Khe Sanh, South Vietnam The siege of the UN Marine fortress at Khe Sanh on 2nd March 1968 (bottom photo) recalls the similar position of the French army at Dien Bien Phu in 1954 (top photo), when communist Viet Minh forces scored the decisive victory of the French Indo-China War. There are similiarities in terrain and methods of siege, and the sam man - Gen Vo Nguyen Giap - is directing the communist forces.