The Viet Cong[nb 1] (VC) was an epithet and umbrella term to refer to the communist -driven armed movement and united front organization in South Vietnam. It was formally organized as and led by the National Liberation Front of South Vietnam, [nb 2] and conducted military operations under the name of the Liberation Army of South Vietnam (LASV).

Viet Cong, the guerrilla force that, with the support of the North Vietnamese Army, fought against South Vietnam (late 1950s–1975) and the United States (early 1960s–1973). The name is said to have first been used by South Vietnamese President Ngo Dinh Diem to belittle the rebels.

Viet Cong soldiers were subversive, evasive and crafty, hiding among civilian populations, taking shelter in thick jungle, moving only in the dead of night. As the Vietnam War unfolded, the world’s strongest military power found itself at war with an enemy that could scarcely be found.

At Ap Bac, for the first time, the Viet Cong fought at battalion strength and won a decisive victory against Vietnamese troops supported by American helicopters, armored vehicles, and artillery. Two Viet Cong soldiers received North Vietnam’s highest military-exploit medal for winning this battle. One was the commander of the Communist forces.

The Viet Cong dug elaborate tunnel complexes to use as safe bases, conducted hit-and-run attacks on Americans, and tried to avoid large-scale battles.

2019年8月9日 · The Viet Cong were South Vietnamese supporters of the communist National Liberation Front in South Vietnam during the Vietnam War (known in Vietnam as the American War). They were allied with North Vietnam and the troops of Ho Chi Minh , who sought to conquer the south and create a unified, communist state of Vietnam.

The Viet Cong and North Vietnamese for the most part didn't have the powerful heavy weapons, helicopters, high-altitude bombers and tanks that the Americans had. They often made do with AK-47s semiautomatic guns, ingenious and deadly booby traps, and mines, often made from unexploded bombs harvested after American bombing missions.

The most common Viet Cong weapon was the Chinese-made AK47 submachine gun, though some soldiers used confiscated French or Japanese rifles. Soviet-made artillery, grenades and mortars were also used, though they were in much shorter supply. Always short of small arms, the Viet Cong became masters of adaptation.

2025年1月17日 · Beginning in the spring of 1959, armed bands of Viet Cong were occasionally engaging units of the South Vietnamese army in regular firefights. By that time the Central Committee of the Vietnamese Communist Party, meeting in Hanoi, had endorsed a resolution calling for the use of armed force to overthrow the Diem government. Southerners ...

4 天之前 · Dang Xuan Teo, one of several former North Vietnamese soldiers and Viet Cong interviewed in the docuseries, recalls how he disguised himself as a shoeshine boy to scout details for an attack on ...