the National Liberation Front (Viet Cong), and the anti-communists which included the United States, the Republic of Vietnam (South Vietnam) and their allies, such as [[Australia]], [[South Korea]], and [[Thailand]]. The communists received support from the [[People's Republic of China]] and the [[Soviet Union]]. The war lasted from 1960 to 1975 and spilled over into Laos and Cambodia. The [[Cambodian Civil War]] broke out between the communist [[Khmer Rouge]] and [[GRUNK]], and the pro-American [[Khmer Republic]]. The [[Laotian Civil War]] broke out between the communist [[Pathet Lao]] and the pro-American [[Kingdom of Laos]]. The Cambodian and Laotian communists received training and support from the DRV and NLF. During the war the Worker's Party of Vietnam also established its sub-branch in the south called the [[People's Revolutionary Party (Vietnam)|People's Revolutionary Party of South Vietnam]] ({{lang|vi|Đảng Nhân dân Cách mạng Miền Nam Việt Nam}}), which aimed to lead the NLF. After the withdrawal of American troops from South Vietnam and later the [[Fall of Saigon|collapse]] of the RVN on 30 April 1975, Vietnam was ''de facto'' unified under the leadership of the communists and the South was under the [[Provisional Revolutionary Government of the Republic of South Vietnam]] (PRG), leading to formal reunification under the communist [[Socialist Republic of Vietnam|Socialist Republic]] on 2 July 1976. At the fourth party congress in December 1976, the Workers' Party of Vietnam merged with the People's Revolutionary Party of South Vietnam to create the Communist Party of Vietnam ({{lang|vi|Đảng Cộng sản Việt Nam}}), commonly abbreviated as CPV.{{sfn|Reis|2012|p=15}} The party explained that the merger and name change was made in light of the "strengthened [[Dictatorship of the proletariat|proletariat dictatorship]], the development of the leadership of the [[working class]]{{nbsp}}... a worker-peasant alliance".{{sfn|Van|Cooper|1983|p=55}}<ref>{{cite web|archive-date=2016-03-11 |access-date=2021-01-11 |title=Ngày giải phóng Sài Gòn thống nhất đất nước, 30-4-1975 |url=http://tinhdoanbinhthuan.vn/index.php?option=com_content&;view=article&id=268:ngay-gii-phong-min-nam-thng-nht-t-nc-&catid=139:nhng-ngay-l-ln-trong-nm&Itemid=253 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160311015118/http://tinhdoanbinhthuan.vn/index.php?option=com_content&;view=article&id=268:ngay-gii-phong-min-nam-thng-nht-t-nc-&catid=139:nhng-ngay-l-ln-trong-nm&Itemid=253 |url-status=dead |website=Đoàn TNCS Hồ Chí Minh tỉnh Bình Thuận}}</ref>

=== Ruling party (1976–present) ===
[[File:Emblem of Vietnam Communist Party.svg|thumb|Party emblem sometimes seen on certificates of merit given out by the CPV's internal organizations]]

The fourth party congress comprised 1,008 delegates who represented 1,553,500 party members, an estimated three per cent of the Vietnamese population. A new line for socialist construction was approved at the congress, the [[Second Five-Year Plan (Vietnam)|Second Five-Year Plan]] (1976–1980) was approved and several amendments were made to the party's constitution. The party's new line emphasized building socialism domestically and supported socialist expansion internationally. The party's economic goal was to build a strong and prosperous socialist country in 20 years.{{sfn|Van|Cooper|1983|p=55}} The economic goals set for the Second Five-Year Plan failed to be implemented, and a heated debate about economic reform took place between the fourth and fifth party congresses. The first was at the sixth Central Committee plenum of the fourth party congress in September 1979, but the most revealing one occurred at the tenth Central Committee plenum of the fourth party congress which lasted from 9 October to 3 November 1981. The plenum adopted a reformist line but was forced to moderate its position when several grassroot party chapters rebelled against its resolution. At the fifth party congress, held in March 1982, General Secretary [[Lê Duẩn]] said the party had to strive to reach two goals; to construct socialism and to protect Vietnam from Chinese aggression, but priority was given to socialist construction.{{sfn|Võ|1990|p=125}} The party leadership acknowledged the failures of the Second Five-Year Plan, claiming that their failure to grasp the economic and social conditions aggravated the country's economic problems.{{sfn|Võ|1990|p=126}} The [[Third Five-Year Plan (Vietnam)|Third Five-Year Plan]] (1981–1985) emphasized the need to improve living conditions and the need for more industrial construction, but agriculture was given top priority. Other points were to improve the deficiencies in central planning, improve economic trade relations with the [[COMECON]] countries, [[Laos]] and [[People's Republic of Kampuchea|Kampuchea]].{{sfn|Võ|1990|p=127}}

[[File:Two Flags Vietnam.JPG|thumb|left|The flag of the CPV and the national flag of Vietnam flying side by side]]

While Lê Duẩn continued to believe in the goals set in the Third Five-Year Plan,{{sfn|Võ|1990|p=141}} leading members within the Communist Party were losing their trust in the system. It was in this mood that the 1985 price reform was introduced—market prices were introduced, which led to a sudden increase in inflation.{{sfn|Võ|1990|pp=165–166}} By 1985, it became apparent that the Third Five-Year Plan had failed miserably.{{sfn|Võ|1990|p=168}} Attacks against the interests of the well-to-do were part of the Communist ideas of class struggle. The majority of the educated came from well-off families, and the middle and upper classes held education and abilities that were critical to the country's prosperity, but the Communist Party's attitude toward those groups has frequently hampered their effective use of their education and skills.{{Sfn|Moise|1988|p=12}} As a result, Vietnam's most pressing needs, such as the rebuilding of a shattered economy and the establishment of long-term economic development, had largely gone unfulfilled. The Communist Party's personnel lacked the skills to tackle these issues, and the Communists' monopolization of power made it impossible for those who did have the skills to put them to use in the decade following the war's end. Vietnam was one of the poorest countries in the world during Lê Duẩn's rule.{{Sfn|Moise|1988|p=20}} Lê Duẩn died on 10 July 1986, a few months before the sixth party congress.{{sfn|Corfield|2008|pp=111–112}} A [[Politburo of the Communist Party of Vietnam|Politburo]] meeting held between 25 and 30 August 1986, paved the way for more radical reforms; the new reform movement was led by [[Trường Chinh]].{{sfn|Võ|1990|p=181}} At the sixth party congress, [[Nguyễn Văn Linh]] was elected the new general secretary{{spaced ndash}}this was a victory for the party's old guard reformist wing. The new leadership elected at the Congress would later launch [[Đổi Mới]] and establish the framework for the [[socialist-oriented market economy]].{{sfn|Võ|1990|pp=183–185}} The economic reforms were initiated alongside a relaxation of state censorship and freedom of expression.{{sfn|Largo|2002|p=2}} The [[Chinese Communist Party]] praised the CPV's economic and political reforms, which continued into the early 2000s.{{sfn|Shambaugh|2008|page=84}}

At the seventh party congress in which Nguyễn Văn Linh retired from politics, he reaffirmed the party's and country's commitment to socialism.{{sfn|Jeffries|1993|p=238}} [[Đỗ Mười]] succeeded Nguyễn Văn Linh as general secretary, [[Võ Văn Kiệt]], the leading reformist communist, was appointed prime minister and [[Lê Đức Anh]], was appointed [[President of Vietnam|president]].{{sfn|Largo|2002|p=3}} In 1994, four new members were appointed to the [[7th Politburo of the Communist Party of Vietnam|seventh Politburo]], all of whom opposed radical reform. At the June 1997 Central Committee meeting, both Lê Đức Anh and Võ Văn Kiệt confirmed their resignations to the ninth National Assembly, which was dissolved in September. [[Phan Văn Khải]] was approved as Võ Văn Kiệt's successor, and the relatively unknown [[Trần Đức Lương]] succeeded Lê Đức Anh as president.{{sfn|Largo|2002|pp=10–11}} At the fourth Central Committee plenum of the eighth party congress, [[Lê Khả Phiêu]] was elected general secretary and Đỗ Mười, Lê Đức Anh and Võ Văn Kiệt officially resigned from politics and were elected Advisory Council of the Central Committee. [[Nông Đức Mạnh]] succeeded Lê Khả Phiêu in 2001 as general secretary.{{sfn|Abuza|2001|p=14}} Nông Đức Mạnh held the top spot until the [[11th National Congress of the Communist Party of Vietnam|11th National Congress]] in 2011, when he was succeeded by [[Nguyễn Phú Trọng]].<ref>{{cite news |title=Vietnam Congress confirms new leadership trio |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-pacific-12222997 |work=BBC News |date=19 January 2011}}</ref> Trong is seen as a conservative and closer to China.<ref>{{cite news |title=Vietnam Communist Party boss Nguyen Phu Trong re-elected |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-35418284 |work=BBC News |date=27 January 2016}}</ref> In 2021, General Secretary of the Communist Party, Nguyễn Phú Trọng, was re-elected for his third term in office, becoming Vietnam's most powerful leader in decades.<ref>{{cite news |title=Vietnam's ruling Communist Party re-elects chief Trong for rare third term |url=https://www.france24.com/en/asia-pacific/20210131-vietnam-s-ruling-communist-party-re-elects-chief-trong-for-rare-third-term |work=France 24 |date=31 January 2021 |language=en}}</ref> However, in July 19th, 2024, Nguyễn Phú Trọng suddenly died while in office.<ref>{{cite web |title=Vietnamese leader Nguyen Phu Trong dies at 80 - BBC |date=19 July 2024 |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c51y3r09zr2o |access-date=3 April 2025}}</ref>

After the death of Nguyễn Phú Trọng, [[Tô Lâm]] took the office as the Acting General Secretary. In August 3rd, 2024, Tô Lâm was elected unanimously as the 13th General Secretary of the party during the 9th extraordinary plenary session of the [[13th National Congress of the Communist Party of Vietnam|13th National Congress]].<ref>{{cite web |title=President To Lam elected as Viet Nam Party General Secretary |date=3 August 2024 |url=https://en.baochinhphu.vn/president-to-lam-elected-as-viet-nam-party-general-secretary-111240803081019742.htm}}</ref>

== Organization ==
{{Politics of Vietnam}}

=== National Congress ===
{{main|National Congress of the Communist Party of Vietnam}}

The National Congress is the party's highest organ,{{sfn|Van|Cooper|1983|p=56}} and is held once every five years. Delegates decide the direction of the party and the Government at the National Congress. The Central Committee is elected,{{sfn|Ashwill|Thai|2005|p=47}} delegates vote on policies and candidates are elected to posts within the central party leadership. After decisions taken at the National Congress are ratified, the congress is dissolved. The Central Committee implements the decisions of the National Congress during the five-year period between congresses. When the Central Committee is not in session, the Politburo implements the policies of the National Congress.{{sfn|Van|Cooper|1983|p=56}}

=== Central Committee ===
{{main|Central Committee of the Communist Party of Vietnam|12th Central Committee of the Communist Party of Vietnam}}
The Central Committee is the CPV's most powerful institution.{{sfn|East|Thomas|2003|p=574}} It delegates some of its powers to the [[Secretariat of the Communist Party of Vietnam|Secretariat]] and the [[Politburo of the Communist Party of Vietnam|Politburo]] when it is not in session.{{sfn|Rowley|2008|p=187}} When the [[Vietnam War]] ended in 1975, the Vietnamese leadership, led by [[Lê Duẩn]], began to centralize power. This policy continued until the [[6th National Congress of the Communist Party of Vietnam|sixth National Congress]], when [[Nguyễn Văn Linh]] took power. Linh pursued a policy of economic and political decentralization.{{sfn|Abuza|2001|p=9}} The party and state bureaucracy opposed Linh's reform initiatives; because of this, Linh tried to win the support of provincial leaders, causing the powers of the provincial chapters of the CPV to increase in the 1990s. The CPV lost its power to appoint or dismiss provincial-level officials in the 1990s; [[Võ Văn Kiệt]] tried to wrestle this power back to the centre during the 1990s without success. 

Because of these changes, power in Vietnam has become increasingly devolved.{{sfn|Abuza|2001|p=10}} The number of Central Committee members with a provincial background increased from 15.6 per cent in 1982 to 41 per cent in 2001. Because of the devolution of power, the powers of the Central Committee have increased substantially; for example, when a two-thirds majority of the Politburo voted in favour of retaining [[Lê Khả Phiêu]] as General Secretary, the Central Committee voted against the Politburo's motion and voted unanimously in favour of removing him from his post of General Secretary.{{sfn|Abuza|2001|p=12}} The Central Committee did this because most of its members had a provincial background, or were working in the provinces. These members were the first to be affected when the economy began to stagnate during Lê Khả Phiêu's rule.{{sfn|Abuza|2001|pp=11–12}} The Central Committee elects the Politburo in the aftermath of the Party Congress.{{sfn|Van|Cooper|1983|p=69}}

==== General Secretary ====
{{main|General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam}}
[[File:P20230910AS-0913 (53234691421).jpg|thumb|General Secretary [[Nguyễn Phú Trọng]] presided the ceremony welcoming [[President of the United States|President]] [[Joe Biden]] [[state visit]] to Vietnam in 2023. The event marked an unprecedented situation when the US government recognized the general secretaryship as the Vietnamese state's top leadership.]]
The General Secretary of the Central Committee is the highest office within the Communist Party,{{sfn|Porter|1993|p=66}} is elected by the Central Committee, and can remain in post for two five-year terms. The general secretary presides over the work of the Central Committee, the Politburo, the Secretariat, is responsible for issues such as defence, security and foreign affairs, and chairs meetings with important leaders.{{sfn|Communist Party of Vietnam|2011}} The general secretary holds the post of Secretary of the [[Central Military Commission (Vietnam)|Central Military Commission]], the party's highest military affairs organ.{{sfn|Porter|1993|p=83}}

Before 1991, there was significantly greater concentration of power in the General Secretary.<ref name=":ChineseTheory2">{{Cite book |last1=Nguyen |first1=Hanh |title=Chinese International Relations Theory as Emerging From Practice and Policy |date=2025 |publisher=[[Routledge]] |isbn=978-0-429-19769-7 |editor-last=Ping |editor-first=Jonathan H. |edition= |location=New York, NY |chapter=The Divergence Between the Vietnamese Communist Party and the Chinese Communist Party |editor-last2=Hayes |editor-first2=Anna |editor-last3=McCormick |editor-first3=Brett}}</ref>{{Rp|page=131}} After the revised constitution was adopted in 1992, power was more distributed between the General Secretary, the President, and the Prime Minister.<ref name=":ChineseTheory2" />{{Rp|page=131}}

==== Politburo ====
{{main|Politburo of the Communist Party of Vietnam}}
The Politburo is the highest organ of the Communist Party between Central Committee meetings, which are held twice a year. The Politburo can implement policies which have been approved by either the previous Party Congress or the Central Committee. It is the duty of the Politburo to ensure that resolutions of the Party Congress and the Central Committee are implemented nationally. It is also responsible for matters related to organization and personnel, and has the right to prepare and convene a Central Committee [[plenary session]].{{sfn|Communist Party of Vietnam|2011}} The Politburo can be overruled by the Central Committee, as happened in 2001 when the Politburo voted in favour of retaining Lê Khả Phiêu as general secretary; the Central Committee overturned the Politburo's decision, dismissed Lê from politics, and forced the Politburo to elect a new general secretary after the ninth National Congress.{{sfn|Abuza|2001|p=12}}

The members of the Politburo are elected and given a ranking by the Central Committee immediately after a National Party Congress.{{sfn|Stern|1993|pp=3–4}} According to David Koh, the Politburo ranking from the first plenum of the 10th Central Committee onwards is based upon the number of approval votes by the Central Committee. [[Lê Hồng Anh]], the [[Ministry of Public Security (Vietnam)|Minister of Public Security]], was ranked second in the [[10th Politburo of the Communist Party of Vietnam|10th Politburo]] because he received the second-highest number of approval votes. [[Tô Huy Rứa]] was ranked lowest because he received the lowest approval vote of the 10th Central Committee when he stood for election to the Politburo.{{sfn|Koh|2008|p=666}} The [[11th Politburo of the Communist Party of Vietnam|11th Politburo]] was elected by the Central Committee after the [[11th National Congress of the Communist Party of Vietnam|11th National Congress]] and consists of 16 members. Decisions within the Politburo are made through collective decision-making.{{sfn|Communist Party of Vietnam|2011}}

Since 10th Central Committee, the duties and responsibilities of the members of the Politburo and those of the General Secretary, President, Prime Minister, the Chairman of the National Assembly and the Permanent member of the Secretariat have been specified separately.{{sfn|Communist Party of Vietnam|2015}}

==== Secretariat ====
{{main|Secretariat of the Communist Party of Vietnam}}
The Secretariat is headed by the general secretary and decisions within it are made through collective decision-making. The Secretariat is elected and the membership size is decided by the Central Committee immediately after the National Congress.{{sfn|Communist Party of Vietnam|2011}} It is responsible for solving organizational problems and implementing the demands of the Central Committee. The Secretariat oversees the work of the [[Departments of the Communist Party of Vietnam|Departments of the Central Committee]].{{sfn|Porter|1993|pp=66–67}} It is also responsible for inspecting and supervising the implementation of resolutions and directives on fields regarding the party on economic, social, defence, security and foreign affairs, and it is directly responsible for the coordination of a number of party bodies. The Secretariat supervises the preparation for issues raised at Politburo meetings.{{sfn|Communist Party of Vietnam|2011}}

==== Central Military Commission ====
{{main|Central Military Commission of the Communist Party of Vietnam}}
The Central Military Commission is appointed by the Politburo and includes members from the military. The commission is responsible to the Central Committee and between meetings, the Politburo and the Secretariat. The Secretary of the Central Military Commission is the party's general secretary while the post of deputy secretary is held by the [[Minister of Defence (Vietnam)|Minister of National Defence]]. The commission can issue guidelines on military and defence policies, and has leadership in all aspects of the military. The [[General Political Department of the Communist Party of Vietnam|General Political Department]] is subordinate to the commission.{{sfn|Communist Party of Vietnam|2011}}

==== Central Inspection Commission ====
{{main|Central Inspection Commission of the Communist Party of Vietnam}}

The Central Inspection Commission is the party organ responsible for combating corruption, disciplining members and wrongdoing in general. It is the only organ within the party which can sentence or condemn party members.{{sfn|Stern|1993|p=64}} The Commission, and its chairman and deputy chairmen, are elected by the first plenum of the Central Committee after a National Party Congress. Due to the party's policy of democratic centralism, a local inspection commission can only investigate a case if the inspection commission directly superior to it consents to the investigation.{{sfn|Communist Party of Vietnam|2011}}

==== Central Theoretical Council ====
{{main|Central Theoretical Council of the Communist Party of Vietnam}}
The Central Theoretical Council was established on 22 October 1996 by a decision of the Central Committee.{{sfn|Voice of Vietnam|2016}} The 4th Central Theoretical Council was formed on 7 September 2016, and is currently headed by Politburo member [[Đinh Thế Huynh]].{{sfn|Nhân Dân|2016}} It functions as an advisory body to the Central Committee, the Politburo and the Secretariat on conceiving and developing party theory in line with Marxism. It is responsible for studying topics put forth by the Politburo and the Secretariat, and topics set forth by its own members.{{sfn|Nhân Dân|2016}}

== Ideology ==
{{Ho Chi Minh Thought Sidebar}}
[[File:Ho Chi Minh - 1946 Portrait.jpg|left|thumb|The state and party are guided by Ho Chi Minh Thought]]
Vietnam is a [[Socialist state|socialist republic]] with a one-party system led by the Communist Party. The CPV espouses [[Marxism–Leninism]] and [[Ho Chi Minh Thought]], the ideologies of Ho Chi Minh. The two ideologies serve as guidance for the activities of the party and state.{{sfn|Government of Vietnam (system)}} According to the Constitution, Vietnam is in a period of transition to socialism.{{sfn|Government of Vietnam (constitution preamble)}} Marxism–Leninism was introduced to Vietnam in the 1920s and 1930s, and Vietnamese culture has been led under the banners of patriotism and Marxism–Leninism.{{sfn|Government of Vietnam (culture)}} Ho Chi Minh's beliefs were not systematized during his life, nor did this occur quickly following his death. [[Trường Chinh]]'s 1973 biography of Hồ emphasized his revolutionary policies. The thoughts of Hồ were systematized in 1989 under the leadership of [[Nguyễn Văn Linh]].{{sfn|Quinn-Judge|2002|p=2}} Ho Chi Minh Thought and Marxism–Leninism became the official ideologies of the CPV and the state in 1991.{{sfn|Gillespie|2006|p=90}} The CPV's claim to legitimacy was retained after the collapse of communism elsewhere in 1989 and the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991 by its commitment to the thoughts of Ho Chi Minh, according to Sophie Quinn-Judge.{{sfn|Quinn-Judge|2002|p=256}} According to Pierre Brocheux, the current state ideology is Ho Chi Minh Thought, with Marxism–Leninism playing a secondary role.{{sfn|Brocheux|2007|p=186}} Some claim that Ho Chi Minh Thought is used as a veil for a party leadership that has stopped believing in communism, but others rule this out on the basis that Ho Chi Minh was an avid supporter of [[Vladimir Lenin]] and the dictatorship of the proletariat. Still others see Ho Chi Minh Thought as a political umbrella term whose main function is to introduce non-socialist ideas and policies without challenging socialist legality.{{sfn|Gillespie|2006|p=90}}

Marxism–Leninism has lost its ideological stronghold in Vietnamese politics since the introduction of a mixed economy in the late 1980s and 1990s.{{sfn|Gillespie|2006|p=91}} Because of the Đổi Mới reforms, the party could not base its rule on defending only the workers and the peasants, which was officially referred to as the "working class-peasant alliance".{{sfn|Gillespie|2006|p=92}} In the constitution introduced in 1992, the State represented the "workers, peasants and intellectuals".{{sfn|Gillespie|2006|p=91}} In recent years, the party has stopped representing a specific class, but instead the "interests of the entire people", which includes entrepreneurs.{{sfn|Gillespie|2006|p=91}} The final class barrier was removed in 2006, when party members were allowed to engage in private activities.{{sfn|Napier|Hoang|2013}} In the face of de-emphasising the role of Marxism–Leninism, the party has acquired a broader ideology, laying more emphasis on nationalism, [[developmentalism]] and becoming the protector of tradition.{{sfn|Gillespie|2006|pp=91–92}} Minh himself stated that what originally attracted him to Communism was not its doctrines, which he did not at that time understand, but the simple fact that the Communists supported the independence of countries like Vietnam.{{Sfn|Moise|1988|p=11}}

=== Transition to socialism ===
{{blockquote|Characters of a new social regime were formed in Ho Chi Minh's thoughts through, first of all, the method of transforming features of old regime into its contrary facets. It was the [[Dialectic|dialectical thinking method]]. According to this method, the process of formulating the people's democratic regime in reality was considered the process of wiping out comprehensively fundamental features of colonial-feudal regime.|Lai Quoc Khanh explaining Ho Chi Minh's way of thinking.{{sfn|Khanh|2010}}}}
[[File:1186176 431184323664792 1727527524 n-(1).jpg|thumb|[[Ho Chi Minh Communist Youth Union]] in 2014]]
According to Ho Chi Minh, before it becomes socialist, a society must evolve through national liberation and the construction of a people's democratic regime. While national liberation is the means of taking power, the establishment of a people's democratic regime requires the total destruction of the [[Feudalism|feudalist]], colonialist and imperialist society. Only through this destruction can Vietnam transit to socialism. Lai Quoc Khanh, a journalist in the theoretical ''[[Tạp chí Cộng Sản]]'' wrote: "The people's democratic regime is an objective necessity in the development course of Vietnamese society".{{sfn|Khanh|2010}} A people's democratic regime, however, is not a socialist regime. For instance, in a people's democratic regime private ownership still exists, while in a communist or socialist stage of development, ownership does not exist. Vietnamese communists consider the distribution of land during Ho Chi Minh's early rule as an example of people's democracy.{{sfn|Khanh|2010}}

However, this is not the only difference. The logic is that difference in the ownership of productions lead to different modes of production. Ho Chi Minh said that the basic economic tenets of a people's democratic regime was state ownership of certain segments of production—considered socialist since the state belongs to the people, cooperatives, which were half-socialist in nature but would develop into fully socialist economic entities, and the personal economics of individual handicraft and peasantry, which would later develop into cooperatives, private capitalism and state capitalism, where the state shares capital with capitalists to develop the country further. Since these economic basics relied on different types of ownership, the economy of the people's democratic regime cannot be considered socialist, hence the regime is not socialist. For example, in the socialist-oriented market economy, the state-owned sector will be the dominant sector, hence the socialist character of the economy dominates.{{sfn|Khanh|2010}} The political platform of the [[2nd National Congress of the Workers Party of Vietnam|second party congress]] held in 1951 stated: "The people's democratic revolution is neither an old-type capitalist democratic revolution nor socialist revolution, it is a new-type capitalist democratic revolution which will evolve into socialist revolution without experiencing a revolutionary civil war."{{sfn|Khanh|2010}} To be more specific, the people's democratic regime is a substage in capitalist development.{{sfn|Khanh|2010}} While Ho Chi Minh supported the position that Vietnam had entered the stage of transition to socialism in 1954, he held the belief that Vietnam was still "a democratic regime in which people are the masters" and not socialist.{{sfn|Khanh|2010}} To reach the socialist stage of development, the development of the state sector was of utmost importance—the lack of which according to Ho Chi Minh would lead to failure.{{sfn|Khanh|2010}} The platform of the [[11th National Congress of the Communist Party of Vietnam|11th National Congress]] held in January 2011 stated: "This is a profound and thorough revolutionary process and a complicated struggle between the old and the new for qualitative changes in all aspects of social life. It is essential to undergo a long period of transition with several steps of development and several mixed social and economic structures".{{sfn|Nguyen|2011}}

According to the party's General Secretary Nguyễn Phú Trọng, during the transition to socialism, socialist factors of development compete with non-socialist factors, which include capitalist factors. Nguyễn said: "Along with positive aspects, there will always be negative aspects and challenges that need to be considered wisely and dealt with timely and effectively. It is a difficult struggle that requires spirit, fresh vision, and creativity. The path to socialism is a process of constantly consolidating and strengthening socialist factors to make them more dominant and irreversible. Success will depend on correct policies, political spirit, leadership capacity, and the fighting strength of the Party".{{sfn|Nguyễn|2012}}

=== "Superiority of socialism" ===
{{blockquote|There has never been a scientific and revolutionary theory than Marxism–Leninism. It is a 'comprehensively and logically tight theory which gives people a total world view' and a theory that not only aims at 'understanding the world, but also changing it'.{{nbsp}}... Capitalism will certainly be replaced by socialism, because that is the law of human history, which no one can deny.|[[Nguyễn Văn Linh]], the leader who initiated [[Đổi Mới]], opposed the view that fundamental principles of Marxism–Leninism were to be changed, or rejected because of the introduction of market-elements into the economy.{{sfn|Elliott|2012|p=75}}}}

[[File:Environs de Hué (4393643321).jpg|thumb|CPV propaganda poster commemorating its 80th anniversary and equating the party with "peace, prosperity and happiness"]]

The Communist Party believes that socialism is superior to other ideologies and state systems. According to Marxism–Leninism, socialism is the second-to-last stage of socio-economic development before pure communism. To build a socialist society, communists have to imagine, outline and study society. The party believes that socialism leads to human liberation from every oppressive situation, exploitation and injustice. While the founders of Marxism–Leninism forecasted the main characteristics of a socialist society, the founders are not considered by the party to hold the whole truth. The main outline of this ideology is upheld by the party—that is, a social mode superior and more advanced:{{sfn|Le|2011}}
# The highest goal of socialism is to liberate the people from every [[Surplus labour|yoke of exploitation]] and [[Marx's theory of alienation|economic slavery of the spirit]], enabling comprehensive human development.
# The facilities of socialism are the forces generated by modern advanced production.
# Socialism is the gradual abolition of private property and capitalism and changes to the means of production.
# Socialism creates labour organizations and a new form labourer with high discipline and productivity.
# Socialism means the implementation of the principle of [[To each according to his contribution|each according to his contribution]].
# [[State socialism]] is a new kind of democracy, reflecting the nature of the working class and representing the interests, power and will of the working people.
# In a socialist society, the relationship between class and ethnicity will be resolved through a combination of international and class solidarity—nationalism will be replaced by [[socialist internationalism|internationalism]].

=== Socialist-oriented market economy ===
{{main|Socialist-oriented market economy}}
Proponents of the [[socialist-oriented market economy]] claim that the system is neither socialist nor capitalist, but that it is "socialist-oriented". The Communist Party rejects the view that a market economy has to be capitalist. According to the party, "a socialist market-oriented economy is a multi-sectoral commodity economy, which operates in accordance with market mechanisms and a socialist orientation".{{sfn|Nguyễn|2012}} According to Nguyễn Phú Trọng, "[i]t is a new type of market economy in the history of the market economy's development. It is a kind of economic organization which abides by market economy rules but is based on, led by, and governed by the principles and nature of socialism reflected in its three aspects{{spaced ndash}}ownership, organization, and distribution{{spaced ndash}}for the goal of a prosperous people in a strong nation characterized by democracy, fairness, and civilization".{{sfn|Nguyễn|2012}} There are multiple forms of ownership in a socialist-oriented market economy. Economic sectors operate in accordance with the law and are equal under the law in the interest of co-existence, cooperation and healthy competition.{{sfn|Nguyễn|2012}} Nguyễn Phú Trọng said:

{{blockquote|The state economy plays a key role; the collective economy is constantly consolidated and developed; the private economy is one of the driving forces of the collective economy; multiple ownership, especially joint-stock enterprises, is encouraged; the state and collective economies provide a firm foundation for the national economy. The relations of distribution ensure fairness, create momentum for growth, and operate a distribution mechanism based on work results, economic efficiency, contributions by other resources, and distribution through the social security and welfare system. The State manages the economy through laws, strategies, plans, policies, and mechanisms to steer, regulate, and stimulate socio-economic development.{{sfn|Nguyễn|2012}}}}

Unlike in capitalist countries, a socialist-oriented market economy does not "wait for the economy to reach a high level of development before implementing social progress and fairness, nor 'sacrifice' social progress and fairness to the pursuit of mere economic growth".{{sfn|Nguyễn|2012}} Policies are enacted for the sole purpose of improving the people's standard of living.{{sfn|Nguyễn|2012}}

=== Role of classical Marxism ===
[[File:Environs de Hué (4393644297).jpg|thumb|CPV propaganda poster in [[Huế]]]]

[[Classical Marxism|Classical Marxist]] texts still play a prominent role in the Communist Party's ideological development. ''[[The Communist Manifesto]]'', written by [[Karl Marx]] and [[Friedrich Engels]], is considered an "immortal work".{{sfn|Rứa|2007}} According to the party, the real value of ''The Communist Manifesto'' is not that it can provide answers to present revolutionary problems, but the way it explains the gradual liberation of the working class and labourers. It functions as a basis for the most basic theoretical beliefs upheld by the party. According to [[Tô Huy Rứa]], currently a member of the [[11th Politburo of the Communist Party of Vietnam|11th Politburo]]: "By participating in the process of globalization complete with its opportunities and challenges, as was predicted by Marx and Engels in the ''Manifesto'', the Vietnamese Communist Party and people will further find guidelines for a precious world outlook and methodologies. Sustainable values of this immortal theoretical work and political platform will remain forever".{{sfn|Rứa|2007}} [[Trần Bạch Đằng]] wrote:

{{blockquote|The reality of Vietnam after the revolution is different from what I imagined when I joined the party{{nbsp}}... Life has shown us that it is much more complicated. The thing is, we received Marxism in a theoretical sense, not in a full sense, and the information was not very precise. Marxism came to Vietnam through the interpretation of [[Stalin]] and [[Mao]]. It was simplified to a great extent. And now we read the classic works of Marx and other founders, and we find that things were not so simple. Though the social conditions under which Marx wrote his works are not the same as now, the principles are the same. Yet those principles were not interpreted precisely correctly.{{sfn|Elliott|2012|p=60}}}}

=== Criticism ===
The CPV's ideology has been criticized from the left for its supposed departure from communist principles. Critics have argued that the [[socialist-oriented market economy]] is a re-capitalized system which allows massive [[capitalist]] [[Market (economics)|markets]], enriches the [[bourgeoisie]], and increases [[foreign direct investment]], at the cost of expanding [[economic inequality]] and social unrest.{{sfn|Anh|2019}}{{sfn|Finley|2019}} Leftist dissident Bui Tin opined that "the Communist Party [of Vietnam] is full of opportunists and privileged elites. The morality is lost. All is the search for dollars."{{sfn|Fawthrop|2018}}

== Party-to-party relations ==
{{Communist parties|expanded=Asia}}

In a resolution of the [[10th National Congress of the Communist Party of Vietnam|10th National Party Congress]], it was decided to renovate and strengthen the party's foreign policy. {{As of|2010}}, the Central Committee's Commission for External Relations has good relations with 222 political parties in 115 countries. According to the party, this is an "important contributions to accelerating the renovation process, industrialization and modernization of Vietnam".{{sfn|Tạp chí Cộng Sản|2010}} The party does not only have foreign relations with communist parties; relations with non-communist parties have been established because their countries are economically important to Vietnam. Relations with other communist and workers' parties are very important and built on "solidarity, friendship, mutual support in the struggle for socialism in the spirit of Marxism-Leninism and pure internationalism of the working class".{{sfn|Tạp chí Cộng Sản|2010}} It exchanges views with such parties on theoretical and practical issues regarding socialist construction, party building and current problems.{{sfn|Tạp chí Cộng Sản|2010}} The CPV is active in international communist and workers party gatherings, such as the [[International Meeting of Communist and Workers' Parties]].{{sfn|Vietnam Plus|2011}}

The CPV currently maintains relations with over 100 communist and workers' parties.{{sfn|Tuổi Trẻ News|2014}} The party has emphasized the importance of relations with the [[Lao People's Revolutionary Party]] and the [[Cambodian People's Party]], as all three parties are the spiritual incarnations of the [[Indochinese Communist Party]]. It also maintains good relations with the [[Chinese Communist Party]], the [[Communist Party of Cuba]], and the [[Workers' Party of Korea]]. The CPV sent delegations to the 8th Congress of the [[Communist Party of the Russian Federation]] in 2008, the 5th Congress of the [[Party of Italian Communists]] in 2008, the 20th Congress of the [[Communist Party of India]] in 2008, the 9th [[Communist Party of India (Marxist)]] in 2008, the 18th Congress of [[Communist Party of Greece]] in 2009, the 9th Congress of the [[Communist Party of Denmark]] in 2009, the 18th Congress of the [[Communist Party of Spain]] in 2009, the 8th Congress of the [[Communist Party of Nepal (Marxist–Leninist) (2002)|Communist Party of Nepal (Marxist–Leninist)]] in 2009, the 12th Congress of the [[Communist Party of Brazil]] in 2009 and that of the [[Peruvian Communist Party]] in 2010.{{sfn|Tạp chí Cộng Sản|2010}}

The CPV maintains also friendly relations with [[Latin America]]n left-wing political parties. A delegation from the CPV participated in the 22nd Meeting of [[Foro de São Paulo]] in [[El Salvador]] in June 2016.{{sfn|FMLN|2016}}

== Electoral history ==

=== National Assembly elections ===
{| class=wikitable style=text-align:center
! Election
! Votes
! %
! Seats
! +/–
! Position
! Outcome
|-
|[[1960 North Vietnamese legislative election|1960]]
| colspan="2" rowspan="14" | ''As part of the<br />[[Vietnamese Fatherland Front]]''
|{{Composition bar|421|421|hex={{party color|Communist Party of Vietnam}}}}
|{{increase}} 421
|{{increase}} 1st
| {{yes2|Sole legal party}}
|-
|[[1964 North Vietnamese legislative election|1964]]
|{{Composition bar|366|366|hex={{party color|Communist Party of Vietnam}}}}
|{{decrease}} 55 
|{{steady}} 1st
|{{yes2|Sole legal party}}
|-
|[[1971 North Vietnamese legislative election|1971]]
|{{Composition bar|420|420|hex={{party color|Communist Party of Vietnam}}}}
|{{increase}} 54
|{{steady}} 1st
|{{yes2|Sole legal party}}
|-
|[[1975 North Vietnamese legislative election|1975]]
|{{Composition bar|424|424|hex={{party color|Communist Party of Vietnam}}}}
|{{increase}} 4
|{{steady}} 1st
|{{yes2|Sole legal party}}
|-
|[[1976 Vietnamese legislative election|1976]]
|{{Composition bar|492|492|hex={{party color|Communist Party of Vietnam}}}}
|{{increase}} 68
|{{steady}} 1st
|{{yes2|Sole legal party}}
|-
|[[1981 Vietnamese legislative election|1981]]
|{{Composition bar|496|496|hex={{party color|Communist Party of Vietnam}}}}
|{{increase}} 4
|{{steady}} 1st
|{{yes2|Sole legal party}}
|-
|[[1987 Vietnamese legislative election|1987]]
|{{Composition bar|496|496|hex={{party color|Communist Party of Vietnam}}}}
|{{steady}}
|{{steady}} 1st
|{{yes2|Sole legal party}}
|-
|[[1992 Vietnamese legislative election|1992]]
|{{Composition bar|362|395|hex={{party color|Communist Party of Vietnam}}}}
|{{decrease}} 134
|{{steady}} 1st
|{{yes2|Sole legal party}}
|-
|[[1997 Vietnamese legislative election|1997]]
|{{Composition bar|384|450|hex={{party color|Communist Party of Vietnam}}}}
|{{decrease}} 11
|{{steady}} 1st
|{{yes2|Sole legal party}}
|-
|[[2002 Vietnamese legislative election|2002]]
|{{Composition bar|447|498|hex={{party color|Communist Party of Vietnam}}}}
|{{increase}} 63
|{{steady}} 1st
|{{yes2|Sole legal party}}
|-
|[[2007 Vietnamese legislative election|2007]]
|{{Composition bar|450|493|hex={{party color|Communist Party of Vietnam}}}}
|{{increase}} 3
|{{steady}} 1st
|{{yes2|Sole legal party}}
|-
|[[2011 Vietnamese legislative election|2011]]
|{{Composition bar|454|500|hex={{party color|Communist Party of Vietnam}}}}
|{{increase}} 4
|{{steady}} 1st
|{{yes2|Sole legal party}}
|-
|[[2016 Vietnamese legislative election|2016]]
|{{Composition bar|473|494|hex={{party color|Communist Party of Vietnam}}}}
|{{increase}} 19
|{{steady}} 1st
|{{yes2|Sole legal party}}
|-
|[[2021 Vietnamese legislative election|2021]]
|{{Composition bar|485|499|hex={{party color|Communist Party of Vietnam}}}}
|{{increase}} 12
|{{steady}} 1st
|{{yes2|Sole legal party}}
|}

== See also ==
* [[Human rights in Vietnam]]
* [[Politics of Vietnam]]
* [[National Assembly (Vietnam)]]

== Notes ==
{{notelist}}

== References ==

=== Citations ===
{{reflist|30em}}

=== Sources ===

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* {{cite book |last1=Ashwill |first1=Mark |last2=Thai |first2=Ngoc Diep |title=Vietnam Today: A Guide To A Nation At A Crossroads |publisher=Intercultural Press |year=2005 |isbn=9781931930093}}
* {{cite book |last1=Bousquet |first1=Gisèle Luce |title=Behind the Bamboo Hedge: The Impact of Homeland Politics in the Parisian Vietnamese Community |date=1991 |publisher=University of Michigan Press |isbn=978-0-472-10174-0 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=EpuLWVqCC1AC |language=en}}
* {{cite book |last= Brocheux |first=Pierre |title=Ho Chi Minh: a Biography |url=https://archive.org/details/hochiminhbiograp00broc |publisher=[[Cambridge University Press]] |year=2007 |isbn=9780521850629}}
* {{cite book |last=Corfield |first=Justin |title=The History of Vietnam |publisher=ABC-CLIO |year=2008 |isbn=9780313341946}}
* {{cite book |editor-last1=Courtois |editor-first1=Stéphane |editor-last2=Goscha |editor-first2=Christopher |title=Communisme 2013: Vietnam, de l'insurrection à la dictature, 1920–2012 |year=2013 |publisher=Vendémiaire |url=https://www.editions-vendemiaire.com/catalogue/hors-collection/communisme-2013/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220521214300/https://www.editions-vendemiaire.com/catalogue/hors-collection/communisme-2013/ |url-status=usurped |archive-date=21 May 2022 |isbn=9782363580542}}
* {{cite book |last1=East |first1=Roger |last2=Thomas |first2=Richard |title=Profiles of People in Power: The World's Government Leaders |publisher=Routledge |year=2003 |isbn=9781857431261 |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/profilesofpeople0001east}}
* {{cite book |last1=Elliott |first1=David W.P. |title=Changing Worlds: Vietnam's Transition from Cold War to Globalization |publisher=[[Oxford University Press]] |year=2012 |isbn=978-0195383348 }}
* {{cite book |last=Gillespie |first=John Stanley |title=Transplanting Commercial Law Reform: Developing a 'Rule of Law' in Vietnam |publisher=Ashgate Publishing |year=2006 |isbn=9780754647041 }}
* {{cite book |last1=Guérin |first1=Daniel |title=Au Service Des Colonisés, 1930-1953 |date=1954 |publisher=Éditions de Minuit |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=fhA3AAAAIAAJ |language=fr}}
* {{cite book |author=Huỳnh Kim Khánh |title=Vietnamese Communism, 1925–1945 |date=1982 |publisher=Cornell University Press |isbn=978-0-8014-1369-8 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=bqHaAAAAMAAJ |language=en}}
* {{cite book |last=Jeffries |first=Ian |title=Socialist Economies and the Transition of the Market: A Guide |publisher=Routledge |year=1993 |isbn=9780415075800 }}
* {{cite book |last=Kerkvliet |first=Benedict J. Tria |date=2019 |title=Speaking Out in Vietnam: Public Political Criticism in a Communist Party–Ruled Nation |url=https://www.cornellpress.cornell.edu/book/9781501736384/speaking-out-in-vietnam/ |publisher=[[Cornell University Press]]}}
* {{cite book |last=Kolko |first=Gabriel | author-link = Gabriel Kolko |year=1994 |title=Anatomy of a War: Vietnam, the United States, and the Modern Historical Experience |publisher=New Press |isbn=9781565842182 }}
* {{cite book |last=Kolko |first=Gabriel |author-mask=2 |year=1997 |title=Vietnam: Anatomy of a Peace |location=London and New York, NY |publisher=Routledge |isbn=9780415159906}}
* {{cite book |author=Largo |display-authors=etal |title=Vietnam: Current Issues and Historical Background |publisher=Nova Publishers |year=2002 |isbn=978-1590333686 }}
* {{cite book |last=Leifer |first=Michael |title=Dictionary of the Modern Politics of South-East Asia |publisher=[[Taylor & Francis]] |year=1994 |isbn=9780415042192 }}
* {{cite book |last1=Napier |first1=Nancy K. |last2=Hoang |first2=Vuong Quan |title=What we See, Why we Worry, Why we Hope: Vietnam Going Forward |date=2 October 2013 |publisher=Boise State University CCI Press |isbn=978-0-9855305-8-7 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=SHtIAgAAQBAJ |language=en}}
* {{cite book |last=Porter |first=Gareth |title=Vietnam: The Politics of Bureaucratic Socialism |url=https://archive.org/details/vietnampoliticso00port |publisher=Cornell University Press |year=1993 |isbn=9780801421686 }}
* {{cite book |last=Quinn-Judge |first=Sophie |title=Ho Chi Minh: The Missing Years, 1919–1941 |publisher=[[University of California Press]] |year=2002 |isbn=9780520235335 }}
* {{cite book |last=Reis |first=Nadine |title=Tracing and Making the State: Policy Practices and Domestic Water Supply in the Mekong Delta, Vietnam |publisher=LIT Verlag Münster |year=2012 |isbn=9783643901965 }}
* {{cite book |last=Rowley |first=Chris |title=The Changing Face of Management in South East Asia  |publisher=Taylor & Francis |year=2008 |isbn=9780415405447 }}
* {{cite book|last=Shambaugh|first=David L.|title=China's Communist Party : atrophy and adaptation|date=2008|publisher=Woodrow Wilson Center Press|isbn=978-0-520-25492-3|location=Washington, D.C.|language=en|oclc=181424133}}
* Smith, R.B., "The Foundation of the Indochinese Communist Party, 1929-1930", ''Modern Asian Studies'', vol. 32, no. 4 (October 1998), pp.&nbsp;769–805. [https://www.jstor.org/stable/313051 In JSTOR]
* {{cite book |last=Stern |first=Lewis |title=Renovating the Vietnamese Communist Party: Nguyen Van Linh and the Programme for Organizational Reform, 1987–91 |publisher=[[Institute of Southeast Asian Studies]] |year=1993 |isbn=978-9813016552 }}
* {{cite book |last1=Stuart-Fox |first1=Martin |title=A History of Laos |publisher=Cambridge University Press |year=1997 |isbn=9780521597463 }}
* {{cite book |last1=Tai |first1=Hue-Tam Ho |title=Radicalism and the Origins of the Vietnamese Revolution |date=1992 |publisher=Harvard University Press |isbn=978-0-674-74612-1 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=nnpuAAAAMAAJ |language=en}}
* {{cite book |last1=Trager |first1=Frank N. |title=Marxism in Southeast Asia: A Study of Four Countries |date=1959 |publisher=Stanford University Press |isbn=978-0-8047-0592-9 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=9DusAAAAIAAJ |language=en}}
* {{cite book |last1=Van |first1=Canh Nguyen |last2=Cooper |first2=Earle |title=Vietnam under Communism, 1975–1982 |url=https://archive.org/details/vietnamundercomm0000nguy |publisher=Hoover Press |year=1983 |isbn=9780817978518 }}
* {{cite book |last1=Văn |first1=Ngô |title=In the Crossfire: Adventures of a Vietnamese Revolutionary |date=2 November 2010 |publisher=AK Press |isbn=978-1-84935-049-5 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=4hswDwAAQBAJ |language=en}}
* {{cite book |last=Võ |first=Nhân Trí |title=Vietnam's Economic Policy since 1975 |publisher=Institute of Southeast Asian Studies |year=1990 |isbn=9789813035546}}
* {{cite book |last1=Vu |first1=Tuong |title=Vietnam's Communist Revolution: The Power and Limits of Ideology |date=2017 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |url=https://www.cambridge.org/core/books/vietnams-communist-revolution/C0B346C138AF77F994B58ED75513872F |isbn=9781316650417}}
* {{cite book |last=Zinn |first=Howard |title=A People's History of the United States: 1492-present |publisher=Harper Perennial |year=1995 |location=New York |isbn=0-06-092643-0 }}
{{refend}}

====Journal articles====
{{refbegin|30em}}
* {{cite journal |last1=Hiep |first1=Le Hong |title=Performance-based Legitimacy: The Case of the Communist Party of Vietnam and "Doi Moi" |journal=Contemporary Southeast Asia |date=2012 |volume=34 |issue=2 |pages=145–172 |doi=10.1355/cs34-2a |jstor=41756339 |s2cid=153728378 |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/41756339 |issn=0129-797X|url-access=subscription }}
* {{cite journal |last1=Koh |first1=David |date=July–August 2008 |title=Leadership Changes at the 10th Congress of the Vietnamese Communist Party |journal=[[Asian Survey]] |publisher=[[University of California Press]] |volume=48 |issue=4 |pages=650–672 |doi=10.1525/as.2008.48.4.650 |jstor=10.1525/as.2008.48.4.650}} 
* {{cite journal |last=Moise |first=Edwin E. |year=1988 |title=Nationalism and Communism in Vietnam |volume=5 |issue=2 |journal=Journal of Third World Studies |pages=6–22 |publisher=University Press of Florida |jstor=45193059 |url=http://www.jstor.org/stable/45193059}}
* {{cite journal |last1=Terskikh |first1=Mikhail |title=The Ideological Influence of the Communist Party of China on the Communist Party of Vietnam |journal=World Economy and International Relations |date=2021 |volume=65 |issue=7 |pages=64–70 |doi=10.20542/0131-2227-2021-65-7-64-70|s2cid=237967654 }}
* {{cite journal |last1=Thanh |first1=Pham Quoc |last2=Nam |first2=Bui Thanh |last3=Van Khanh |first3=Nguyen |last4=Nga |first4=Nguyen Quynh |last5=Phuong |first5=Phi Thi Lan |title=Ruling Mode of Communist Party of Vietnam in Theory and Practice |journal=Chinese Political Science Review |date=1 December 2020 |volume=5 |issue=4 |pages=488–512 |doi=10.1007/s41111-020-00162-1 |s2cid=224869555 |url=https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s41111-020-00162-1 |language=en |issn=2365-4252|url-access=subscription }}
* {{cite journal |last=Vu |first=Tuong |date=2019 |title=In the Service of World Revolution: Vietnamese Communists' Radical Ambitions through the Three Indochina Wars |journal=Journal of Cold War Studies |volume=21 |issue=4 |pages=4–30 |doi=10.1162/jcws_a_00905 |s2cid=204771848 |doi-access=}}
{{refend}}

====Reports====
{{refbegin|30em}}
* {{cite web |title=Foro de Sao Paulo destaca avances del pueblo vietnamita |url=http://www.fmln.org.sv/index.php/1465-24061606 |publisher=[[Farabundo Martí National Liberation Front]] |access-date=25 June 2016 |date=24 June 2016 |language=es |ref={{harvid|FMLN|2016}} |archive-date=26 June 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160626130615/http://www.fmln.org.sv/index.php/1465-24061606 |url-status=dead }}
* {{cite web |last=Le |first=Huu Nghia |trans-title=These characteristics show the superiority of the socialist society that our people are building |title=Những đặc trưng thể hiện tính ưu việt của xã hội xã hội chủ nghĩa mà nhân dân ta đang xây dựng |url=http://cadn.com.vn/news/122_96719_nhung-dac-trung-the-hien-tinh-uu-viet-cua-xa-hoi-xa-hoi-chu-nghia-ma-nhan-dan-ta-dang-xay-dung-.aspx |date=17 January 2011 |publisher=Central Committee of the Communist Party of Vietnam |access-date=4 November 2012 |language=vi }}
* {{cite web |last=Nguyen |first=Truong Phuc |url=http://english.tapchicongsan.org.vn/Home/Theory-and-Reality/2012/275/Partys-awareness-on-socialism-in-Viet-Nam-from-the-Platform-of-1930.aspx |title=Party's awareness on socialism in Viet Nam from the Platform of 1930 to the Platform on national construction in the period of transition to socialism (revised and supplemented in 2011) |date=4 November 2011 |publisher=Central Committee of the Communist Party of Vietnam |access-date=4 November 2012 }}
* {{cite web |last=Rứa |first=Tô Huy |author-link=Tô Huy Rứa |url=http://www.dangcongsan.vn/cpv/Modules/News/NewsDetail.aspx?co_id=28340644&cn_id=443288 |title=Sustainable value and significance of the Communist Manifesto |date=8 March 2007 |publisher=Central Committee of the Communist Party of Vietnam |access-date=4 November 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140112190644/http://www.dangcongsan.vn/cpv/Modules/News/NewsDetail.aspx?co_id=28340644&cn_id=443288 |archive-date=12 January 2014 |url-status=dead }}
* {{cite web|title=The Structure and Organization of the Lao Dong Party of Viet Nam|url=https://www.cia.gov/library/readingroom/document/cia-rdp78-00915r000400450005-3|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170119111030/https://www.cia.gov/library/readingroom/document/cia-rdp78-00915r000400450005-3|url-status=dead|archive-date=19 January 2017|publisher=[[Central Intelligence Agency]]|date=1 April 1956|ref={{harvid|Central Intelligence Agency|1956}}}}
{{refend}}

====News and magazine articles====
{{refbegin|30em}}
* {{cite news |last=Abuza |first=Zachary |title=The Lessons of Le Kha Phieu: Changing Rules in Vietnamese politics |date=16 November 2001 |publisher=Vietnamese Professionals of America. [[Catholic University of America]]}}
* {{cite news |last=Anh |first=Khánh |title=Chủ nghĩa tư bản lấn át dần chủ nghĩa cộng sản ở Việt Nam |url=https://www.baocalitoday.com/viet-nam/chu-nghia-tu-ban-lan-at-dan-chu-nghia-cong-san-o-viet-nam.html |website=Nhật Báo Calitoday |date=23 March 2019 |language=vi}}
* {{cite news |title=Central Theoretical Council for 2016–2021 debuts |url=http://en.nhandan.org.vn/politics/domestic/item/4603402-central-theoretical-council-for-2016-2021-debuts.html |work=[[Nhân Dân]] |date=7 September 2016 |access-date=1 January 2017 |ref={{harvid|Nhân Dân|2016}}}}
* {{cite news |title=Central Theoretical Council marks its 20th anniversary |url=http://english.vov.vn/domestic/central-theoretical-council-marks-its-20th-anniversary-334555.vov |work=[[Voice of Vietnam]] |date=22 October 2016 |access-date=1 January 2017 |ref={{harvid|Voice of Vietnam|2016}}}}
* {{cite news |title=Communist Party of Viet Nam Holds 10th National Congress |url=http://english.tapchicongsan.org.vn/Home/PrintStory.aspx?distribution=246 |date=18 December 2010 |publisher=Central Committee of the Communist Party of Vietnam |work=[[Tạp chí Cộng Sản]] |access-date=3 November 2012 |ref={{harvid|Tạp chí Cộng Sản|2010}}}}
* {{cite news |last=Fawthrop |first=Tom |title=Sons of Revolution: Vietnam's New Protest Movement |url=https://thediplomat.com/2018/12/sons-of-revolution-vietnams-new-protest-movement/ |work=The Diplomat |access-date=17 December 2018 |date=17 December 2018}}
* {{cite news |last1=Finley |first1=Nolan |title=In Vietnam, capitalism creeps up on communism |url=https://www.detroitnews.com/story/opinion/columnists/nolan-finley/2019/03/21/finley-vietnam-capitalism-creeps-up-communism/3212628002/ |work=The Detroit News |date=20 March 2019}}
* {{cite web |last=Khanh |first=Le Quoc |url=http://english.tapchicongsan.org.vn/Home/Theory-and-Reality/2010/156/A-philosophy-perspective-on-peoples-democratic-regime-from-Ho-Chi-Minhs-ideology.aspx |title=A philosophy perspective on people's democratic regime from Ho Chi Minh's ideology |date=28 December 2010 |publisher=[[Central Committee of the Communist Party of Vietnam]] |work=[[Tạp chí Cộng Sản]] |access-date=4 November 2012}}
* {{cite web |last=Nguyễn |first=Phú Trọng |url=http://www.solidnet.org/vietnam-communist-party-of-vietnam/3027-cp-of-vietnam-socialism-and-the-path-to-socialism-vietnams-perspective-en |title=Socialism and the path to Socialism-Vietnam's Perspective |access-date=1 December 2012 |date=7 November 2012 |work=[[Tạp chí Cộng Sản]] |publisher=Central Committee of the Communist Party of Vietnam |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130526164701/http://www.solidnet.org/vietnam-communist-party-of-vietnam/3027-cp-of-vietnam-socialism-and-the-path-to-socialism-vietnams-perspective-en |archive-date=26 May 2013 |url-status=dead}}
* {{cite news |title=Vietnam sticks to goal of becoming industrialized country by 2020 |url=http://tuoitrenews.vn/politics/18711/vietnam-sticks-to-goal-of-becoming-industrialized-country-by-2020 |work=Tuổi Trẻ News |access-date=31 March 2014 |date=31 March 2014 |ref={{harvid|Tuổi Trẻ News|2014}}}}
* {{cite news |title=VN attends meeting of communist parties |url=http://en.vietnamplus.vn/Home/VN-attends-meeting-of-communist-parties/201112/22872.vnplus |date=11 December 2011 |work=Vietnam Plus |access-date=3 November 2012 |ref={{harvid|Vietnam Plus|2011}}}}
{{refend}}

====Websites====
{{refbegin|30em}}
* {{cite web |title=Điều lệ Đảng Cộng sản Việt Nam thông qua tại Đại hội đại biểu toàn quốc lần thứ XI của Đảng |trans-title=Charter of the Communist Party of Vietnam which was approved at the 11th National Congress |url=http://www.cpv.org.vn/cpv/Modules/News/NewsDetail.aspx?co_id=30106&cn_id=443473 |date=19 January 2011 |publisher=[[11th National Congress of the Communist Party of Vietnam]] |access-date=26 October 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130125053016/http://www.cpv.org.vn/cpv/Modules/News/NewsDetail.aspx?co_id=30106&cn_id=443473 |archive-date=25 January 2013 |ref={{harvid|Communist Party of Vietnam|2011}}}}
* {{cite web |last=Đức |first=Tấn |date=1999 |title=Tìm hiểu vụ ám sát Tạ Thu Thâu |url=https://nghiencuulichsu.com/2015/09/07/tim-hieu-vu-am-sat-ta-thu-thau/ |access-date=2022-12-05 |website=Nghiên Cứu Lịch Sử |language=vi}}
* {{cite web |title=Political system |publisher=Government of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam |access-date=20 April 2012 |url=http://www.chinhphu.vn/portal/page/portal/English/TheSocialistRepublicOfVietnam/AboutVietnam/AboutVietnamDetail?categoryId=10000103&articleId=10001578 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130921053849/http://www.chinhphu.vn/portal/page/portal/English/TheSocialistRepublicOfVietnam/AboutVietnam/AboutVietnamDetail?categoryId=10000103&articleId=10001578 |archive-date=21 September 2013 |url-status=dead |ref={{harvid|Government of Vietnam (system)}}}}
* {{cite web |title=Preamble of the Constitution of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam |publisher=Government of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam |url=http://www.chinhphu.vn/portal/page/portal/English/TheSocialistRepublicOfVietnam/AboutVietnam/AboutVietnamDetail?categoryId=10000103&articleId=10001012 |access-date=20 April 2012 |ref={{harvid|Government of Vietnam (constitution preamble)}}}}
* {{cite web|editor-last=Price|editor-first=R. G.|title=Collection of Letters by Ho Chi Minh|url=http://rationalrevolution.net/war/collection_of_letters_by_ho_chi_.htm|publisher=Rational Revolution|access-date=26 September 2009}}
* {{cite web |title=Thông báo Hội nghị lần thứ hai Ban Chấp hành Trung ương Đảng khóa XI |url=http://123.30.190.43:8080/tiengviet/tulieuvankien/vankiendang/details.asp?topic=191&subtopic=9&leader_topic=990&id=BT1471157782 |publisher= |date=7 November 2015 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151107103034/http://123.30.190.43:8080/tiengviet/tulieuvankien/vankiendang/details.asp?topic=191&subtopic=9&leader_topic=990&id=BT1471157782%7C |archive-date=7 November 2015 |language=vi |ref={{harvid|Communist Party of Vietnam|2015}}}}
* {{cite web |title=Vietnam culture overview |publisher=Government of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam |access-date=16 April 2012 |url=http://www.chinhphu.vn/portal/page/portal/English/TheSocialistRepublicOfVietnam/AboutVietnam/AboutVietnamDetail?categoryId=10000103&articleId=10000475 |ref={{harvid|Government of Vietnam (culture)}}}}
{{refend}}

== External links ==
* [http://en.dangcongsan.vn Communist Party of Vietnam official website] {{in lang|en}}

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