Recently, the 8^th Plenum of the Central Committee of the Party (13^th Tenure) issued a Resolution on the Homeland Defence Strategy in the new situation. This marks the third time (since 2003) that our Party has issued such resolution specifically on this crucial strategic matter. It demonstrates the Party’s special concern for one of the country’s two strategic tasks. Therefore, understanding the necessity of issuing the Resolution and adhering to the fundamental perspectives determined is a highly important matter, aiming to contribute to the effective implementation of the Resolution in practical life.

1. The necessity of the Resolution

Almost as a customary practice, after every 10 years, driven by the practical requirements of the task of Homeland Defence, our Party issues a Resolution on the Strategy for Homeland Defence in the new situation. Firstly, this stems from the global and regional context, as well as their impacts on this crucial strategic task. According to the Party’s assessment, at present and in the coming years, the global and regional situation continues to undergo significant, rapidly evolving, and complex changes that are difficult to predict. Despite the prevailing trends of peace, cooperation, and development, there are still numerous difficulties and challenges. The strategic competition among major powers is becoming increasingly intense, even confrontational. Many security flashpoints persist, with the risk of escalation. Also, various forms of warfare, types of military operations, strategic domains, and new methods of conducting warfare are emerging, posing significant challenges to all nations, and Vietnam is no exception.

Secondly, domestically, although our Doi Moi efforts have achieved significant milestones, there are still limitations, weaknesses, and even new complexities. The four risks that our Party has previously warned about, along with signs of ideological, political, ethical and lifestyle declines and “self-evolution,” “self-transformation” within the Party, and other internal issues, have not been completely eliminated and, in some cases, have become more intricate and intense. Hostile forces and reactionary and opportunistic elements are actively engaged in sabotage acts, and internal factors that pose disadvantages still harbour many complexities.

Alongside this, the awareness and responsibility for Homeland Defence among a portion of Party cadres and members, and the people are sometimes not fully comprehensive, displaying subjective tendencies and a lack of vigilance. The integration of economic and social development with ensuring national defence and security is not truly robust and effective. The work of strategic assessment and forecasting at times do not align with the situation, and there have not been many breakthrough solutions to mobilise resources to strengthen national defence, security, and Homeland defence, especially in critical areas and strategic regions.

These issues pose a considerable challenge, directly impacting and placing increasingly higher demands on the task of Homeland Defence. Therefore, the issuance of a new Strategy by our Party is highly necessary, meeting the requirements of practical development, and addressing the timely leadership, guidance, and a significant transformation in the awareness, responsibility, and actions of the entire Party, people, and armed forces. This aims to harness the collective strength towards the cause of protecting the Motherland—one of the two strategic tasks of the Vietnamese revolution.

Live-firing exercise of the 12 Army Corps

2. The Party’s perspective on implementing the Strategy

That is, maintaining and enhancing the absolute, direct leadership of the Party in all aspects, the centralised, unified management and operation of the State, and maximising the significant role of the people in the cause of defending the Homeland. This is the most fundamental perspective, with its essence being the combination of three elements: the Party, the State, and the People. Each element has its own roles and functions, all of which are crucial to the cause of protecting the Homeland, emphasising the importance of not separating or underestimating any element. In particular, the Party’s leadership and the State’s management must be comprehensive, focusing on effectively implementing the strategies of all-people national defence and people’s warfare in both peacetime and wartime, with the principle of relying on the people, where “the people are the root.” This perspective is formed based on inheriting the valuable experiences of the Vietnamese revolution, from objective theories, scientific practices, and the increasingly high demands of the task of protecting the Homeland in the new situation. Relying on the people and recognising “the people as the root,” where the people are the centre and the subject of the implementation process, is not entirely new concept but a continued affirmation of the role and immense strength of the people in the revolutionary cause of the Party in general, and in the work of defending the Homeland in particular. The people are the source of all strength, “the people propel the boat, and it is only the people can sink the boat”; every crucial task of the nation and the state requires the active and voluntary participation of the people - without the people, even an easy task is impossible, and with the people, a thousand-time harder task is possible. Under the Party’s leadership, the strength from the people and the great national unity bloc can be fully utilised but our work must not stop here, we must also regularly enhance, “strengthen the people’s power,” and build the “people’s hearts and minds posture” through mechanisms and policies that resonate with the people’ will, improving the material and spiritual life of the people, as a stabilised population is the decisive factor for the success of the cause of building and defending the Homeland. Therefore, we must deeply adhere to this perspective and implement the new Strategy effectively based on it in the new situation.

That is, ensuring our nation-state’s interests at the highest level based on the fundamental principles of the United Nations Charter, international law, and the ideas of equality, cooperation, and mutual benefit. Every country in the world acts for its own interests, and Vietnam is no exception. However, our actions are not only for our own interests but also for the interests of the international community and our partners, we do not act out of selfishness or pursue our interests at any cost, violating the basic principles of the United Nations Charter and international law. Particularly, in the face of complex and sensitive issues in the international situation and relations, Vietnam consistently demonstrates an objective attitude and standpoint for common interests: peace, cooperation, and global and regional development. Regarding territorial disputes and disagreements, Vietnam advocates resolving them through peaceful means based on the mentioned principles. At the same time, Vietnam exercises restraint to prevent conflicts and complicating the situation, and resolutely opposes any use of force or threatening to use force.

The rapid, comprehensive, and sustainable development of the country must be closely linked to the coordinated implementation of various tasks. Among them, socio-economic development and environmental protection take centre stage, with Party building as the linchpin, cultural development as the spiritual foundation, and ensuring national defence and security as a core element. Adhering to this spirit, in the contemporary international relations with complex and intertwined interests, ensuring our nation-state’s interests at the highest level does not mean solely pursuing economic interests or short-term gains but encompasses overarching interests in sustainable and long-term fields. Particularly, safeguarding independence, sovereignty, territorial integrity, protecting the Party, the State, the People, culture, and the nation-state interests is the paramount and sacred issue of our nation. Vietnam is resolute and persistent in implementing this and will not allow any force to infringe upon it.

That is, steadfastly pursuing the goals of national independence and socialism. This is the consistent ideology, the enduring viewpoint of our Party through every revolutionary stage, from the past to the present and into the future. In the thousands of years of building and defending the nation, our people have sacrificed countless lives and shed blood to resist superior invaders to secure and maintain the nation’s independence. Inheriting this heroic tradition, under the Party’s leadership, our people have relentlessly fought and endured with countless sacrifices and hardships to achieve independence for the Homeland, and freedom and happiness for the people, and pave the way for the entire country to advance towards socialism. Looking back to 1946, when our people democratic state had just been established, facing numerous enemies and severe economic conditions, President Ho Chi Minh emphasised the principle of “use the Constant to deal with the Unpredictable”. The “Constant” here refers to national independence – something priceless, irreplaceable, and non-negotiable at any cost. Therefore, in the process of implementing the Homeland Defence Strategy in the new situation, we need to have a correct understanding and thoroughly comprehend the crucial importance of adhering to the goals of national independence and socialism. Simultaneously, we must recognise it as the guiding principle for both domestic and foreign policies of our Party and the State. Also, national independence must be closely linked to socialism, regardless of the circumstances, no matter how challenging or complex the situation is. We must uphold the right to self-determination for the nation, preventing dependence, especially political dependence, and deviations from the path of socialism. Today, the reason our country has achieved such a strong position, resources, and international prestige is primarily because our Party has consistently upheld the banner of national independence and socialism. In the new situation, we must tightly integrate the two strategic tasks, continuously strengthen national defence and security, and make significant investments in building the all-people national defence and security posture, and the people’s armed forces following the directions outlined in the 13^th Party Congress. Only in this way can we meet the requirements of safeguarding the Homeland in all situations.

That is, combining the strength of the nation with the drive of the era, mobilising maximum resources for the cause of protecting the Homeland. The aforementioned Party’s perspective is also a valuable lesson drawn from the experiences gained through the struggles for national liberation in the past and the current efforts in reforming, developing and safeguarding the Homeland. Therefore, in the process of implementing the Strategy, it is essential to harness the comprehensive strength of the entire nation, which consists of material resources, spiritual strength, national traditions, combined with the drive of the era and international support and consensus in all aspects from foreign partners and the international community. In addition, maximising internal resources, coupled with effectively utilising external resources, is crucial for continuously increasing the potential and strength of the country for the cause of defending the Homeland. Internal resources are fundamental and decisive, while external resources represent breakthroughs and are equally important. To fully utilise internal resources, it is necessary to continue innovating the mechanisms and methods of mobilising resources from the State, localities, the people, as well as resources from organisations and individuals through various forms of socialisation. Regarding external resources, in the current trend of deep international integration, active participation and seizing opportunities to enhance the effectiveness of bilateral and multilateral international cooperation are necessary. On the other hand, it is essential to proactively create opportunities and advantages to extract resources in cooperative, equal and mutually beneficial relationships. At the same time, caution must be exercised to avoid depending on external forces or creating pretext for foreign intervention in our internal affairs. Concurrently with the exploitation and mobilisation of resources, thorough consideration is needed for the effective and appropriate use and investment of these resources for national defence and security, and the defence of the Homeland.

That is, correctly and flexibly applying the viewpoints regarding partners and subjects. A correct understanding and clear identification of partners and threats are crucial for implementing the Homeland Defence Strategy. Only by doing so can we avoid mistakes and have an appropriate approach in cooperation and countering challenges. In the current complex situation, determining partners and subjects is a sensitive issue; if not resolved skillfully, it can negatively impact international relations and the mission of protecting the Homeland. Our Party clearly states: those who respect the interests of our nation-state, independence, sovereignty, national unity, territorial integrity, and the friendly, cooperative, equal and mutually beneficial relations with Vietnam are considered our partners. Any forces with conspiracies and actions against our cause of nation-building and Homeland defence are considered subjects that we have to deal with. Moreover, with a dialectical and scientific approach, our Party analyses that within each subject, there may be aspects aligned with our interests that require us to seek cooperation and persuade, while within each partner, there may be conflicting issues that need to be addressed. Therefore, the Party’s viewpoint on partners and subjects is clear, not vague or absolutist. This forms a solid foundation for us to correctly understand partners and subjects, avoiding conservative and stereotypical perceptions. In addition, a new perspective on partners and subjects is needed, with a key focus on recognising the quick and flexible transformation between partners and subjects. Accordingly, a country that was previously considered a subject may still be a subject, but in many cases, it may not be so, and there could even be a reversal from being a partner to becoming a subject, and vice versa. Especially, some countries are both partners and subjects of ours; to be more precise, in this period, they are partners in one field, while in another period or field, and they may be subjects. Not only that, even with subjects, we need to seek cooperation, and with partners, conflicts and disagreements may arise that need to be addressed. Therefore, when determining partners and subjects, it must be based on their current relationships and actions towards us, following the Party’s viewpoint mentioned above.

Grasping the Party’s viewpoints firmly, and creating unity in understanding and action is a crucial foundation for the entire Party, People, and Military to effectively implement the Strategy for Homeland protection in the new situation.

Major General NGUYEN MANH HUNG