The Reserve is one component of the Vietnam People’s Army (VPA). Building the strong and high quality Reserve  has been a strategic guideline of the Party and the responsibility of the whole political system and the entire people for strengthening defence potential and meeting the requirements of Fatherland protection in the new situation.

Grasping and implementing the Order on the Reserve, over the past years, the building of the Reserve of our country has gained positive results. Up to now, we have basically built a sufficient and strong Reserve with appropriate structure, thereby making practical contribution to building the strong people’s armed forces, meeting the requirement of national construction and defence.

In the coming time, the world and regional situations are predicted to have complicated evolutions with rising and severe trend of local wars, arms race, racial, religious conflicts, territorial disputes, traditional and non-traditional security issues. As for our country, hostile forces will continue to strengthen their “Peaceful evolution” strategy and promote internal “self-evolution” and “self-transformation” with sophisticated and cunning tricks. Our cause of national construction and defence will have both advantages and disadvantages, opportunities and challenges which require that we strengthen and consolidate our defence and security posture, and build a strong all-people national defence. In particular, building the strong and high quality Reserve is a very important issue, hence we should focus on the following measures:

First, strengthen the leadership and direction of party committees and authorities of localities and party committees and commandants of units over the task of building the Reserve. Levels, sectors, localities and military units should promote political and ideological education, defence and security training to make the entire people, first and foremost, party committees, authorities, cadres and party members, deeply aware of the Party’s policies and the law of the State on building the Reserve. They should be made aware that this is a permanent task put under the direct leadership of Party committees, the management of authorities. At the same time, it is necessary to concretize and foster the implementation of the Directive 16-CT/TW of the Secretariat (IX tenure) on strengthening the Party’s leadership over the Militia, Self Defence and Reserve in the new situation; the Order on the Reserve associated with the implementation of the National Defence Law, the Strategy for Fatherland protection, the Vietnam National Defence Strategy, etc., suitable with the particularities of each locality and unit. Lessons from reality tell us that ministries, sectors, localities should thoroughly grasp the requirements, contents, principles, and methods of implementation and should have decentralization in building the Reserve; further strengthen the state management over the Reserve , and uphold the core role of military commands in advising, coordinating, directing and instructing the implementation. Functional bodies of the Ministry of National Defence should strengthen coordination, checking and grasp the difficulties and problems emerging in the building of the Reserve to opportunely map out measures for settlement.

The Reserve of Ha Nam's armed forces conduct live-firing at a defensive area exercise

Second, perfecting the legal system on building the Reserve to match the development of reality. Recently, the Party, State and the Ministry of National Defence have issued a number of directives and legal documents on leading, directing and instructing the building of the Reserve, thereby making it increasingly unified, firmly established and highly effective. However, the legal system concerning the building of the Reserve, directly the Order on the Reserve has exposed some limitations and inadequacies which don’t meet the requirements of the mission of Fatherland protection in the new situation. New guidelines and views of the Party, new regulations of the 2013 Constitution relating to the Reserve have yet to be concretized; some contents of the Order are not unified and synchronized with the existing legal documents relating to the Reserve, such as: National Defence Law, Law on the VPA’s Officers, Law on Professional Servicemen and Women, National Defence workers and Officials, Law on Military Service, Law on Militia and Self Defence Forces, etc. Therefore, it is necessary to screen, study, supplement, and perfect the legal documents relating to the reserve force, focusing on building the Law on the Reserve Force to provide an sufficient legal corridor for the development of this force, thereby contributing to perfecting the legal system of defence and military, meeting the requirement of national construction and defence in the new situation.

Third, implementing synchronously measures to enhance the quality of building the Reserve. Promoting the achievements gained, military offices of localities should actively give advice to the local party committees and authorities to better register and manage the sources of the Reserve, including human resource, vehicles and technical equipment. At the same time, it is necessary to actively screen, designate, dismiss the reserve men in command; build a sufficient and capable contingent of B-level cadres. Functional bodies of the Ministry of National Defence should continue to study to adjust the scale and model of organizing the reserve units towards lean and compact direction suitable with the orientation for Military restructuring and the real potentials of localities.

In addition, it is necessary to renew and improve the quality of training and combat readiness of the reserve units and consider this a breakthrough to enhance the level and combat strength of this force. Localities and units should grasp and concretize the Resolution 765-NQ/TW of the Central Military Commission, and renew the content and method of training the reservists and reserve units. Sticking to the “basic, practical and steady” guideline in training, comprehensive training combined with in-depth and focal training; combine military training with political education, disciplining and nurturing political steadfastness for cadres and soldiers. Increase command exercise, tactical and live-firing exercises and defensive area exercises to improve the level of command, drill, coordination and collaboration of the reserve units.

Fourth, proactively mobilizing resources for the building of the Reserve. Recently, material supply for the task of building the Reserve has been paid attention by ministries, sectors, and localities and done pursuant to laws. However, due to the limited resources, the supply, particularly training ground, weaponry, equipment, barrack, and financial allowances, has yet to meet the demand. To contribute to improving the quality of the Reserve, it is necessary to study, make recommendations , adjust, and perfect the system of remuneration for the Reserve to make it relevant to the country’s development. On the other hand, military commands should recommend to the local party committees and authorities measures to mobilize resources and allocate part of their budget for the building of the Reserve in accordance with the Order and the Law on State budget. Emphasis should be placed on the building and improvement of training grounds, materiel, and equipment serving for the training of the Reserve and payment for the reservists and owners of the vehicles mobilized for training which is a dynamic for improving the quality of the work.

Developing the Reserve is a strategically important task. Therefore, levels, sectors and the whole political system should promote their responsibility, stick to the Party’s lines and the practical situation of the localities and units to conduct this task regularly and continuously to build the Reserve increasingly strong and seasoned, meeting the requirement of national construction and defence.

Lieutenant General Nguyen Tan Cuong, Member of the Party Central Committee, Deputy Chief of the General Staff, VPA