In 2020, the Army Corps 3’s Party Committee and Command have introduced a lot of reforms in improving the quality of training and combat readiness and the building of pure, strong party organisations and comprehensively strong, “exemplary, typical” offices and units. That has laid a sold foundation for the Army Corps 3 to increase its synergy and combat strength and make itself capable of successfully fulfilling its task in any situation.

The Corps’ ground units and tanks taking part in an exercise in 2020

Thoroughly grasping directives by the Central Military Commission (CMC) and the Ministry of National Defence, plans by the General Staff, and guiding documents by competent offices on building comprehensively strong, “exemplary, typical” units, the Corps’ Party Committee and Command have directed offices and units to adopt synchronous, drastic measures and initially achieved significant results. It should be noted that all-level party committees and commands have well carried out the work of political and ideological education to build up cadres and soldiers’ political zeal and great determination, thereby reaching a consensus amongst them over the building of comprehensively strong, “exemplary, typical” units. At the same time, offices and units have proactively reviewed and adjusted their organisational structure in a compact, strong, proper manner, together with a high level of combat readiness to successfully fulfil all assigned tasks. They have also supplemented and inspected combat documents both qualitatively and quantitatively in accordance with the characteristics of each area and terrain, while making preparations in terms of personnel, material, and equipment to readily deal with situations. Due attention has been paid to developing and practising combat readiness projects relevant to each unit’s practical conditions.

Due to a lack of cadres, particularly at detachment level, and the ever demanding requirements set by training and combat readiness, the Corps’ Party Committee and Command have determined to build the models, namely “one focus, three breakthroughs,” “three substantive things¹,” “three completely resolved issues²,” “three exemplary things³,” “putting party cells at the centre of units,” “exemplary party cells,” “typical youth unions,” “exemplary soldiers’ councils,” “standard and exemplary training grounds,” and “musical bands on training grounds.” Significance has been attached to proactively developing training plans, schedules, grounds, and equipment both qualitatively and quantitatively to meet the training requirements. The Corps has organised refresher courses for its cadres prior to a training season, while holding political instructors’ competitions and conferences to draw lessons on political education at all levels. All cadres and soldiers within the Corps have passed annual political tests, and 78%-80.6% of them have achieved credit or distinction. Emphasis has been placed on comprehensively, drastically, synchronously taking breakthrough measures for building military standard order, maintaining discipline, ensuring safety, implementing “the year of discipline - 2020,” closely managing troops’ ideological situation, and proactively anticipating the risks of violation of discipline and the threats to safety to employ preventive solutions. Besides, the Corps has directed offices and units to enhance crop and animal husbandry, closely manage and effectively use materials, equipment, and budget, take care of troops’ health, proactively prevent and fight against COVID-19, diphtheria, and dengue fever. Technical offices at all levels have frequently stringently executed the regulations on maintaining, preserving, and inspecting weapons, technical equipment, vehicles, and lightning protection systems. All units and offices have accomplished annual technical training courses, 80% of them have gained credit, and 38.2% of them have achieved distinction. Many technical initiatives and innovations have been effectively applied to training and technical support.

In fact, a large number of good models and creative approaches have been selected to build comprehensively strong, “exemplary, typical” units under the five criteria by the Corps’ affiliates. That outcome has derived from all-level party committees and commands’ close, drastic leadership and direction, from competent offices’ instructions and assistance as well as from each office and unit’s effort, dynamism, and creativity. Notably, the five criteria have been clearly “quantified” to enable the Corps’ affiliates to build comprehensively strong, “exemplary, typical” units.

Commander of the Corps giving presents to units with outstanding achievements in an exercise in 2020

In the upcoming time, to more practically, effectively perform the task of building comprehensively strong, “exemplary, typical” units, the Corps’ Party Committee and Command will focus their leadership and direction on several measures as follows.

1. Regularly grasp and seriously execute higher echelons’ resolutions, directives and regulations as well as the Corps Party Committee’s Resolution on building comprehensively strong, “exemplary, typical” units. In this regard, emphasis will be placed on drastically, comprehensively, and synchronously adopting measures to overcome weaknesses, build a politically, ideologically, morally and organisationally strong Party Organisation, align the construction of comprehensively strong, “exemplary, typical” units with the building of pure, strong party organisations, and proactively manage troops’ ideology. Grounded on the five criteria and other units’ experiences, the Corps Party Committee and Command will continue realising “one focus, three breakthroughs.” To be more specific, “one focus” will be placed on building comprehensively strong offices and units, while “three breakthroughs” will be about raising the quality of cadres, renewing military training and political education, and achieving a positive change in military standard order building, law and discipline abiding awareness, safety assurance, and administrative reform. Importance will be attached to enhancing party organisations’ leadership capacity and combativeness.

“Putting party cells at the centre of units,” the Corps’ Party Committee and Command will concentrate on promoting the role of company-level party cells in educating cadres, party members, and the masses, while maintaining the order for “self-review” and “self-correction,” raising the role model-setting responsibility amongst cadres and party members, especially the key ones. The implementation of party cells’ resolutions, the quality of party meetings, the management and training of cadres and party members, the initiation of new members into the Party, and the execution of Party-related administrative procedures shall be exemplary.

2. The Corps will focus on raising the quality of training under the CMC’s Conclusion 60-KL/QUTW, dated January 8^th, 2018 on “continuing to execute the CMC’s Resolution 765-NQ/QUTW, dated December 20^th, 2012 to enhance the training quality in the period of 2013-2020 and beyond.” Party organisations at all levels shall develop resolutions on improving the quality of training, with importance attached to dealing with weaknesses identified after inspections. Due attention will be paid to rendering cadres and soldiers fully aware of the training work and its criteria and requirements. Offices will well perform their role in counselling, directing, managing, and operating the training work. Commanders, commissars and offices shall keep a close eye on grass-roots level units and troops to opportunely detect and settle weaknesses and seriously execute the “three substantive things” during the training process.

3. The Corps will enhance military standard order building and discipline management. Results from the building of comprehensively strong, “exemplary, typical” units within the Corps indicate that each office and units will have to devote considerable effort to realising the three criteria for “military standard order building and discipline management.” Thus, while effectively, comprehensively realising the five criteria, party committees and commands of offices and units shall place emphasis on military standard order building and discipline management. Moreover, it is necessary to seriously formulate action plans for each criterion in accordance with each unit’s particularities and central political task, while importance should be attached to overcoming every weakness. Furthermore, it is vital to encourage the role of party organisations, commands, political offices, raise each cadre and party member’s responsibility, and combine regular inspections with unscheduled ones in order to correctly assess the fulfilment of each criterion in each period. To be recognised as a comprehensively strong, “exemplary, typical” unit, offices and units shall achieve a very high level of performance in each piece of work. For many criteria, offices and units shall have the perfect performance. Therefore, in order that each office and unit will be comprehensively strong, “exemplary and typical,” there should be serious, practical, and accurate evaluations.

4. Great value will be attached sufficiently, opportunely providing logistics and technical support for the Corps’ training, combat readiness, and contingency missions. Due regard will be paid to constructing, repairing, and upgrading barracks to meet the task requirements, maintaining and developing the movement titled “building and managing standard, green, clean, scenic barracks” in the period of 2017-2022. Great weight will be added to providing technical support for weapons and technical equipment, maintaining, repairing, and storing weaponry, and upgrading technical facilities.

Building comprehensively, “exemplary, typical” units is an important task necessitating all-level party committees and commands expressing their political resolve and creativity, daring to think, and daring to do, together with specific targets, measures, and steps in accordance with each office and unit’s characteristics and task. Doing so will lay a solid foundation for cadres and soldiers of the Army Corps 3 to heighten a sense of unity, creativity, and determination to successfully fulfil all assigned missions.

Maj. Gen. NGUYEN ANH TUAN, PhD, Commander of the Army Corps 3

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1. “Three substantive things”: substantive teaching, substantive learning, and substantive examination.

2. “Three completely resolved issues”: (1) letter of complaint going against regulations, (2) illegal gambling and betting, and (3) long-term, unpayable debt.

3. “Three exemplary things”: (1) political zeal, (2) words and actions, and (3) lifestyle.