Due to Hanoi’s position of strategic importance and the requirements set by the Homeland protection, over the years, under the leadership and direction from the Central Military Commission and the Ministry of National Defence, particularly the Municipal Party Committee, People’s Council, and People’s Committee, the armed forces of Hanoi capital city have unceasingly been developed. Cadres and soldiers of the armed forces have always expressed their political zeal and combat determination, readily undertaken and fulfilled all tasks, preserved and brought into play the virtues of “Uncle Ho’s soldiers” - “soldiers of the capital city.” Party organisations, command system, and mass organisations within the armed forces have frequently been consolidated. There have been qualitative reforms in their training and exercise work. Their capability in command and operations staff work and their capacity to give advice to all-level party committees and authorities on performing the military-defence work have been increasingly raised. Besides, the armed forces have promoted their core role in building the all-people national defence and the posture of all-people national defence associated with the posture of people’s security, maintaining political security and social order and safety as well as creating a favourable condition for Hanoi’s comprehensive, sustainable development.

To earn those achievements, the Military Party Committee (MPC) and Command of Hanoi Capital City have focused on making the armed forces politically strong as the basis for raising the synergy and combat strength to meet the task requirements in all situations, while considering it as a measure and a task. In recent years, in the area of Hanoi, the hostile forces have been stepping up their sabotage scheme with extremely malicious artifices. The military-defence task has witnessed developments together with the increasingly high requirements, opportunities, and challenges. Grasping the area’s particularities, the Military Party Committee and Command have directed offices and units to keep raising the efficiency and effectiveness of the party and political work and making party organisations pure, strong, and capable of playing a core role in leading units to successfully fulfil both regular and irregular tasks. Emphasis has been placed on improving the leadership and combativeness of standing units’ party committees and organisations. Meanwhile, party committees and organisations of local military offices have been required to grasp the Party’s military-defence guidelines and localities’ socio-economic development task, give advice on the military-defence work, and perform a core role in protecting party committees, authorities and people of the capital city. Grounded on directives, plans, and guiding documents by the General Political Department and the Project on “renewing political education at military units in the new period,” the Military Party Committee and Command have asked offices and units to formulate their political education plans properly. In this regard, focus has been placed on Marxism-Leninism, Ho Chi Minh’s ideology, the Party’s military-defence guidelines, the hostile forces’ “peaceful evolution” strategy, and the task requirements of the capital city’s armed forces. Offices and units have enhanced the Determination to Win Emulation Movement in line with the 12^th Politburo’s Directive 05-CT/TW to make a positive change in troops’ awareness and action. They have also resolutely fought against wrong viewpoints, while proactively preventing and combating the signs of “self-evolution” and “self-transformation” from within. At the same time, offices and units have raised cadres and soldiers’ vigilance against the hostile forces’ plots and acts of sabotage, built their combat morale, and improved their political zeal and faith in the Party’s leadership and the goal of national independence and socialism as well as the virtues of “Uncle Ho’s soldiers” - “soldiers of the capital city.”  Additionally, significance has been attached to consolidating the capital city’s armed forces with the proper structure and high quality and making them capable of playing a core role in building strong all-people national defence and defensive zones. Based on the Central Military Commission’s Resolution 606-NQ/QUTW, dated June 16^th, 2018 on “leadership over the streamlining of the Vietnam People’s Army towards 2021,” the Military Party Committee and Command have built a “compact, strong” standing force, with a focus on offices of the Command, units tasked with training and combat readiness, and district-level military offices. Force adjustments have been conducted regularly in accordance with the task requirements and materiel, ensuring the proper structure, great synergy and combat power.  The militia and self-defence force has been made “strong and extensive,” with the high political quality, under the law on this force and in accordance with the capital city’s particularities. Importance has been attached to building the on-the-spot, mobile, and specialised militia and self-defence units. To meet the task requirements in the new situation, the Command has improved the quality of standing militia and self-defence force’s operation, developed this force within urban districts, and undertaken researches on organising self-defence units within private businesses. It has directed offices, units, and localities to well carry out the work of registration, management, inspection, and mobilisation of the reserve force in order to make this force “powerful,” politically strong, and capable of maintaining readiness for being mobilised in the event. Due attention has been paid to raising the quality of training reservist officers and commune-level military command, squad, and battery heads so as to make contributions to improving the quality of military cadres at grass-roots level.

A civil defensive exercise conducted by the capital city’s armed forces

Renewing and improving the work of training and exercises has been seen as a breakthrough in building strong armed forces of the capital city. To do so, the Command has continued to execute the Central Military Commission’s Resolution 765-NQ/QUTW and the Military Party Committee’s Resolution 939- NQ/ĐU on “raising the quality of training in the period of 2013-2020 and beyond” in accordance with the new situation. Offices and units within the armed forces have adhered to the training motto of “basics, practicality, and thorough grasp” for the active force and provided “basic, practical, and effective” training for the militia and self-defence force. Due regard has been paid to achieving a comprehensive, synchronous, focalised reform in the training work while a breakthrough in renewing the mechanisms of training direction, management, and operation as well as the training programmes and methods has been set. Offices and units within the armed forces have organised synchronous, intensive training courses relevant to combat reality of each force, increased practical, tasks and situations-based training, closely combined combat training with physical training and exercises, and enhanced training courses in complex terrain and weather conditions or in the conditions of a hi-tech war.

Furthermore, the Command has directed offices and units to formulate training programmes and plans for each group of troops in accordance with the situation, ensuring that troops would both take part in training courses and perform their duty to deal with situations in the area. In the process, consideration has been given to making the reserve force and the militia and self-defence force capable of both fulfilling the task of economic development and carrying out the military-defence work. The Command has attached great value to raising the quality of defensive zone, general, search and rescue, and natural disaster and epidemic prevention and control exercises. During defensive exercises, it has closely combined active force with local and militia and self-defence forces, while improving all-level military offices’ capability in command and staff work and local armed forces’ combat readiness capacity. Priority has been given to applying information technology to managing training and exercises, developing training documents and renovating training aids. At the same time, due attention has been paid to maintaining combat coordination with main units of the Ministry of National Defence and enhancing manoeuvrability and combat cooperation within defensive zones.

Furthermore, the Command has continued to step up military standard order, closely manage discipline, and build the cultural beauty of the capital city’s soldiers. Units within the armed forces have strictly maintained the order for combat readiness duty, frequently practised combat projects, grasped the area’s situation, and cooperated with the public security and other forces in protecting political security, social order and safety, and political events in the area.

In 2020, there will be major political events in the capital city of Hanoi, namely the ASEAN Summit, the ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Assembly Meeting, the Municipal Party Congress, the Military Party Congress, and the 13^th National Party Congress. Therefore, the capital city’s armed forces will keep grasping and stringently implementing resolutions and directives by the Party, the State, the Central Military Commission, the Ministry of National Defence, and the Municipal Party Committee, People’s Council and People’s Committee, while opportunely advising higher echelons on directing the military-defence work and combining socio-economic development with national defence, security, and diplomacy. The armed forces will closely cooperate with relevant offices and units in building the all-people national defence, the people’s security, and the postures of all-people national defence, people’s security, and especially “people’s hearts and minds,” constructing solid defensive zones, and protecting head agencies of the Party, the State, and the Military to deserve to be a loyal, reliable political and combat force of the party committees, authorities, and people of Hanoi capital city.

Maj. Gen. NGUYEN QUOC DUYET, Commander of the Hanoi Capital City Command