Building the all-people defence posture is one of fundamental contents specified in the Resolution of the Resolution of the 8th Plenum of the Party Central Committee (11th tenure) on “Strategy to safeguard the Fatherland in the new situation.” After 10 years’ implementation of the Resolution, apart from recorded achievements, lessons need to be drawn from shortcomings and limitations to make it more effective in the coming time.

Building the all-people defence posture is all of activities concerning organisation, deployment, and disposition of forces and defence capabilities of the country according to a unified plan conducive to the Strategy to safeguard the Fatherland with a view to preventing and repelling the risk of conflict and war from afar, contributing to successful accomplishment of objectives and missions of defending the Fatherland in any situations. This is one of vital contents specified in the Resolution of the 8th Plenum of the Party Central Committee (11th tenure) on the Strategy to safeguard the Fatherland in the new situation and realised in all aspects, most notably establishment of the political posture, economic posture, military posture, and diplomatic posture, by the entire Party, people, military, levels, branches, localities, and political systems.

Building a robust political system and a strong people’s heart and mind posture is a deciding internal factor. The Resolution of the 8th Plenum of the Party Central Committee (11th tenure) specifies that there needs to enhance quality of the Party building work, Party protection work, internal political protection work, and building the law-governed socialist State”. Given this orientation, our Party always attaches importance to making itself pure and strong, strengthening its unity, vigorously reforming and promoting the quality of cadre work, especially development of strategic-level cadres. It actively prevents and combats shortcomings, corruption, and wastefulness; prevents and repels “self-evolution” and “self-transformation.” Also, it is necessary to increase the Party’s leadership capacity; consolidate people’s confidence in the Party, State, and socialist regime; build a law-governed socialist State truly of the people, by the people, and for the people; enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of State management; build sociopolitical unions of good quality; make the great national unity increasingly robust. Attention should be paid to building of the grassroots political system, a weak link in today’s building of the political system, especially in the hinterland, border areas, offshore islands, strategic areas, areas home to people from ethnic minorities. Accordingly, the party committee at all levels have adopted many measures to select and train commune-, ward-, and town-level party committees and leaders as well as village cadres in order to enable them to concretise and put the Party’s guidelines and State’s policies into everday life; enhance their leadership of defence, military work and building of the all-people defence posture in localities, especially in key areas in defence, security terms. In the 2012-2017 timeframe, the People’s Army alone participated in building political bases in 3,656 communes, wards, and towns, inhabited by ethnic groups and 11,598 sociopolitical organisations; promoted development of party members in 449 zero-party member villages; strengthened 3,164 party cells; and sent 1,848 military cadres to localities to promote base development.

Establishment of a robust people’s heart and mind posture is a fundamental factor of the all-people defence posture. The Resolution of the 8th Plenum of the Party Central Committee (11th tenure) emphasises development of spiritual, political potential and people’s heart and mind posture. It is necessary to care for people’s spiritual, material life, consolidate people’s confidence and consensus; issue many people-centred policies; work out appropriate mechanisms to leverage people’s responsibility and duties to the country; arouse the patriotism, pride in national identity, and aspirations for building a strong, prosperous country and firmly defending the socialist Vietnamese Fatherland. The defence and security education for cadres, party members, and people are to be reformed to enhance quality. In the period of 2008-2018 alone, over five million cadres, 41 million pupils and students, 422,928 religious dignitaries and ministers received defence and security education, contributing to a significant improvement in cadres’, party members’, and people’s awareness of the mission to safeguard the Fatherland.

As for setting up economic posture, the Resolution of the 8th Plenum of the Party Central Committee (11th tenure) specifies that economic development must be closely combined with ensuring national defence, security, and successful settlement of social issues. Over the past few years, the Party, State, and people have put a great deal of effort into economic development and gained significant achievements of historical importance, which serves to provide a better material basis for national defence, security, and protection of the Fatherland, especially for the modernisation of the People’s Army. The Party’s and State’s major policy on combining economic development with organising, deploying, and positioning forces and defence, security potential is regularly carried out and reaps certain results. Economic development is also associated with organising and disposing forces and defence, security potential in each locality, region, and strategic area, reassigning labour, and redistributing population to ensure the presence of defence forces in difficult areas. The building of economic infrastructure must be connected with setting up elements of defence, security posture, combat bases, rear bases, technical and logistical bases, and so forth. The establishment of economic-defence zones in strategic areas, along the land borders, in the mountainous areas, in key coastal areas, and on islands must be associated with stabilisation of populated areas, building of new-style countryside, hunger eradication, and sustainable poverty reduction. National industrial infrastructure is to be established in connection with development of defence industry to provide the military with increasingly modern weapons and equipment. There needs to develop economic branches along with organising and positioning defence forces and potential in the industry, finance, service, agriculture, forestry, fishery, post and telecommunications, transport, health, ensuring alignment with creating favourable conditions for technical, logistical support, troop movement, communication, and establishment of military, defence, security constructions and the militia and self-defence force.

As for setting up military posture, the deployment and position of military force in strategic directions and areas have been basically completed with a focus on positioning the mobile forces in alignment with the on-site forces. The Resolution of the 8th Plenum of the Party Central Committee (11th tenure) notes that “the strategic position of military force is further adjusted to meet the requirement of defending the country”. It is necessary to build the military region defensive posture to satisfy the demand of safeguarding the Fatherland in the area of responsibility of each military region; attach importance to plans, constructions, and deployment of forces in coastal areas and border areas as well as prediction of many scenarios to be ready to respond to all situations successfully. Investment in building provincial, municipal defensive zones has brough about positive outcomes, improving ability to respond to defence, security situations in the areas. Politics, economy, culture, society, national defence, security are to be built and developed comprehensively, most notably elements of the military posture within defensive areas, key defensive areas, combat bases, rear bases, technical and logistical bases, evacuation areas, headquarters at all levels, strongholds, complexes of strongholds, and deployment areas of forces. There needs to promote defensive area exercises to ensure their closeness to defence, security situations in localities. Military, defence constructions must be built in connection with the military region defensive posture and layout of combat systems on land, at sea, and on islands. Attention should be paid to building of defensive constructions in border areas, coastal areas, and on offshore islands; major defensive constructions; runways and field airports on big islands as specified in the Resolution of the 8th Plenum of the Party Central Committee (11th tenure).

Regarding establishment of the diplomatic posture, the Resolution of the 8th Plenum of the Party Central Committee (11th tenure) affirms the requirement to “synchronously and comprehensively carry out the foreign policy of independence, self-reliance, proactive and active international integration aimed to create an international environment conducive to the cause of building and protecting the Fatherland.” On realising the foreign policy of openness, multilateralisation, diversification, being a friend, a trustworthy partner, and a responsible member in the international community, Viet Nam has broadened international cooperation in various fields, especially in economic terms, in connection with establishing the national defence posture outside its territory in the spirit of firmly upholding independence and self-reliance to avoid dependence, confrontation, and isolation. Viet Nam attaches importance to strengthening ties with its neighbouring countries, ASEAN member states, major powers, and traditional friends; intensifying border exchange with neighbouring countries and activities to safeguard its sovereignty over waters, islands in order to heighten its position and prestige in the international arena, contributing to firm protection of the Fatherland.

There remain some limitations. After 10 years’ implementation of the Resolution, beside the above-mentioned outcomes, the deterioration in political ideology, morality, and lifestyle, “self-evolution,” and “self-transformation” of a part of cadres and party members have not been prevented and repelled. Although great attention has been paid to development of the grassroots political system, it remains a weak link, especially in the remote areas, strategic areas, and areas densely inhabited by ethnic groups and religious people. People’s confidence in the Party, State, and socialist regime has been strengthened but not truly strong. Many issues relating to socialism need to be further clarified. Combination between economic development with national defence and security has been conducted but less effective in practice. There remain signs of attaching great importance to economic benefit while underestimating defence and security benefit. Investment in building the provincial, municipal defensive zones has failed to meet requirements of safeguarding the Fatherland. Many elements of the military posture within defensive areas have not been developed. Defence, military power has shown certain limitations, especially the ability to conduct operations in waters and offshore islands and counter to high-tech warfare. Defence, military power has not been strong enough to achieve deterrence since peacetime. Diplomatic activities to address disputes over land borders and sovereignty over waters and islands have encountered certain difficulties. 16 per cent of Vietnam-Cambodia land border has not been demarcated, which potentially leads to instability and challenges to independence, sovereignty, unity, and territorial integrity.

Implications for building the all-people defence posture in the coming time

First, it is necessary to further speed up implementation of the Resolutions of the 4 Plenum of the Party Central Committee (11th and 12th tenure) on “Some urgent issues concerning party building today,” the Conclusion No. 21-KL/TW of 25 October 2021 of the Party Central Committee on intensifying the building and rectification of the Party and political system; resolutely prevent, push back, and punish cadres and party members with deterioration in political ideology, morality, and lifestyle and signs of “self-evolution” and “self-transformation”; actively prevent and deal with wrongdoings, corruption, and wastefulness; resolve to prevent wrongdoings in cadre work; prevent and repel “self-evolution” and “self-transformation” within the Party; enhance leadership and combat power of party organisations; promote building of the grassroots political system, especially the selection and training of leaders of commune-, ward-, and town-level party committees and authorities.

Second, there needs to step up reviewing practice and conducting theoretical studies to clarify new issues concerning socialism and the path to socialism in Viet Nam, especially in today’s context, materialising superiorities of socialism; addressing social problems; consolidating people’s confidence in the Party, State, and socialist regime.

Third, attention must be paid to clarification of fundamental issues concerning combining socio-economic development with strengthening national defence and security in the context of the socialist-oriented market economy and international integration; improvement in combination regulations with a focus on the role of the People’s Army and Public Security in appraising and approving economic strategies, plans, projects; strengthening of inspection, examination, and punishment of violations regarding combining economic development with national defence and security and vice versa.

Fourth, the resolutions of the Party Central Committee on building provinces and cities into robust defensive zones in the new situation must be further realised with a focus on investing in establishing posture elements, especially those of the military posture in provincial, municipal defensive zones and stepping up socialising civil defence in defensive zones.

Fifth, it is necessary to adjust strategic position of military force in accordance with the adept, compact, strong, modern direction; attach importance to positioning forces according to their areas of responsibility and area operations; speed up modernisation of the People’s Army; enhance comprehensive quality and combat power to enable the People’s Army to be always in high combat readiness and safeguard the Fatherland from afar.

Sixth, there needs to persistently pursue the foreign policy of openness, multilateralisation, diversification, more friends and less enemies, both cooperation and struggle; promote international cooperation on the basis of firmly upholding independence and self-reliance; creating intertwined strategic interests, especially with the major powers, strategic partners, neighbouring countries, and regional countries; resolve disputes by peaceful means on the basis of international law; avoid conflict, confrontation, isolation, and dependence.

Lieutenant General, Associate Professor, Doctor TRAN THAI BINH