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(French) What articles to use when speaking about countries?

I'm putting together a presentation for my French class =]

I'm trying to say:
- My project is based on Vietnam.
- Vietnam is bordered by China, Laos, Cambodia, and the South China Sea.

What articles do I use when I speak about it? Does it require an article at all?

What I have so far is:
- Ma presentation est fonde sur le Vietnam.
- Vietnam fait frontiere commune avec la Chine, le Laos, le Cambodge, et le Mer de Chine.

Are those sentences correct?
My main question is: When does a country's name require an article? When does it not?

Merci beaucoup!


(Please ignore my lack of accents. I can't seem to type them into yahoo)

In proper French, you will always use an article with country names. However, the articles can be kinda confusing, so I'll try to sum it up as best I can.

When speaking about the country (in general), use the appropriate definite pronoun:

La France est super! (France is great!)
J'aime l'Espagne (I like Spain)

When you say that you are "in" or going "to" a country, this is when it gets a little confusing. With FEMININE countries, you use the pronoun "en". With MASCULINE countries, you use "au". Examples:

Je vais en France. I'm going to France.
Je suis en France. I'm in France.
Je vais au Mexique. I'm going to Mexico.
Au Mexique, on aime danser. In Mexico, we like to dance.

When you express "from", you use either "de" plus the appropriate pronoun.

Je viens de la France. I'm from France.
Il est arrivé du Mexique. He came from Mexico.
Elle vient des Pays-Bas. She's from the Netherlands.

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