Both Colonel and Mme Delignières refer to Colonel Breitner as having gained French Citizenship through his military service. This would indicate that he served in the French Foreign Legion as foreigners serving in the Legion are eligible to apply for French citizenship after three years of service,
The battle of Dien Bien Phu, where Soua's father and brother were killed, was the decisive battle of the First Indochina War. The Viet Minh surrounded and eventually overran the French garrison, leading to France withdrawing their troops from Viet Nam and to the signing of the Geneva Accords.