Building the all-people border guard in the all-people national defence in connection with the people’s security is a persistent, strategic guideline of the Party, which aims to augment strength for national defence, security, and firm protection of the socialist Vietnamese Fatherland. In view of current complex evolution in the world and region, this mission becomes more important than ever.

On deeply grasping the Party’s guidelines on military, national defence, and protection of the Fatherland, especially the one regarding building of a stable, strong all-people border guard and all-people border guard posture in the all-people national defence and all-people national defence posture in alignment with the people’s security posture, over the past few years, the Border Guard Soldiers have worked closely with levels, agencies, localities, forces, and people in the border areas to synchronously carry out solutions to building of the all-people border guard and gained vital results, contributing to increased defence and security strength, defeat of hostile forces’ sabotage schemes, and firm defence of territorial sovereignty and security of national borders in any situations.

Given their leading role in the management and protection of national borders, units of the Border Guard Soldiers have closely collaborated with local party committees and authorities to mobilise all resources needed for building the all-people border guard in terms of potential, force, and posture; attached importance to mass mobilisation and active participation in establishing robust political bases, which serves to cement the close-knit civil-military relation in the border area. They have also closely collaborated with other forces of the Public Security and military to effectively realise the Decree No. 03/2019/ND-CP, dated 5 September 2019 of the Government on the cooperation between the Ministry of Public Security (MPS) and Ministry of National Defence (MND) on safeguarding national security, guarantee of social order and safety, prevention and response to crimes, and implementation of defence tasks. Specifically, they have worked together to advise local party committees and authorities to timely, effectively resolve complex situations relating to national defence and security; protect important political events of the country; struggle to defeat sabotage schemes of hostile forces; prevent and control crimes effectively, especially the transboundary ones; actively prevent and overcome consequences of natural disasters; firmly defend territorial sovereignty and national borders; maintain political security and social order and safety in support of socio-economic development and foreign relations of the country.

Apart from achievements, awareness of building the all-people border guard among part of cadres, party members, and people has certain limitations. Combination of economic development with national defence and security in strategic, maritime, border areas is not close in some aspects. Sometimes, collaboration among armed forces in defence zones is not really effective. The comprehension, prediction, and response to defence, security situations in some border areas witness confusion. Some elements fail to meet requirements and missions.

To address these limitations and continue to build a strong all-people border guard and all-people border guard posture in the coming time require units of the Border Guard Soldiers to focus on well adopt the following solutions.

First, it is necessary to raise awareness and responsibility of levels, agencies, and people in the border areas for building the all-people border guard in the cause of safeguarding national borders. Units of the Border Guard Soldiers need to successfully conduct propagation and education with a view to making the political system and people deeply perceive the goal of “building a long-term, stable, robust all-people border guard and all-people border guard posture in the all-people national defence and all-people national defence posture in connection with a strong people’s security posture”. Contents of propagation and education must be comprehensive and concentrate on the Strategy to Safeguard the Fatherland in the New Situation, Resolution No. 33-NQ/TW, dated 28 September 2018 of the Politburo on the Strategy to Safeguard National Borders, the Law on Viet Nam Border Guard, Directive No. 01/CT-TTg, dated 9 January 2015 of the Prime Minister on “launching movement for all-people participation in protecting territorial sovereignty and national border security in the new situation”, thereby making cadres, party members, armed forces, and entire people thoroughly perceive the importance of building the all-people border guard within the all-people national defence in association with the people’s security to firmly defend territorial sovereignty and national border security in any situations. These are ways to safeguard the Fatherland from afar.

Second, there is a need to thoroughly grasp situations in order to discover schemes and modes of operation of the enemy and all types of subjects, firmly preserving security and order in the border areas. Departments and units, especially the border guard posts must be constantly and deeply aware of situations relating to territorial sovereignty and national border security; classify types of areas and subjects; and work with commissions, agencies, and sociopolitical unions to promote propagation in connection with patrols in complex, key areas in terms of security and order. This provides the foundation for preparing forces and combining armed and unarmed struggle with diplomatic, legal measures to protect national borders and prevent and respond to the scheme of “peaceful evolution” and acts of subversion and separatism in the border areas. Transboundary, transnational nontraditional security challenges must be resolved effectively by unarmed measures while acts of encroaching upon our sovereignty over borders and causing border conflict must be dealt with by armed measures.

Third, it is imperative to continue building a robust all-people border guard, capable of meeting requirement of safeguarding national borders. Units of the Border Guard Soldiers need to actively participate in the building of strong, pure party organisations and local authorities; strengthening and promoting operating effectiveness of the political system in the border areas. It is also necessary to leverage the role of border guard cadres detached to border communes and districts; the participation of party members of border guard posts in meetings of party cells and caring for households in the border areas. The units must continue to effectively implement movements and programs of the Border Guard Soldiers in establishing potential and infrastructure, arranging clusters of residential areas, and undertaking socio-economic development in conjunction with strengthening national defence and security in the border areas. They are to work closely with local party committees, authorities, the Fatherland Front, agencies, commissions, and branches in the border areas to uphold and multiply the models and movements: “The masses participate in self-management of boundary lines and landmarks and preservation of security and order in border villages”; “The youth are in the vanguard of protecting borderlines”; “Homes for poor people in the border, sea, island areas”; “Border Guard Spring brings joys and happiness to village people”; “Together with border women”; “The green insignia teachers nurture children’s step to schools”; “Groups of residential areas from both countries are twined with one another. These activities contribute to increased people’s intellectual standard, improvement of people’s welfare, and changes in economy, culture, society, national defence, and security in the border areas.

In addition, there is a need to make departments and units of the Border Guard Soldiers strong in terms of politics, ideology, morality, organisation and cadre with a focus on enhancing their political steadfastness, revolutionary morality, and absolute faithfulness to the Fatherland, Party, State, and people. In the short term, efforts should be devoted to building of departments and units in an adept, compact, strong direction as specified in the Resolution No. 05-NQ/TW, dated 17 January 2022 of the Politburo (13th tenure) and Resolution No. 230-NQ/TW, dated 2 April 2022 of the Central Military Commission (CMC) on the organisation of Viet Nam People’s Army in the 2021 – 2030 period and beyond. Further investment is to be made in weapons, technical equipment, facilities, etc., of forces with the aim of improving the effectiveness of border control and protection in any situations.

Fourth, the all-people border guard posture must be made robust in each region, strategic direction, and nationwide. Building of the all-people border guard posture aims to bring into play overall power in managing and defending border sovereignty and security under the motto: “Each person is a border soldier”. Therefore, it is vital to clearly identify concrete, feasible objectives in building the border guard posture, which both satisfies immediate demands and serves the long-term ones while matching requirements and missions to control and safeguard borders as well as capabilities of each locality. Of note, building the people’s heart and mind posture” and “people’s heart and mind border” are pivotal solutions. Establishing the all-people border guard posture is the art of organising, placing, and using forces, in which forces of the Border Guard Soldiers play the core role in undertaking operational activities to defend the borders, contributing to successful implementation of the two strategic tasks of building and safeguarding the Fatherland. Thus, it is vital to strengthen leadership of party committees and commanders as well as the unified administration of authorities nationwide, in each borderline and water, regarding this as the principle to ensure that the all-people border guard posture performs its missions correctly and meets requirements of safeguarding border sovereignty and security in any situations.

The all-people border guard posture is an element of the all-people border guard. It is characterised by the comprehensive, synergetic organisation and arrangement of forces and potential of the country in the border, sea areas according to a strategic intent to firmly control and protect sovereignty and security of national borders while building borders of peace and friendship in the new situation.

Senior Colonel, Doctor TRAN MANH HUNG, Border Guard Academy