Military exercises and contests play an important role in enhancing all-level officers’ commanding ability and raising units and forces’ combat skills, tactics and coordination, while laying a foundation for evaluating the combat capacity and strength of a unit. Hence, the Division 395’s Party Committee and Command have been drastically, synchronously taking measures to realise "the year of raising the quality of military exercises and contests."

Over the years, the Division 395 under the Military Region 3 has thoroughly grasped and strictly implemented resolutions and directives by the Central Military Commission, the Ministry of National Defence and the Military Region 3 on training. More importantly, after 5 years of implementing the Resolution 765-NQ/QUTW, dated December 20^th, 2012 by the Central Military Commission on "raising the quality of training in the period of 2013 - 2020 and beyond," the Division’s training quality has been considerably improved and highly appreciated by leaders of the Ministry of National Defence and the Military Region 3. Notably, the training work has been led, directed, managed and operated closely and consistently. The contents, methods and programmes of training and drills have been constantly renewed in line with the development of science and technology and the art of war. Refresher courses for cadres have been effectively held. In 2020, despite the COVID-19 pandemic, the Division promptly adjusted its training plan to achieve the dual goals of training and epidemic prevention. The emulation movements and military contests took place widely. Units’ training quality and the commanding and coordinating skills of officers and offices have been improved. As a result, all staff members have passed training tests. 82% of them have achieved merit or distinction. All cadres have been able to take charge of the training work at their level. 90% of officers at battalion level, 80% of officers at company level, and 70% of officers at platoon level have been rated as good and excellent at training. In 2020, 38 companies, 10 battalions and 2 regiments within the Division were recognised as Excellent Training Unit, while the Division was awarded the Flag of "Excellent Training Unit" by the Ministry of National Defence in the period of 2015 - 2020.

However, there have been weaknesses in the Division’s training work. More specifically, some officers and soldiers have yet to be fully aware of the training task, while the renewal of training method has not been comprehensive yet.

Clearly understanding the importance of training and the role of a main unit of the Military Region 3, in 2021, the Division’s Party Committee and Command have focused their leadership and direction on successfully performing the "central, routine" political task, with a breakthrough in realising "the year of raising the quality of military exercises and contests" as the basis for overcoming weaknesses in training.

To that end, first of all, importance has been attached to strengthening the leadership and direction of all-level party committees and commanders over military training, exercises and contests. The Division has required all-level party committees and organisations to strictly grasp higher echelon’s directives and instructions to issue their resolutions on the training task in 2021, with emphasis placed on developing targets and measures to successfully realise the theme of the year as the basis for directing their units’ implementation process.

Besides, the Division has promoted political education and ideological management to render officers and soldiers fully aware of military exercises and contests’ importance, contents, targets, requirements, difficulties, and challenges as well as to encourage them to complete their assigned tasks. At the same time, attention has been paid to proactively, resolutely fighting against subjectivity, overly satisfaction, fear for difficulties and hardships, and competition for achievements only.

Exercise is the highest form of combat training. To achieve the goals and requirements, the contents and methods of an exercise must be comprehensive to ensure that all soldiers will experience situations close to combat reality and to provide a solid foundation for improving their command and staff capability, technical and tactical level, courage, and survival skills on the battlefield. Therefore, exercises have always been identified as an important task by the Division. In order to raise the quality of the exercises of 2021, in addition to the work of preparation in terms of personnel, materiel and logistics support, importance has been attached to renewing those exercises’ contents, forms, and methods. Emphasis has been placed on adjusting and supplementing the contents relevant to objects of struggle, combat plans and areas, and the conditions of a hi-tech war. Furthermore, the Division has required its affiliates to adhere to “the method of direction according to situations” in some phases of the exercises. Up to now, the Division has been supplementing and completing the system of combat documents at all levels. In this regard, consideration has been given to designing and perfecting the system of operational situations for tactical rehearsals at platoon, company and battalion levels, for table-top exercises, and for live-firing command-office drills. Great value has been attached to conducting surveys and making operational plans for situations in new areas, including the midland, mountainous, urban and coastal ones. The contents of such plans must be designed for both combat and sustainment forces, in line with local defensive zones, and relevant to the organisational structure, materiel, situational development, task requirements, and strategic intentions of the Military Region 3.

Commander of the Military Region 3 inspecting the Division’s reconnaissance mission in the field

To fight against the enemy that has high-tech weapons, advanced surveillance equipment, and great capabilities in electronic warfare, manoeuvrability, and quick response, the Division has focused on practising manoeuvre projects in its general and commanding exercises at different levels and in the complicated conditions of terrain and weather. In the medium term, attention will be paid to developing projects for forces’ manoeuvre in association with preventing and fighting against the enemy’s firepower. Significance will be attached to combining tactical drills with training marches in the distance of 150 km - 200 km across different terrains in accordance with combat reality to improve troops’ physical strength and endurance. To achieve the objectives and requirements, the Division has directed agencies and units to focus on the above-mentioned contents right in their training process, combine manoeuvre training and river crossing with search and rescue exercises in the rainy and stormy season, and proactively apply scientific and technological achievements together with traditional, on-the-spot measures to camouflage and diversion.

Right in the initial step of the exercises, the Division has closely, resolutely directed its affiliates to shift towards the state of combat readiness. Due regard has been paid to practising all steps, namely alarm raising, manoeuvre, and rendezvous, and stepping up the use of symbolic means, fake news, and encrypted commands via signal means to promote commanders’ activeness and creativity and align theory with practice. Moreover, the Division has regularly maintained the order for inspection and review to draw lessons, from the staff work of commanders and agencies to the combat action of units, especially in combat coordination and the observance of discipline on the battlefield and safety regulations during training and exercises.

It is worth noting that the Division has always been a typical example in military contests within the Military Region 3 and the entire Military as well. Since 2015, in the contests organised by the Ministry of National Defence and the Military Region 3, the Division has won the first prize for eleven times and the second prize twice. Such contests have enabled the Division to bring into play the potential and strengths of each unit and individual, improve its officers and soldiers’ morale, capacity and knowledge, and raise its affiliates’ training quality, combat readiness and task performance. In order to maintain its status as the top unit in the contests at military region and Army-wide levels, in the beginning of the year, the Division has worked with competent offices of the Military Region 3 to determine the subjects, components, time and venue for military contests, while working out plans and regulations on its own events, establishing the Organising Board and the Juries, and issuing documents to give instructions to and direct its units.

In the process, agencies and units have been required to follow higher echelons’ regulations on military contests, make necessary preparations, and develop specific, scientific training plans. They have been also asked to organise military contests at grass-roots level to gain experience, share effective solutions, and detect, select and nurture potential teams and individuals for contests held by superiors. In addition to the above-mentioned measures, the Division has attached great value to combining training, exercises, and military contests with discipline management, military standard order building, and the construction of “bright, green, clean, scenic units,” while providing timely, sufficient logistics and technical support for the Division's operations, especially for its training and combat readiness.

With its resolve and serious, close, creative, effective measures, hopefully, the Division 395 will successfully realise the year of raising the quality of "military exercises and contests” as the basis for improving its overall quality and combat strength so that it could readily undertake and fulfil all assigned missions to bolster its tradition of "solidarity, advance, good training, and victory” in the new time.

Sr. Col. TO THANH QUYET, Commander of the Division