Defence diplomacy constitutes one of the main pillars of Party diplomacy, State diplomacy, and people-to-people diplomacy; together with other diplomatic activities, it helps create a huge source of strength for protecting the Fatherland “early and from afar”. Grasping the Party and State’s lines on international integration and defence diplomacy, in 2024, the Central Military Commission (CMC) and the Ministry of National Defence (MND) focused on leading and directing the entire Vietnam People’s Army (VPA) to well perform the work of international integration and defence diplomacy via practical, synchronised, comprehensive measures, in a “proactive, active, flexible, creative, substantive, effective” manner, thus achieving significant results at both bilateral and multilateral levels, contributing to cementing trust and raising our country and VPA’s position and prestige in the international arena.

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh and other representatives at Vietnam International Defence Expo 2024 (photo: VGP)

Offices and units across the VPA were proactive in researching and assessing global and regional situational developments to assist the CMC and MND in giving advice to the Party and State on managing Vietnam’s relations with partners and flexibly settling sensitive, complex issues in international relations. Vietnam’s defence cooperation, particularly with neighbours, major powers, strategic partners, comprehensive partners, ASEAN members, and traditional friends, continued to be enhanced. Multilateral defence diplomacy was carried out flexibly, closely, effectively, thereby contributing to cementing international solidarity, building strategic trust, taking advantage of major powers’ support for Vietnam to safeguard its national interests in international forums. United Nations (UN) peacekeeping operations and projects/programs on post-war consequence settlement were conducted seriously, effectively. In 2024, the VPA successfully organised the 8^th Vietnam - China border defence friendship exchange, the 2^nd Vietnam - Laos border defence friendship exchange, the 2^nd “Vietnam Coast Guard and Friends” exchange, and a joint search and rescue exercise between Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia. It is worth noting that Vietnam International Defence Expo 2024 affirmed our country’s potential, power, prestige, and new position, opening up opportunities for defence industry cooperation between Vietnam and its partners. Those good results of defence diplomacy in 2024 significantly contributed to the success of the 80^th anniversary of the VPA’s founding day and the 35^th anniversary of the All-People National Defence Festive Day (22 December 1989 - 22 December 2024). 

It is predicted that in 2025 there will be rapid, complex global changes towards a multipolar, multicentre, multi-tiered order; strategic competition between major powers and centres of power will be more intense. Peace, cooperation, and development will still prevail but face more complex challenges. Domestically, in 2025, Vietnam will organise many major events of the Party, country, and VPA; it is the decisive year for successfully fulfilling all targets and tasks set by the Resolutions of the 13^th National Party Congress and the 11^th Military Party Congress; it is also the year when all-level party congresses towards the 14^th National Party Congress are held. Our economy will continue to thrive; political - social stability, defence, and security will be maintained; diplomacy will be expanded; many new military - defence policies will come into effect. However, hostile forces will continue to step up their sabotage efforts against our Party, State, and VPA, particularly our preparation and organisation of all-level party congresses. Meanwhile, higher requirements will be imposed on the building of an “adept, compact, strong” VPA, international integration, and defence diplomacy. To well perform defence diplomacy work in 2025, the whole VPA should focus on implementing several tasks and measures as follows.

First of all, continuing to grasp and realise resolutions and directives by the Party, State, CMC, and MND on international integration and defence diplomacy. This is the fundamental measure to ensure that defence diplomacy work will be carried out under the Party’s lines and will achieve practical results in the current situation. To that end, party committees and commands of offices, units, and schools should enhance their leadership and direction over the execution of the Resolution of the 13^th National Party Congress, the Resolution of the 11^th Military Party Congress, the Resolution of the 13^th Party Central Committee’s 8^th Plenum on the Strategy for Fatherland Protection in the New Situation as well as conclusions and directives by the Politburo, the Party Central Committee’s Secretariat, the CMC, and the MND on international integration and defence diplomacy in the new situation in order to raise troops’ awareness and responsibility for performing their tasks.

Grounded on the results of defence diplomacy in 2024 and the tasks of defence diplomacy in 2025, competent offices, particularly the Department of Foreign Relations/MND should advise the CMC and MND on directing offices, units, and schools to develop defence diplomacy plans/programs properly, closely, scientifically. Emphasis should be placed on researching and identifying strategic, overall, synchronised measures to meet both long-term and short-term task requirements. All those measures should be implemented under all-level party committees and commands’ direct leadership and direction, while the activeness, proactivity, flexibility, and creativity among offices and staff in charge of defence diplomacy should be promoted. After each period and task, there should be preliminary and final reviews to draw lessons and lay a solid foundation for continuing to give advice on raising the effectiveness of defence diplomacy in the foreseeable future.

Sr. Lt. Gen. Hoang Xuan Chien receives and works with Chinese Defence Attaché to Vietnam

Second, researching, grasping, and correctly forecasting situational developments as the basis for the CMC and MND to give strategic advice to the Party and State on defence diplomacy. Amid rapid, highly complex global and regional changes, grasping and accurately assessing situational developments will allow our Party and State to develop sound lines and strategies to manage our relations with other countries and guarantee our national interests. Hence, offices and units across the VPA should closely cooperate with competent agencies both inside and outside the Military in monitoring situational developments throughout the world, in the region, and in the East Sea, as well as force gathering, major powers’ adjustments in defence, security, foreign policies, non-traditional security challenges, and negative impacts on the protection of our national sovereignty, unity, and territorial integrity, while assisting the CMC and MND in giving advice to the Party and State on strategic, synchronised measures to manage our relations with other countries and regional and global organisations, opportunely, effectively handle issues relating to international integration and defence diplomacy, and avoid falling into strategic passivity.

Besides, offices, units, and schools should continue to adhere to the  diplomatic line of “independence, self-reliance, peace, friendship, cooperation, and development”, the foreign policy of multilateralising and diversifying foreign relations, and the “four no’s” defence policy¹ set by our Party and State to give advice to the CMC and MND on carrying out diplomatic activities in a flexible, creative, practically effective fashion, taking advantage of external resources, creating synergy for protecting the Fatherland “early and from afar”.

Third, raising the quality and effectiveness of bilateral and multilateral defence cooperation. To sustain and develop Vietnam’s bilateral defence cooperation with other countries and key partners in accordance with the interests of Vietnam and its partners, the entire VPA should concentrate on carrying out defence cooperation activities synchronously in various fields and degrees. Priority should be given to developing defence relations with neighbours, major powers, ASEAN members, and traditional friends, expanding defence cooperation with countries and partners having great potential in accordance with Vietnam’s “four no’s” defence policy, strategic goals, and national interests and on the basis of equality, respect, mutual benefit, and international law. Great value should be attached to fostering the establishment of new Defence Attaché Offices under Conclusion 53-KL/TW, dated 28 April 2023, by the Politburo. Due attention should be paid to actively renewing and improving international integration and defence diplomacy work, realising documents and agreements we have signed with our partners, particularly on delegation exchange, effectively maintaining deputy ministerial-level defence policy dialogue mechanisms and consultation mechanisms at Department of Foreign Relations, service, and corps levels, stepping up border defence diplomacy, renewing content and forms of border defence, service-level, and corps-level friendship exchange programs, and promoting cooperation in post-war consequence settlement, knowledge exchange, scientific research, education and training, party and political work exchange, young officer exchange, defence industry, investment, and military trade, with a view to taking advantage of all resources in terms of capital, science, technology, and material from our partners, especially those having advanced defence industry to enhance our defence potential and protect our Fatherland.

Furthermore, it is important to actively, responsibly take part in and propose initiatives to make great contributions to regional and global multilateral military - defence cooperation forums, particularly within the frameworks ADMM and ADMM+. It is essential to continue to effectively, responsibly participate in UN peacekeeping operations under Resolution 130/2020/QH14, dated 13 November 2020, by the National Assembly. Defence diplomacy activities on the occasion of the 50^th anniversary of the Liberation of the South and National Reunification Day and the 80^th anniversary of the Independence Day of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam as well as defence diplomacy programs of 2025 should be well organised. It is vital to closely work with ministries, sectors, localities, and Vietnamese diplomatic representative agencies abroad to sufficiently provide materials and equipment for diplomatic activities of leaders of the Party, State, and MND.

Fourth, continuing to research, supplement, and complete the system of legal normative documents on international integration and defence diplomacy, particularly Law on participation in UN peacekeeping operations, Ordinance on protection of President Ho Chi Minh’s Mausoleum relic site, and a new decree to replace Decree 104/2012/NĐ-CP, dated 5 December 2012, by the Government, providing regulations on the visit of foreign military vessels to the Socialist Republic of Vietnam as a favourable legal corridor for the entire VPA to carry out defence diplomacy activities with the best results. Moreover, it is essential to give opinions to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Public Security about draft legal normative documents on Party diplomacy, State diplomacy, and people-to-people diplomacy in accord with international law and each country’s foreign policy.

Fifth, focusing on building a contingent of cadres and employees in charge of defence diplomacy with political steadfastness, pure morality, great professional expertise, scientific, professional work method and style, and great capacity to fulfil all assigned tasks. To that end, offices and units should well organise refresher courses to improve their defence diplomacy staff’s professional expertise and command of foreign languages and to equip young cadres and new graduates with necessary knowledge, experience, skills, and work methods. Due regard should be paid to regularly building and consolidating diplomatic agencies, especially at strategic and campaign levels, making those agencies comprehensively strong and capable of successfully accomplishing the tasks of defence diplomacy in 2025. Well implementing those above-mentioned measures will enable defence diplomacy to continue to act as one of the main pillars of Party diplomacy, State diplomacy, and people-to-people diplomacy and make contributions to raising our country and VPA’s position and prestige in the international arena, creating synergy for firmly protecting the Socialist Vietnamese Fatherland.

Sr. Lt. Gen., Associate Prof. HOANG XUAN CHIEN, PhD

Member of the Party Central Committee

Member of the CMC Standing Board

Deputy Minister of National Defence        

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1 - No military alliances; no siding with one country against another; no foreign military bases or use of the Vietnamese territory to oppose other countries; no use of force or threat to use force in international relations.