To meet the requirements of Fatherland protection after the country had been reunified, the Division 306 (Army Corps 2) (hereafter the Division) was established on November 15^th, 1978. Being founded after the country had just undergone the war with an array of difficulties, the Division quickly stabilized its organisational structure and improved the quality of training and combat readiness.

At present, the Division is a unit mainly staffed by cadres and tasked with managing, inspecting and training reservists within 8 districts and city of Hung Yen province, training the Corps’ new recruits, and performing some other tasks. Facing the new development of task requirements, the Division’s Party Committee and commanders have concentrated their leadership and direction on comprehensively implementing all aspects of work with a variety of synchronous and appropriate solutions. Thanks to that, despite many difficulties in terms of personnel and facilities, the Division’s cadres and soldiers have always upheld political willpower with increasingly high level of combat readiness. The works of logistics, technology, discipline management, and regularity building have witnessed many positive and steady changes. Over 40 years of building, fighting and maturing, the Division’s generations of cadres and soldiers have always promoted revolutionary heroism, made great efforts to overcome all difficulties and hardships, built the tradition “Solidarity, self-reliance, good training, good practice”, and well accomplished all assigned tasks.

In order to obtain those achievements, first of all, the Division has focuses on building strong unit politically and ideologically, considering this work as the most important basis for heightening comprehensive quality and fighting power. Accordingly, the Division’s Party Committee and commanders have directed the agencies and units to well implement the work of political and ideological education in order to raise cadres, soldiers and reservists’ awareness, responsibility, and spirit of self-reliance, self-resilience to complete tasks. To that end, educational contents have been focused on clarifying the Party’s military and national defence viewpoints and guidelines, the Army and Division’s tasks in the new situation, objects of struggle, and the hostile forces’ conspiracies and plots of “peaceful evolution”, “depoliticization” and “civilization” of our Army. The emphasis has been placed on educating the Ordinance on Reserve Force, the need to build this force, and the requirements of mobilizing reserve troops nowadays. In order to improve the quality of political and ideological education, the Division has directed the agencies and units to continue effectively executing the Project “Renovating the work of political education at units in the new period”. In particular, due regard has been paid to regularly renovating education forms and methods suitable for each task and object, especially for the grassroots cadres, new recruits and reservists. At the same time, the Division has closely combined the basic political education program with regular education in line with the tasks, the traditional education of the localities and units with the education of law, discipline, morality and lifestyle for cadres, soldiers and reservists, creating the unity of awareness, ideology and practice in each agency and unit.

Sr. Col. Do Quang Dong commands the Division’s field exercise in 2018

In addition, the Division has regularly enhanced the leadership and combat capacity of party organizations, especially at the Party cell level in conformity with the Resolution of the 4^th Plenum of the 12^th Party Central Committee on Party building and rectification. Specifically, importance has been attached to implementing the works of inspection, supervision, self-criticism and criticism, preserving internal solidarity and unity, building and promoting the role of the contingent of cadres in leading, directing and managing units. Simultaneously, the Division has well implemented the “Determined to Win” emulation movement in combination  with the studying and following of Ho Chi Minh’s thought, morality and lifestyle according to the Directive No. 05-CT/TW by the 12^th Politburo and the Campaign “Promoting tradition, devoting talents, deserving to be Uncle Ho’s soldiers”, opportunely applauded and awarded individuals and collectives with outstanding achievements, creating motivation for cadres and soldiers’ self-improvement and raised their awareness and sense of political responsibility. Besides, consideration has been given to ensuring policies for cadres and soldiers and their families to make them keep their mind on their work. As a result, the Division’s cadres, soldiers and reservists have always seized steadfast political will and strong determination and shown the readiness to receive and fulfill their duties in all situations, especially in mobilization task. In the annual political tests, 100% of the staff are rated as satisfactory, over 85% of which are rated as credit and distinction.

In order to create synergy to meet the task requirements, the Division has concentrated on improving the quality of training and combat readiness. Thoroughly grasping Resolution No. 765-NQ/QUTW by the Central Military Commission, Resolution No. 253-NQ/ĐUQD by the Corps 2’s Party Committee on “Improving the training quality in the 2013-2020 period and beyond”, and higher echelons’ combat training plans and commands, the Division has closely and synchronously directed the training work and put this work in order. Accordingly, prior to the training season, together with the preparation work on lesson plans, lectures, teaching aids, and training grounds, the Division’s units have been directed to actively strengthen the contingent of cadres in charge of training reservists (including both group A and group B) and new recruits. At the same time, significance has been attached to improving qualifications and training methods of cadres at all levels, especially battalion level ones. During the training process, the Division has adhered to the motto “basics, practicality, and thorough grasp” to provide comprehensive, focalized training courses. For permanent force and reservists, the Division has taken tactical training as the centre and technical training as the core, ensuring proficiency in the use of weapons and technical equipment, promoting the capacity of creative thinking and determination, and combining traditional fighting methods with modern ones. In training newly enlisted soldiers, along with military regulations and physical training, due regard has been paid to training soldiers to be good at tactics of individuals, groups, and squads and to be expert in techniques and movements of infantry combat, such as AK shooting, and grenade throwing, associated with the contents of political education, regularity construction, discipline maintenance, etc.

Besides, on a yearly basis, the Division has well conducted tactical practice and live-firing maneuvers. In those exercises, the situations have been close to the actual combat and objects of struggle. Meanwhile, the competitions and contests have been well organised; the work of reviewing and drawing experience have been focused after each training phase. These great efforts have contributed to gradually enhancing the quality of training cadres and training battalion level troops. Through annual examination and evaluation, 100% of the battalion and company level cadres meet the requirements of training capacity at their levels, while the safety of personnel and weapons are ensured. The Division has been given the title of “Good training unit” for many consecutive years. In parallel with that, the Division has stringently maintained regularity and combat readiness; formulated, supplemented and perfected combat plans at each level; directed agencies and units to fully practise according to the identified plans and practical requirements, ensuring sufficient mobilization capacity and good task accomplishment when necessary.

Along with improving the quality of training and combat readiness, the Division has stepped up regularity building and discipline maintenance. This is both the goal and the basis for making unit comprehensively strong. The Division’s agencies and units have well enhanced soldiers’ awareness and responsibility in the observance of the State Constitution and laws, military discipline, and unit’s regulations; combined the regularity construction and discipline maintenance with the building of healthy cultural environment; and directed soldiers towards self-abiding by daily and weekly regimes. At the same time, great value has been attached to closely cooperating with the local authorities in dealing with relevant cases; regularly providing information for soldiers to have a thorough understanding of the situation. On the other hand, the Division has directed agencies and units to resolutely fight, prevent, and strictly handle the violations of discipline and regulations on traffic safety, training safety, etc. Therefore, in recent years, the quality of regularity construction and discipline maintenance work has been increasingly raised; the awareness of soldiers has been changed in the direction of self-obedience. There has been no soldier deserting from the army or being absence without permission. The number of ordinary disciplinary offenses has decreased to 0.2%, ensuring the absolute safety within the entire Division.

Together with the above solutions, the Division has concentrated on well ensuring the work of logistics and technical support for regular and unexpected tasks. In particular, importance has been attached to well executing the emulation movement “Military Logistics Branch follows Uncle Ho’s teachings”; actively increasing agricultural production, surpassing the criteria of vegetables, meat, and fish to gradually improve the soldiers’ life; focusing on the work of hygiene, epidemic prevention and food safety; strictly managing and effectively using petrol, oil, electricity, water, budget, assets, etc. In addition, the Division has regularly mended cultural institutions and concentrated on the construction and management of “regular, green, clean and scenic” camp, ensuring the uniformity and raising troops’ material and spiritual life. Moreover, due regard has been paid to well performing technical support work for the tasks, especially for the tasks of mobilization, training, and combat readiness; regularly fostering the professional qualifications and capability of the contingent of technical cadres and staff. In the meantime, the Division has strictly maintained preservation and maintenance regimes; actively studied and applied technical innovations to improve and extend the use of weapons and technical equipment; effectively executed the Campaign 50, thereby contributing to well operating technical work.

Bringing into play the tradition of 40 years of building, fighting and maturing, the Division’s cadres and soldiers will continue striving to make unit comprehensively strong, well accomplish all assigned tasks, and deepen the good tradition of the Division, contributing to firmly protecting the Fatherland in every situation.

Sr. Col. Do Quang Dong, Commander of the Division