Thoroughly grasping and implementing Resolution No.28-NQ/TW issued on September 22, 2008, by the Politburo on building defensive areas, over the years, Lao Cai’s armed forces have always played a key role in advising and implementing this important task. In response to the requirements of the task of national defence in the new situation, the province has attached importance to the building of defensive areas with synchronous measures.

Although being a mountainous border province with relatively complex and dangerous terrain, Lao Cai has lots of potential with several crucial international and national roads, which makes it a strategic area in terms of economy, culture, society, national defence, security and foreign affairs of Military Region 2 and the country. Despite its high percentage of ethnic minorities, unequal education levels, underdeveloped infrastructure, and high disaster possibility every year, Lao Cai has seen all-round and sustainable developments in recent years thanks to its reasonable strategies. The economic growth rate of 9 to 10% and the comparatively high per capita income (83 million VND per person per year) have become pivotal premises to mobilise resources for socio-economic development and national defence, especially building increasingly solid defensive areas.

By understanding the situation and thoroughly grasping the Party’s viewpoints and guidelines on building defensive areas, the Party Committee and Commanders of the Military Command have actively and proactively advised the Provincial Party Committee, the People’s Council, and the Provincial People’s Committee in leading, directing, and building increasingly solid defensive areas. There has been a significant rise in the awareness and responsibility of cadres, party members, and people from all walks of life in building defensive areas, the all-people national defence in protecting the Fatherland; the education to foster knowledge of national defence and security for different subjects has been renewed, which has achieved positive results. The political system at all levels is firmly built; importance is attached to social policies, including hunger eradication, poverty reduction, ethnicity, religion, etc.; the material and spiritual life of the people has been improved; “the people’s hearts and minds posture” is strengthened; the strength of the great national unity bloc is enhanced; national defence and security are maintained; foreign affairs is focused, etc. These factors have created favourable conditions for the quick and sustainable development of the province.

Signing emulation agreement at the launch of the training season of 2023

To realise these goals, first of all, the provincial armed forces attach importance to thoroughly grasping the Party’s and State’s resolutions, directives, and decrees on military and national defence tasks, with the focus on Resolution 28-NQ/TW issued on September 22, 2008, by the Politburo (10^th tenure); Decree No. 02/2016/ NĐ-CP issued on January 5, 2016, and Decree No 21/2019/NĐ-CP issued on February 22, 2019, by the Government on building defensive areas. On that basis, the provincial armed forces have concretised plans and programmes to build defensive areas that are suitable to the capabilities and characteristics of its localities. During this process, it has regularly consolidated and promoted the roles of the Steering Committee and the Defensive Area Supply Council in association with the implementation of Project No.48/ĐA-UBND issued on May 15, 2015, by the Provincial People’s Committee on “Securing national defence in the 2015-2020 period with an orientation to 2030”; Project No.12-ĐA/TU issued on December 12, 2020, by the Provincial Party Committee on “Improving the military potential of Lao Cai province in the 2020-2025 period”. Additionally, importance is attached to education to raise the awareness and responsibility of party committees, authorities, organisations, forces, and people on building the all-people national defence posture associated with the people’s security posture, building defensive areas. Besides, it has successfully carried out the work of preliminary review, summary, and experience drawing, which serves as a basis for improving the building quality and maintaining the operation of defensive areas. 

Military agencies at all levels have always promoted the key role in innovating, improving the quality and efficiency of political and ideological education, and fostering national defence and security knowledge, thus creating a solid foundation for the building of political and spiritual potential in defensive areas. Focusing on advising the local party committees and authorities to drastically renew the educational contents and methods, fostering national defence and security knowledge for different subjects, especially the key cadres at all levels. Emphasis is placed on educating the subjects to thoroughly grasp the military and national defence viewpoints and guidelines of the Party, the policies, goals, requirements, contents, tasks, and measures for building defensive areas; the objects, partners, plots, and tricks of hostile forces; the mutual relationship between economy and national defence, etc. Flexibly and creatively applying educational forms and methods suitable to the awareness of the people and the characteristics of mountainous areas where there are sparse population and transportation difficulties. Importance is attached to fostering secretaries of party cells, village elders, village heads, and religious dignitaries as they are the force that directly conveys the guidelines and viewpoints of the Party, party committees, and authorities on building the defensive areas to the people. Promoting the building of a strong grassroots political system, raising the responsibility of cadres; successfully carrying out the mass mobilisation work; strengthening discipline in parallel with promoting democracy, internal solidarity, the unity between the army and the people, thus making the people believe, follow the Party, support the government, and devote human and material resources to the building and operation of defensive areas.

To unleash the economic potential in defensive areas, the Provincial Military Command has advised the Provincial Party Committee to promote the mutual combination of economy with national defence in the spirit of Decree No.164/2018/NĐ-CP issued on December 21, 2018, by the Government. Accordingly, military agencies at all levels have actively advised the party committees and authorities in the overall planning and development plans, in terms of economy, culture, society, national defence, security, foreign affairs, and in each specific task, in order to ensure the balanced and harmonious development of the economy and national defence; making a step of economic development a step to increase the national defence potential and strength and vice versa; resolutely eliminating the idea of putting economic development above the national defence task. Exploiting all the potentials, advantages, and resources for rapid, sustainable, and comprehensive development; attaching importance to the development of economic, social, and environmental pillars in association with ensuring national defence and security; improving competitiveness on the basis of attracting investment to develop infrastructure systems, especially transportation infrastructure (roads, railways, and airways) in a synchronous, comprehensive, and dual-use direction. Developing the border gate economy, processing industry, tourism, agricultural commodities as driving forces for the province to become a growth pole and a commercial hub with other domestic regions, connecting Vietnam with other ASEAN countries, the Southwest China region, and Europe. Effectively exploiting border gate economic zones as well as industrial, commercial, and tourist service zones and clusters; improving the capacity and efficiency of production and business of national defence enterprises, economic units, and economic - defence zones under Economic - Defence Unit 345, for socio-economic development and national defence needs. Continuing to adjust the population density according to the project of population arrangement in border and inland areas in association with local socio-economic development plans as well as defensive combat plans at all levels. Effectively implementing specific mechanisms and policies to localities with special difficulties along with mechanisms for resource mobilisation, allocation, and use of capital resources as well as mechanisms for appraisal and strict management of socio-economic development programmes and projects in accordance with the provisions of the law on national defence under the motto of “being stable for development while development is stabilised”.

Furthermore, importance is attached to building strong provincial armed forces, promoting its key role in building and maintaining the operation of defensive areas, thus firmly protecting the province. The province continues to promote its advisory role and build politically strong armed forces with high combat readiness, in which, priority is given to building a standing force in the direction of being “Revolutionary, regular, elite, and gradually modern”. Indeed, making military agencies at all levels “exemplary, typical” and comprehensively strong units. Strictly managing citizens at enlistment age, associating recruitment with the creation of reserve sources of mobilisation and grassroots cadres; organising training and drills, building a “strong” reserve force; registering and carefully managing reserve soldiers and technical means to mobilise into standing units in case of emergency. Building “strong and widespread” militia and self-defence forces with reasonable structures and organisations to localities (over 2% of the population, ensuring active militiamen in every village, hamlet, and neighbourhood); organising training under the motto of being “Basic, effective, and efficient” to constantly improve the quality and political credibility, being capable of ensuring public security, maintaining socio-political stability from grassroots levels. Military agencies at all levels continue to closely coordinate with the Border Guard and Public Security in the spirit of Decree No.03/2019/NĐ-CP issued on September 5, 2019, by the Government, creating a synergy in performing national defence and security tasks.

Additionally, continuing to build a basic, continuous, solid, and extensive military posture in defensive areas. On the basis of the province’s master plan on the arrangement of national defence in association with socio-economic development in the 2021 - 2030 period with a vision to 2050, military agencies at all levels have actively advised local party committees and authorities to review, upgrade, supplement, and complete the components of the defensive areas’ posture according to the project on ensuring national defence in districts, towns, and cities. The province also attaches importance to consolidating the air defence battlefields, military constructions, command posts, systems of mobile roads, warehouses, logistics and technical stations, etc. so that they are suitable to the characteristics of localities and units, the defensive combat plans, the province’s master plan as well as the military posture of the Military Region 2, creating a continuous, solid, and extensive posture that are flexible to ensure the safety of the area, contributing to the successful implementation of the Party’s policy on building defensive areas, thus firmly protecting the northwest gateway of the Fatherland.

Senior Colonel PHAM HUNG HUNG, Standing member of the Provincial Party Committee, Commander of the Provincial Military Command