The Resolution of the 12th National Party Congress has identified the central task for defence and security, namely “Resolutely, persistently fighting to firmly safeguard national independence, sovereignty, unification and territorial integrity; maintaining peace, stability for the country’s development”. This is also the Party’s fundamental viewpoint on Homeland protection in the current period. Thus, units in the whole army should thoroughly grasp it to enhance total quality, operational skills and capability, and meet the requirements set by assigned tasks.

Over the past years, the situation in the world and the region has become complex and unpredictable; our country has experienced both opportunities and challenges. In this situation, the People’s Army has successfully fulfilled its function as the core force to firmly protect national independence, sovereignty, unification and territorial integrity, maintain peace, stability for the country’s construction and development. The Central Military Commission and the Ministry of National Defence have offered the Party and the State counselling to effectively lead and direct the military and defence tasks. The all-people defence has been increasingly strengthened. The all-people defence posture in association with the people’s security posture has increasingly tightened. The implementation of the Party’s guideline on building the “Revolutionary, regular, seasoned, gradually modern” People’s Army has made a comprehensive change in manpower, weapons and equipment. The whole army has actively reformed its political education and military training for regular troops, reserve forces, militia and self-defence force. The task of direction, management and operation of training and exercise have made progress, being close to assigned tasks of each unit, area, and region, gradually associating campaign-level training and exercise with defence area exercise; making a comprehensive change and contributing to enhancing the armed forces’ total quality, operational skills and capability.

Lieutenant General Phan Van Giang delivering speech at a military - political conference (photo: mod.gov.vn)

In the time to come, the situation in the world and the region will continue to be complex and unpredictable. Local wars, armed conflicts, and terrorist activities will continue in many places. Major powers will adjust their strategies compete with and contain one another; disputes over territory, maritime sovereignty in the region in general, and the East Sea in particular, will still be complex and enduring. As for our country, opportunities for the development are available; however, there remain difficulties and challenges. Hostile forces are encouraging their acts of sabotage against our country by implementing “Peaceful Evolution” strategy, encouraging “self-evolution”, “self-transformation”, and further “depoliticizing” the armed forces.

In that context, to unceasingly enhance total quality, operational skills and capability, firmly safeguard the Homeland in any situations, the entire army should successfully fulfil the following tasks:

1. Thoroughly grasping the Party’s military, defence viewpoints and guidelines. It is necessary to focus on viewpoints, goals, guidelines, tasks and measures for Homeland protection mentioned in the Central Resolution No.8 (11th tenure) on Strategy to protect the Homeland in the new situation, the Resolution of the 12th National Party Congress, the Resolution of the 10th Army Party Congress, particularly new, important points. They are “…resolutely, persistently fighting to firmly safeguard national independence, sovereignty, unification, territorial integrity, the Party, the State, the people, and the regime; protecting the country’s reform, the cause of industrialization and modernization, and the national benefits; defending national culture; maintaining peace, political stability, national security, social order and safety”. There should be a close combination between economic, cultural, social development and national defence, security and national defence, security and economic, cultural, social development, national defence, security and external affairs. It is also important to build the “people’s heart and mind” posture to create a solid foundation for building the people’s national defence posture and the people’s security. The power and the forces to protect the Homeland and maintain national security must be from the national great solidarity bloc and the entire political system, with the People’s Army and the Public Security as the core. The People’s Army must be built into a “revolutionary, regular, seasoned, gradually modern” one, giving priority to several services, arms, and forces, relentlessly enhancing its total quality, combat skills and capability to effectively prevent war and conflict soon and from afar, being ready to quash all acts of sabotage and violations of national independence, sovereignty, and territorial integrity.

During the conduction of education and propaganda, it is necessary to focus on raising cadres, party members, and people’s awareness of characteristics, requirements, and tasks of defending national sovereignty and territorial integrity. Notably, it is vital to grasp the Party’s view on partners and opponents to flexibly deal with situations and clearly understand plots and tricks of hostile forces. It is also important to make all cadres and troops grasp the task of the Army and their unit, and their assigned task, and to build strong will and determination to study and train to improve their technical and tactical skills.

2. Continuing to adjust force composition, innovate and improve the quality of training, regularity building, and disciplining. The Resolution of the 10th Army Party Congress identified the three breakthroughs, making a drastic change in the Army’s organizational structure and in education and training; in regularity, disciplining, law observance, administration reform and high-tech command. In this regard, units must be built into seasoned, lean, strong ones under the guideline on the Army organization, maintaining a balance between organs and units, regular, reserve forces and militia and self-defence forces. There should be continued adjustments in force composition in regions and focal areas in line with the strategy to defend the Homeland, enhancing forces’ operational capability in high-tech wars. Besides, it is necessary to adhere to the Party’s guideline on building “Revolutionary, regular, seasoned, gradually modern People’s Army and People’s Public Security, giving priority to some services, arms and forces”. Of which the Navy, Air Defence - Air Forces, Signal Force, Electronic Warfare Force, Signal Intelligence Force and Coast Guard will move straight to modernity. In the coming time, it is necessary to seriously implement the approved organizational structure, reduce the strength of organs and increase that of active units  and those stationed in important areas of defence, security, border areas, seas and islands. Adjustments in organizational structure of academies, colleges, and units will be made to meet the requirements of building the Army and safeguarding the Homeland in the new situation.

To make a breakthrough in improving the level of regularity, disciplining, law observance, and administration reform, party committees and commanders of organs and units should strengthen law propagation, dissemination, and education, thoroughly grasping and seriously implementing directives and regulations on regularity building and disciplining practice, associating training with discipline practice and regularity building in order to enhance units’ combat readiness level and capability.

3. Improving the quality of strategic anticipation and combat readiness to firmly protect the Homeland soon and from afar

Strategic advisory organs should proactively work with other forces, particularly the Public Security force and the foreign affairs agencies to synchronously adopt measures to grasp plots, tricks and acts of sabotage of hostile forces, and exactly anticipate the situation of the world, the region and the country, especially new moves, developments and changes in the world defence and security. They should timely propose the Party and the State measures to properly handle strategic situations, proactively prevent, early detect and eliminate disadvantageous factors, firmly protecting the Homeland soon and from afar.

Units must frequently grasp the situation, timely adjust and supplement operational plan, and actively train to cope with different situations aiming at enhancing combat readiness capability. They should focus on closely combining training and exercise with mobility and combat readiness, seriously maintaining the regulations on combat readiness at all levels, particularly units in important areas of defence, security, border areas, seas and islands. The Air Defence - Air Forces, the Navy, the Border Guard Forces, and the Coast Guard should closely work with coastal military regions and localities to create synergy aiming at effectively inspecting and managing national sovereignty over waters, islands and continental shelf, detecting, preventing and fighting sovereignty violations. In land border areas, local troops, Border Guard, and Public Security should closely work with one another, associating the all-people national defence posture with the people’s security posture and the all-people border defence posture, being ready to successfully deal with all violations of national sovereignty and border security.

4. Stepping up the modernization of weapons and equipment to meet the combat requirements in the new situation.

In the upcoming time, levels should focus on the three methods, namely innovation and restoration; domestic manufacturing and production; and equipment buying. Accordingly, it is necessary to focus on modernizing weapons and equipment for the forces which have been identified to move straight forward to modernity. Also, it is important to continue thoroughly grasping and well implementing the Politburo Resolution 06-NQ/TW, enhancing the capability to manufacture weapons and technical equipment for the people’s armed forces, especially the People’s Army. Defence cooperation should be further strengthened under the Party’s “taking advantage of external resources” guideline. In this regard, it is necessary to attach great importance to cooperation on education, weapon and equipment purchasing, and military science and technology, contributing to building a People’s Army capable of high-level operation and successfully fulfilling assigned  tasks in any situation.

5. Timely conducting review, overcoming shortcomings, and multiplying typical examples.

This is an important measure to generate motivation for enhancing total quality, combat readiness, operational level and capability of the people’s armed forces in general and the Army in particular. Thus, after completing each phase of training and exercise, party committees and commanders at levels should conduct review and correctly evaluate the task performance, the weak points, so as to timely propose practical measures, meeting the requirements of performing the military, defence task in the new period.

Promoting glorious tradition of the heroic Vietnam People’s Army, the whole army would continue to strive to enhance the total quality, operational skill and capability, successfully fulfill all tasks, making contributions to firmly safeguarding the Homeland in the new situation, deserving the confidence and affection of the Party, the State and the people.

Lieutenant General Phan Van Giang

Member of the Party Central Committee

Standing Member of the Central Military Commission

Chief of the General Staff of the VPA

Deputy Minister of National Defence