General Doan Khue - former Member of the Politburo, former Deputy Secretary of the Central Military Party Committee (now the Central Military Commission), former Minister of National Defence, was an exemplary, steadfast communist soldier, a role model, a great leader, and an outstanding commander with a high reputation of the Vietnam People’s Army and among the Vietnamese people. A remarkable aspect of Comrade Khue’s revolutionary career was the harmonious integration of his political and military skills. Comrade Khue was not only an exemplary and talented political officer but also an excellent commander who made significant contributions to the development of the military, the struggle for national liberation, the reunification of the country, and the task of building and defending the socialist Vietnam Motherland.

A picture of General Doan Khue (Photo credit: baochinhphu.vn)

1. Comrade Doan Khue consistently adhered and creatively applied the Party’s political and military strategy to the reality of the battlefield

Growing up within the revolutionary struggle and experienced two great resistance wars of the nation and the Southwest Border War, and participating in missions to support the Cambodian revolution, Comrade Doan Khue held various key responsibilities in both political and military aspects. In these missions, he always firmly adhered to and creatively applied the Party’s political and military strategies to the reality of the battlefield, consistently adhering to the offensive strategy of “using the small to defeat the large, taking the few to fight the many”, “quality over quantity”, and closely coordinating various factors of force, situation, time, and tactics to defeat the enemy.

During the resistance against French colonial rule, Comrade Doan Khue’s name became synonymous with the development and victories of regular units in the 5^th Intersector, achieving remarkable feats on the battlefield of the Central Highlands, notably the victories at Mang Den and Chu Drêch in 1954, among others. In the resistance war against the US Imperialism, during his over 20 years in the 4^th and 5^th Military Region, Comrade Doan Khue creatively applied the Party’s people’s war strategy and military art to the realities of battlefields, making significant contributions to building the armed forces and defence posture of the 4^th Military Region. He was a talented and exemplary political commissar, leading the 341^st Division to excel in the mission of defending the demarcation areas during the early years when the nation was divided. Notably, when the U.S. Imperialists directly involved in the Southern Theatre, Comrade Doan Khue, along with the leadership of the 5^th Military Region Command and Party Committee, innovatively applied the unique military art of people’s warfare of Vietnam to the fight. They successively defeated the U.S. Imperialists’ war strategies. The 5^th Military Region was the area that successfully established the “Salient of US demise” - a creative and unique form of people’s warfare of Vietnam. This region was also at the forefront of the fight against the U.S. with remarkable victories, such as Nui Thanh, Van Tuong, Plâyme, Dong Duong, etc. These were decisive blows that undermined the U.S. military’s superiority and boosted the spirit of daring to fight and determining to win against the U.S. invaders throughout the nation and the armed forces.

The Tet Offensive and Uprising of 1968, the victory at Nong Son - Trung Phuoc in 1974, and bold offensives in South Quang Nam in the spring of 1975, along with numerous other feats in the 5^th Military Region, left a significant mark, confirming Comrade Doan Khue’s talent, courage, flexibility, and creativity in his abilities to organise and utilise forces, as well as his skills as a combat leader.

After our victory in the resistance war against the US Imperialism, serving as the Commander and also the Political Commissar of the 5^th Military Region, Comrade Doan Khue, along with the Party Committee and the Command of the Region, implemented several breakthrough solutions in suppressing counter-revolutionaries and stabilising the situation in their area of operation. A notable approach was the shift from “clearing FULRO” to “resolving the FULRO question” with many comprehensive and effective solutions, contributing to maintaining security, national defence, and strengthening the great unity bloc in the region. From 1983 to 1986, deeply embracing the ideology of Ho Chi Minh, “helping the people in your neighbouring country is to help yourself”, Comrade Doan Khue led and directed Vietnamese voluntary troops and advisors to excellently carry out the mission of aiding the Cambodian revolution in developing their armed forces, consolidating the government, thwarting the subversive plots and schemes of reactionary forces, safeguarding the revolutionary achievements, and strengthening the bonds of solidarity and cooperation between the two Parties, two Militaries, and the people of Vietnam and Cambodia.

2. Comrade Doan Khue made significant contributions in building the armed forces, with a focus on strengthening the People’s Army

Throughout various positions in his career, Comrade Doan Khue consistently paid attention to the comprehensive development of the armed forces, encompassing political, military, logistical, and technical aspects. He attached special importance to building political and spiritual strength for the troops, considering it the foundation for enhancing overall quality and combat power. Understanding the Party’s role of “absolute, direct leadership in all aspects” over the armed forces, Comrade Doan Khue concentrated on building strong party committees and organisations at all levels, emphasising the education of Marxist-Leninist ideology, the Party’s political line, and military strategy. Furthermore, he instilled a resolute will to fight and win in officers and soldiers, promptly rectifying any signs of hesitancy in the face of difficulties, hardship, sacrifice and the subject and overconfident mentalities, etc. among the troops.

Especially in the early years of the country’s Doi Moi era, while holding the responsibilities of the Chief of the General Staff of the Vietnam People’s Army and the Minister of National Defence, Comrade Doan Khue provided counsel to the Party and the State and directly directed the successful implementation of the organisational restructuring of the armed forces towards a more compact and gradually modernised direction. The guiding principle was to reduce the regular army size while improving its quality step by step. Additionally, he focused on building a robust reserve force and a strong self-defence militia force with widespread presence and focused qualities.

In the development of the armed forces, Comrade Doan Khue placed particular emphasis on party work and political affairs, consistently ensuring the building of transparent and robust military party committees. He directed the entire military to excel in political education and ideological training, resolutely countering the plots of hostile forces and reactionaries aimed at “peaceful transformation” and "depoliticisation" of the military. Simultaneously, he prioritised the work of education, training, drills, scientific research, and addressed the issue of standardisation of logistical work, weaponry, and technical equipment. These were significant contributions by Comrade Doan Khue, which only strengthened the comprehensive strength of the People’s Armed Forces, primarily the Vietnam People’s Army, but also lightened the burden on the defence budget. This allowed for the concentration of resources on the Doi Moi efforts, promoting the industrialisation and modernisation of the country, enhancing national defence potential and building a gradually modernised Military.

Visitors to the Exhibition about General Doan Khue which was opened at the Vietnam Military Measum (Photo credit: LINH THAM)

3. General Doan Khue - an outstanding strategic military thinker on a multitude of strategic matters; with great focus on innovating military and defence theory

Starting from 1986, in his assigned role, Comrade Doan Khue directed the strategic military advisory agencies within the Ministry of National Defence to focus on research, assessment, practical experience review, situational forecasting, proposal formulation, and strategic advice aimed at enhancing our national defence capabilities. As part of this effort, alongside the reorganisation of the military structure, Comrade Doan Khue guided the force adjustment and defence reorganisation in strategic areas in the direction of shifting from preparing to fight against a large-scale invasion to addressing “multi-dimensional disruptive warfare”, “peaceful evolution”, civil subversive activities, etc. Simultaneously, there was a close integration of economic development with national defence and security, particularly in vital areas such as coastal regions, islands, and continental shelves, to contribute to the firm defence of our maritime national sovereignty.

In consolidating the all-people national defense posture, Comrade Doan Khue emphasised first and foremost the need to maintain and strengthen the leadership of the Party, continuously improve the State’s management mechanisms, and institutionalise military and defence policies. In addition, he focused on building robust provincial and city defence areas with robust “people’s hearts and minds posture” and the development of tri-element armed forces, with a strong emphasis on the development of the  self-defence militia forces, widely spread across the nation to proactively respond to various situations.

Simultaneously, Comrade Doan Khue required the entire Military to concentrate on research, practical experience review, and renewing military thinking and theories. He said: “The Military should not limit itself to outdated principles, knowledge and formulas” but should update their military thinking to adapt to the advancement of modern science and technology and stay relevant to Vietnam’s specific circumstances.

Recognising the crucial role of military history research and the analysis of past operations, Comrade Doan Khue personally directed several analysis projects on strategies, operations and the Party leadership role in revolutionary wars. These works have great theoretical and practical value and contribute to the extraction of historical leadership and guidance experiences of the Party in the Vietnamese revolution. They also help capture the distinctive features of the military art of the Vietnamese people’s warfare for further application, and development.

4. Comrade Doan Khue had a scientific approach to work and a resolute leadership style with a close connection to practical matters

As a commander of strategic and operational levels, Comrade Doan Khue always closely monitored the battlefield, regularly visited units at the grassroots level, promoted democracy, listened to the opinions of his subordinates to work out solutions to overcome difficulties and reinforce the morale, willpower, and determination of officers and soldiers to complete their missions. In many battles, he went right to the front lines to assess the situation, direct operations, and boost the morale of officers and soldiers directly engaged in combat. He promptly handled complex and challenging situations that arose. During peacetime, in his capacity as the highest military leader, Comrade Doan Khue frequently conducted inspections of various types of units and organisations. Also, he offered great encouragement to officers and soldiers stationed in crucial areas, from the northernmost provinces to the southernmost ones, from the mainland to the seas, and the remote islands of the Motherland.

Comrade Doan Khue was a shining example of a rational, meticulous, democratic, and pragmatic working style, with a leadership and command approach that was both resolute and flexible and encompassed the spirit of daring to think, daring to act, and daring to take responsibility. These qualities define the character and credibility of Comrade Doan Khue, making leadership and command work inspiring and effective in practice. Therefore, throughout the years of his revolutionary career, Comrade Doan Khue received the respect, trust, and affection of comrades, colleagues, and the people.

The commemoration of the 100^th anniversary of the birth of General Doan Khue, an outstanding leader and commander of the Vietnam People’s Army, provides an opportunity for us to conduct a comprehensive and in-depth study of his contributions to the Vietnamese revolutionary cause. The harmonious combination of political and military factors, scientific thinking, democratic work methods, practical closeness, determination, creativity, and the spirit of daring to think and act, and daring to take responsibility are noble qualities of this revolutionary cadre. General Doan Khue may have passed away, but his leadership and command legacy will continue to serve as an enduring example for generations of military personnel and the people to learn from and follow.

Major General, Dr. NGUYEN HOANG NHIEN, Director of the Institute of Military History