North Vietnam was a state in a region.
North Vietnam , officially the Democratic Republic of Vietnam -LRB- DRV -RRB- , was a state in Southeast Asia which existed from 1945 to 1976 .. Southeast Asia. Southeast Asia. Republic of Vietnam. Republic of Vietnam. Vietnamese revolutionary leader Ho Chi Minh declared independence from France on 2 September 1945 and announced the creation of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam .. Vietnamese. Vietnamese language. Ho Chi Minh. Ho Chi Minh. France. France. Republic of Vietnam. Republic of Vietnam. France reasserted its colonial dominance and a war ensued between France and the Viet Minh , led by Ho .. Viet Minh. Viet Minh. France. France. The Viet Minh -LRB- `` League for the Independence of Vietnam '' -RRB- was a coalition of nationalist groups , mostly led by communists .. Viet Minh. Viet Minh. In February 1951 , the communists announced the creation of the Lao Đong Party -LRB- Labor Party -RRB- , gradually marginalizing non-communists in the Viet Minh .. Party. Communist Party of Vietnam. Lao Đong Party. Lao Đong Party. Between 1946 and 1954 , the Viet Minh captured and controlled most of the rural areas of Vietnam .. In 1954 , after the French were defeated , the negotiation of the Geneva Accords ended the war between France and the Viet Minh and granted Vietnam independence .. France. France. Geneva Accords. Geneva Accords ( 1954 ). The Geneva Accords divided the country provisionally into northern and southern zones , and stipulated general elections in July 1956 `` to bring about the unification of Viet-Nam '' .. Geneva Accords. Geneva Accords ( 1954 ). The northern zone was commonly called North Vietnam , and the southern zone was commonly called South Vietnam .. South Vietnam. South Vietnam. Supervision of the implementation of the Geneva Accords was the responsibility of an international commission consisting of India , Canada and Poland .. Geneva Accords. Geneva Accords ( 1954 ). The United States did not sign the Geneva Accords but instead stated that the U.S. `` shall continue to seek to achieve unity through free elections supervised by the United Nations to insure that they are conducted fairly . ''. Geneva Accords. Geneva Accords ( 1954 ). In July 1955 , the prime minister of the Republic of Vietnam , Ngo Đinh Diem , announced that the Republic of Vietnam would not participate in elections to unify the country .. Republic of Vietnam. Republic of Vietnam. Ngo Đinh Diem. Ngo Đinh Diem. He said that South Vietnam had not signed the Geneva accords and was not bound by it .. South Vietnam. South Vietnam. With the failure to reunify Vietnam by elections , the Democratic Republic of Vietnam attempted to unify the country by force in the Vietnam War -LRB- 1955 -- 75 -RRB- .. Vietnam War. Vietnam War. Republic of Vietnam. Republic of Vietnam. North Vietnam and the Viet Cong insurgents supported by their communist allies , including the Soviet Union and China , fought against the military of South Vietnam , the U.S. and other anti-communist military forces , including South Korea , Australia , Thailand and smaller players .. South Vietnam. South Vietnam. Viet Cong. Viet Cong. Soviet Union. Soviet Union. China. China. South Korea. Second Republic of South Korea. Australia. Australia. Thailand. Thailand. North Vietnam also supported indigenous communist rebels in Cambodia and Laos against their respective U.S.-backed governments .. Cambodia. Kingdom of Cambodia ( 1953–70 ). Laos. Kingdom of Laos. The war ended when North Vietnamese forces and the Viet Cong defeated the Republic of Vietnam and in 1976 united the two parts of the country into the Socialist Republic of Vietnam .. Vietnamese. Vietnamese language. Republic of Vietnam. Republic of Vietnam. Viet Cong. Viet Cong. Socialist Republic of Vietnam. Vietnam