Map Cambodian Incursion May 70 from USMA

Parrot's Beak (''vùng mỏ két'', ''vùng mỏ vẹt'') was the name given to a salient of Svay Rieng Province, southeast Cambodia that protrudes into Hậu Nghĩa and Kien Tuong Provinces,

Vietnam Vietnam, officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (SRV), is a country at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of about and a population of over 100 million, making it the world's List of countries and depende ...

, approximately 65 km north-west of

Saigon Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC) ('','' TP.HCM; ), commonly known as Saigon (; ), is the most populous city in Vietnam with a population of around 14 million in 2025. The city's geography is defined by rivers and canals, of which the largest is Saigo ...

History

In the aftermath of Siamese–Vietnamese War (1841–1845), the region was part of the Gia Định Province of the Empire of Đại Nam, later it became part of

French Cochinchina French Cochinchina (sometimes spelled ''Cochin-China''; ; , chữ Hán: ) was a colony of French Indochina from 1862 to 1949, encompassing what is now Southern Vietnam. The French operated a plantation economy whose primary strategic product wa ...

. In July 1867, the French Cochinchina government ceded part of the Trảng Bàng Inspection (including the Parrot's Beak areas) to the Kingdom of Cambodia under a treaty with King Norodom. The Parrot's Beak is returned to Cambodia under the administration of Svay Theab District. During the

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (1 November 1955 – 30 April 1975) was an armed conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia fought between North Vietnam (Democratic Republic of Vietnam) and South Vietnam (Republic of Vietnam) and their allies. North Vietnam w ...

the Parrot's Beak was a base and rest area for the

People's Army of Vietnam The People's Army of Vietnam (PAVN), officially the Vietnam People's Army (VPA; , , ), also recognized as the Vietnamese Army (), the People's Army () or colloquially the Troops ( ), is the national Military, military force of the Vietnam, S ...

(PAVN) and the

Vietcong The Viet Cong (VC) was an epithet and umbrella term to refer to the Communism, 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 Vi ...

and one of the terminus points of the

Ho Chi Minh Trail The Ho Chi Minh Trail (), also called Annamite Range Trail () was a Military logistics, logistical network of roads and trails that ran from North Vietnam to South Vietnam through the kingdoms of Kingdom of Laos, Laos and Cambodia (1953–1970), ...

Sihanouk Trail The Sihanouk Trail was a logistical supply system in Cambodia used by the People's Army of Vietnam (PAVN) and its Viet Cong (VC) guerrillas during the Vietnam War (1960–1975). Between 1966 and 1970, this system operated in the same manner and ...

. The PAVN established Base Areas 367 and 706 in the Parrot's Beak. On 30 April 1970, the Parrot's Beak was attacked by US and ARVN forces during the Cambodian Incursion. The Parrot's Beak was seized by the PAVN during their retaliatory attack against the

Khmer Rouge The Khmer Rouge is the name that was popularly given to members of the Communist Party of Kampuchea (CPK), and by extension to Democratic Kampuchea, which ruled Cambodia between 1975 and 1979. The name was coined in the 1960s by Norodom Sihano ...

in December 1977/January 1978 as part of the border hostilities that triggered the Cambodian-Vietnamese War

References

External links

Map of the Parrot’s Beak
Base areas of the Viet Cong {{Cambodia-geo-stub