April 17, 1975 – January 7, 1979
The Khmer Rouge capture Phnom Penh and forcibly empty the cities; Pol Pot's regime causes the deaths of an estimated 1.5 to 2 million people.
Hundreds of thousands of people flee Vietnam by sea after 1975; many die at sea and others are resettled, mostly in Western countries.
Beginning with the attack on Buôn Ma Thuột, North Vietnamese forces advance across the South, leading to South Vietnam's collapse on 30 April 1975.
North Vietnamese forces enter the Independence Palace; the Republic of Vietnam surrenders, ending the Vietnam War.
Indonesia invades East Timor, a former Portuguese colony, beginning a 24-year occupation.
Chinese naval forces clash with the South Vietnamese navy and take control of all of the Paracel Islands.
The National Assembly of the reunified country proclaims the Socialist Republic of Vietnam; Saigon is renamed Hồ Chí Minh City.