Bringing into play the tradition of “absolute loyalty, proactiveness, creativity, self-reliance, unity, and determination to win,” the Military Region 7’s armed forces have always devoted efforts to cooperating with localities and locals in building the all-people national defence so as to contribute to defending the national sovereignty and territorial integrity, maintaining political stability, and facilitating the socio-economic development.

Grasping the Party’s military-defence guidelines and higher echelons’ directives and resolutions, particularly the 11^th Party Central Committee’s Resolution No.8 on “the Strategy for the Homeland defence in the new situation,” the Military Region 7’s Party Committee and Command have proactively grasped and anticipated the situation, while opportunely advising the Central Military Commission (CMC) and the Ministry of National Defence (MND) on strategic issues relating to national defence and security. In this regard, due attention has been paid to building the all-people national defence by authorities, sectors, the armed forces and all people. Notably, the awareness and responsibility of cadres, party members, and all people towards the national defence mission have been gradually raised while the “people’s hearts and minds” posture has been maintained. There has been a positive change in the operation of the political system, politico-social organizations, and armed forces. Political security and social order have been maintained. Due regard has been paid to the work of social welfare policy and policy for the Army Rear. The people’s life has considerably improved. The defensive zone’s potential and posture have been consolidated. The synergy and combat readiness capacity of the Military Region’s armed forces have been raised to meet the requirements for the Homeland defence.

Rewarding individuals with outstanding achievements in building the all-people national defence in the period of 2015-2019

To build the all-people national defence, the Military Region and localities have exercised comprehensive leadership and close, focalized, uniformed operation, with paramount importance attached to consolidating the national defence potential and especially the politico-spiritual one. This is a matter of utmost importance and a long-term, routine task. It should be noted that in the Military Region’s area, the hostile forces have been taking advantage of the issues on ethnicity, democracy, and human rights as well as our weaknesses in the socio-economic development process to undermine the national great unity block and the people’s faith in the Party and authorities. Besides, in some localities, there have remained unresolved complex issues, such as complaints, denunciations, and land disputes. Thus, the work of political education and ideological orientation to render the people fully aware of the situation is really necessary. To do so, the Military Region has directed the all-level military offices to advise local party committees and authorities on stepping up the work of education and propagation to raise the awareness, responsibility, and vigilance of cadres, party members, the entire political system, and all people in the performance of the national defence mission. Great value has been attached to building the political system, especially the party organizations, authorities, and commands within the armed forces with firm leadership capacity and combat strength and making them capable of closely managing and smoothly operating the defence-military missions. Due regard has been paid to promoting the all-level Defence and Security Education Councils’ role in disseminating knowledge of defence and security and making cadres, party members, and all people clearly understand the international, regional, domestic situation and the hostile forces’ plots and artifices as well as the Party’s guidelines on building the all-people national defence and localities’ defence-military tasks. At the same time, consideration has been given to executing the Determination to Win Emulation Movement, the 12^th Party Central Committee’s Resolution No.4, and the Politburo’s Directive 05, cementing the national great unity block, maintaining the Regulations on democracy at grass-roots level, and ensuring the people’s mental and material life.

Taking part in maintaining the traffic safety order

Performing the function as “an army ready for work,” the Military Region’s armed forces have stayed close to the areas, particularly the key, complex, remote, isolated, border ones to persuade locals to follow the Party’s guidelines, the State’s law, and localities’ regulations and take part in building the political system. At the same time, they have effectively executed the “Gratitude” Movement, helped the people with hunger eradication and poverty reduction, and participated in public health care. Following the movement entitled “the Military joins hands in building new-style countryside,” they have consolidated and built anti-flood residential areas, border militia key posts, electricity networks, roads, schools, local health stations, water supply system, charity houses, and houses of comradeship for the people, while deploying tens of thousands of cadres, soldiers, and militiamen to help the people with natural disaster prevention and mitigation. Many new effective, creative models created by the Military Region have been multiplied, such as “three-diligent, five-exemplary,” “enlisting party members into the Military,” “building the core political force among the people and workers within the industrial zones,” “rear-line units and localities reinforce front-line ones,” “cadres and party members help the masses and their inferiors,” and “cementing unity and helping ethnic minorities and religious people,” which has contributed to building the “people’s hearts and minds” posture, strengthening the people’s faith in the Party and regime, and foiling the hostile forces’ “peaceful evolution” strategy.

The Military Region’s armed forces have always proactively advised localities on closely combining socio-economic development with defence-security consolidation. This would provide a solid foundation for enhancing localities’ national defence potential and meeting the requirements set by the tasks in peacetime and in the event. Therefore, the Military Region’s all-level military offices have always counselled localities to develop key economic sectors (supporting industry, hi-tech agriculture, industry) as the basis for the socio-economic development and defence-security mission. They have cooperated with local competent offices in appraising socio-economic development projects and advised localities on developing traffic system, seaports, airports, postage and telecoms system, and tourism in line with the defence-security mission. The plans for developing urban areas and production, particularly the large-scale ones have been closely appraised in order to serve the purposes of socio-economic development and defence-security consolidation, ensuring that production facilities would be used for the national defence mission when necessary.

A search and rescue exercise

In addition to the works for combat readiness, the Military Region is directing localities to adjust remote, isolated, border residential areas and clusters in order to organize and build the on-the-spot force and defence-security posture, with emphasis placed on building and developing economic-defence zones in the strategic directions and key areas in line with socio-economic development in the border, sea, and island areas. Military-run enterprises under the Military Region have been rearranged to ensure that their production and business would be effective to meet the requirements set by the national defence mission and the market, while taking part in combat readiness task, environmental protection, natural disaster prevention and control, and search and rescue. At the same time, the Military Region’s competent offices have continued developing and completing the plans to transform the state of localities from peacetime into wartime and to direct enterprises and factories to manufacture goods for wars.

To promote their core role in building the all-people national defence, the Military Region has focused on raising the armed forces’ synergy and making them a reliable, loyal political and combat army of the party committees, authorities, and people in the area. In order to make the Military Region’s armed forces “compact, strong, balanced, and mobile,” the Military Region is concentrating on achieving a breakthrough in force organization, administrative reform, training, military standard order building, and discipline management. The main force has been made “revolutionary, regular, seasoned, gradually modern,” the reserve force has been made really “powerful,” and the militia and self-defence force has been made “strong and widespread.” The main force has been organized according to the peacetime requirements and would be expanded in the event of a war. Members of the militia and self-defence force has accounted for 1.68% of the population, 2.39% and 1.49% in the border areas and the coastal areas respectively. The rate of party members within the militia and self-defence force has reached 15.64%. Standing militia platoons and companies in some key border communes and districts and in Ho Chi Minh city have been built and maintained effectively. As for the reserve force, the Military Region has directed localities and units to well perform the work of reservist management and registration and give allowances to members of this force under the Ordinance on the Reserve Force.

Units have further renewed and raised the quality of training, stringently maintained the order for combat readiness duty at all levels, and opportunely settled the situations under each force’s function and task, thereby avoiding falling into passivity. Moreover, the Military Region’s armed forces have focused on improving their capacity to give advice to local party committees and authorities on performing the defence-military work and closely combining socio-economic development with defence, security, and diplomacy under the preset plans and road maps. At the same time, the Military Region has continued directing localities to organize exercises under the mechanism of “the Party’s leadership, authorities’ operation, and military, public security and competent offices’ consultation” in the provincial and municipal defensive zones’ combat operations so as to make the all-people national defence strong in each locality of the Military Region.

The above-mentioned things will provide a solid foundation for the Military Region 7’s armed forces to play a core role in building the all-people national defence and to successfully fulfil the two strategic tasks of building and defending the Vietnamese Socialist Homeland in the new period.

Lt. Gen. Vo Minh Luong, Member of the Party Central Committee

Commander of the Military Region 7