Valued exposure: Saigon surrender

Soldiers of the North Vietnamese Army (NVA) go through the gates of the South Vietnamese presidential palace, 30 April 1975.

The war in Vietnam ended as the government in Saigon announced its unconditional surrender to North Vietnamese forces.

The President, Duong Van Minh, who has been in office for just three days, made the announcement in a radio broadcast to the nation early in the morning. He asked his forces to lay down their arms and called on the North Vietnamese Army and Vietcong to halt all hostilities.

Photo: AFP/Getty Images