Vietnam War was reflected in how well they combined guerrilla and conventional operations to achieve their strategic goal of unifying Vietnam under communist rule. Throughout the conflict, the Viet Cong (VC) were employed to conduct guerrilla operations while North Vietnamese Army (NVA) and VC "main force" units were used to transition to conventional operations. Guerrilla operations enabled Hanoi to inflict a steady flow of casualties on US forces which increased anti-war sentiment in America. NVA and VC main force conventional operations reinforced the US Army's conventional approach to the fight which caused the Americans to alienate the people of South Vietnam. By alienating the South Vietnamese people, the Americans enhanced the VC's ability to conduct guerrilla operations and control rural population centers which weakened the credibility of the Government of South Vietnam (GVN). The combined effects of guerrilla and conventional operations supported the North Vietnamese strategy of a protracted conflict that was sure to weaken the resolve of the United States and eventually defeat the GVN. .

             The relationship between conventional and guerrilla operations was a key element of the Vietnamese communists' "Dau Tranh " strategy to fight and win the Vietnam War. A brief description of the Dua Tranh (meaning struggle) strategy is appropriate since it was the basis for North Vietnam's success. The strategy consisted of an armed struggle and a political struggle. The armed struggle began with Stage One hit and run guerrilla tactics to "decimate the enemy piecemeal and weaken then eliminate the government's administrative control of the countryside. " In Stage Two, "the war becomes less guerrilla-like and resembles a conventional small-scale war. " Finally, in Stage Three, the war becomes almost completely military and "the battle is between armies of troops, and in the battle is the decision.