Artillery Brigade 675 (under the Artillery – Missile Command) was established on 20 November 1950 as the first mountain artillery unit of the Vietnam People’s Army. Throughout its 75 years of building, fighting, and growth, generations of the Brigade’s officers and soldiers have overcome numerous hardships, gradually mastering their weapons and technical equipment; fighting with courage, ingenuity, and creativity to devise many effective and distinctive combat methods. Through that, they have forged the glorious tradition of being “Heroic, creative, united, well-coordinated, highly mobile, and always victorious”. In recognition of its outstanding achievements, the Brigade has been twice conferred the title of Hero of the People’s Armed Forces (in 1975 and 2000) and has received numerous other noble awards from the Party and the State.

Amid the evolving requirements and missions of building the Army and defending the Fatherland, in 2018, the Brigade was reorganised from a standing framework unit into a fully manned peacetime formation and relocated to a new garrison area. This marked both an honour and a new stage of development for the Brigade, but it also posed many challenges, as it had to simultaneously undertake a heavy workload: restructuring its organisation and establishment, improving training quality and combat readiness, while constructing and consolidating new facilities — factors that inevitably affected the morale of a portion of its officers and soldiers. In that context, the Brigade’s Party Committee and Command resolutely led and directed the implementation of comprehensive measures to stabilise personnel, organisation, and structure; focusing efforts on building a comprehensively strong, “exemplary and model” unit as the foundation for enhancing combat strength and meeting the requirements of tasks in the new situation.

The Brigade receives the "Excellent Training Unit" Flag from the Defence Ministry in 2025

1. Building political strength and streamlining the organisation

This is a fundamental solution in building a comprehensively strong, “exemplary and model” unit. For Artillery Brigade 675, it is of even greater importance given the growing demands of its missions. Accordingly, the Party Committee and Command of the Brigade have closely followed the unit’s specific characteristics and tasks, as well as the directions and guidance from higher levels, to proactively formulate thematic resolutions and implementation plans for organisational and structural adjustments in line with the roadmap towards becoming “elite, compact, and strong.” The Brigade has focused on reviewing, inspecting, and assessing the quality of its officers and technical specialists to serve as the basis for appropriate personnel reallocation, ensuring alignment with individual capabilities and expertise, while prioritising adequate manpower and equipment for combat-ready units. At the same time, it has strengthened efforts to review and consolidate Party organisations and mass organisations, and to adjust leadership and operational regulations accordingly. Particular emphasis has been placed on building Party organisations at the grassroots level and Party cells following the “four-good” criteria; maintaining strict Party discipline and regular activities; enhancing the effectiveness of inspection and supervision work; and continuously improving the leadership capacity and combat strength of Party committees. The Brigade has also promoted the exemplary responsibility of key cadres at all levels in the spirit of “seven dares” and “two before, two after,” thereby fostering inspiration and setting an example for subordinates to follow.

Moreover, the Brigade has directed its offices and subordinate units to intensify political and ideological education, raising officers’ and soldiers’ awareness and sense of responsibility in task performance. Educational methods have been diversified through stage performances, seminars, visits to historical sites and traditional halls, and thematic political activities. In particular, during the process of relocation to a new garrison area, the Brigade attached great importance to promoting democracy, strengthening dialogue across all levels, and conducting sociological surveys to accurately grasp the troops’ ideological situation, sentiments, and aspirations. This enabled timely and effective resolution of difficulties and concerns from the grassroots level. As a result, the officers and soldiers of the Brigade have consistently maintained strong political resolve, determination to overcome all hardships, and readiness to redeploy to the new garrison area, successfully fulfilling all assigned tasks.

2. Excellent training and high combat readiness

Implementing and adhering to resolutions, directives and guidance on training and combat readiness — notably Central Military Commission Resolution No. 1659-NQ/QUTW dated 20 December 2022, and Artillery Corps (now Artillery – Missile Command) Party Committee Resolution No. 368-NQ/DU dated 22 March 2023 on raising training quality for 2023–2030 and beyond — the Brigade has concentrated on renewing training content, organisation and methods, and on tailoring exercises to the new operational environment and missions. The Brigade’s breakthrough focus is on “fundamental training and mastery of weapons and technical equipment”. Emphasis is placed on integrated, specialised training closely matched to operational plans, terrain and likely adversaries; with tactical training as the centrepiece, branch-specific technical training as the foundation, and cadre training as the decisive link. For commanders and staff, the priority is to deepen understanding of enemy tactics and stratagems; the art of employing artillery; branch-specific technical training methods; table-top and live-fire rehearsals; and multi-level exercises. At units from battalion level downwards, the Brigade applies the standard of a “well-trained artillery unit” as the training objective and adapts it for each category of personnel. Units work intensively to ensure soldiers fully master the weapons and equipment in their establishment, perfect individual and crew drills, excel in their primary duties and acquire competence in additional roles. Concurrently, training emphasis has been increased on camouflage and deception, counter-reconnaissance, electronic warfare countermeasures, employment of advanced-technology weapons, and counter-UAV tactics.

In particular, to facilitate the manoeuvring and relocation of weapons, equipment, and materiel to the new garrison area, the Brigade has directed its offices and subordinate units to concentrate on training to enhance long-distance mobility capabilities under conditions of darkness, complex terrain, and adverse weather. It has also strengthened training on common contingencies that may arise during mission execution, thereby improving the proficiency and quick responsiveness of officers and soldiers. Throughout implementation, alongside improving the efficiency of management, command, and decentralised training execution, the Brigade has maintained strict discipline in training routines and linked the responsibility of key leaders and commanders at all levels directly to training quality. It has stepped up the organisation of competitions and sports meets at various levels, while actively participating in those held by higher commands; special emphasis has been placed on inspection, re-evaluation, and the drawing of lessons learned in training. At the same time, the Brigade has maximised the use of available resources to gradually develop a system of training grounds and practice ranges at its new garrison location, ensuring that once the relocation of forces is completed, the units can immediately commence their training tasks.

In parallel, the Brigade has strictly maintained routines and regulations on combat readiness; regularly reviewed, supplemented, and adjusted its system of operational documents for both garrison locations to ensure conformity with actual conditions, and has conducted rehearsals and exercises in accordance with regulations. It has closely coordinated with local authorities to maintain a firm grasp of the political security situation and social order; proactively carried out inspections, re-verifications, and the orderly management of reservists and technical means; while also keeping forces and equipment ready to participate in disaster and flood response operations. Through these effective measures, the Brigade’s quality of training and combat readiness has been continuously improved. Annual inspections have shown that 100% of the evaluated content meets requirements, with more than 75% rated as good or excellent. The Brigade has also achieved outstanding results in military exercises, competitions, and contests, and has excellently fulfilled missions such as A50 and A80, earning high commendation from the Command and the Ministry of National Defence.

Troops of the Brigade participate in the mitigation of Storm WIPHA

3. Enhancing the quality of regularity building, strictly maintaining discipline, and ensuring absolute safety

This task has been identified as a decisive breakthrough to definitively overcome existing weaknesses in building a comprehensively strong, “exemplary and model” unit. As the Brigade is currently stationed in two separate locations, while maintaining strict order and discipline at the existing garrison, it has also taken proactive steps from the outset to prepare the infrastructure and facilities for a standardised barracks system at the new location. The Brigade has strengthened both regular and irregular inspections, while promoting decentralisation and delegation of authority in close association with the responsibility of key cadres for the management and training of troops, especially in remote and detached units. During sensitive periods such as the reception of recruits or the discharge of soldiers, the Brigade assigns staff officers to directly monitor, inspect, and provide guidance to subordinate units, promptly detecting and preventing potential violations. Agencies and units maintain close coordination with families and local authorities to improve the effectiveness of troop education and training. Commanders at all levels regularly stay close to their troops, implementing the principles of “four together and three haves”. The Brigade also intensifies training on identifying and handling potential unsafe situations, ensuring that troops are well-prepared to respond promptly and effectively.

Thanks to these measures, since 2020, the Brigade’s rate of disciplinary violations has remained below 0.2%, maintaining absolute safety in all activities.

4. Ensuring strong logistical and technical support for all missions

This is a crucial aspect for combat service branches, and it is even more important for the Brigade as it transitioned from a standing-framework unit to a fully manned formation performing training and combat readiness tasks. In recent years, along with the merger of the logistics and technical departments to ensure close, unified management without disrupting operations, the Brigade has promptly supplemented and completed its logistics–technical documentation system, and focused on providing sufficient logistical supplies and technical materials for subordinate units in accordance with the new establishment tables. At the same time, the Brigade has promoted the standardisation of the Logistics–Technical branches in association with effectively implementing the campaign “Good, durable, safe, economical management and exploitation of weapons, technical equipment, and traffic safety” and the emulation movement “The Army’s Logistics Branch follows Uncle Ho’s teachings,” thereby engaging the active participation of all officers and soldiers.

Particularly, during the relocation to the new garrison area, the Brigade directed the logistics–technical department to proactively develop detailed plans, organise forces, and prepare adequate reserves of materials and technical supplies. Concurrently, it focused on improving the professional qualifications of officers and staff, and conducting inspections to ensure optimal technical conditions for weapons and equipment before, during, and after each relocation phase. The Brigade successfully completed the first and second phases of weapon and equipment relocation (in 2021 and 2022) with absolute safety. Drawing on that experience, it has now meticulously completed all preparations and stands fully ready to relocate the remaining weapons and equipment as planned.

Upholding its 75-year tradition of construction and growth, officers and soldiers of the Artillery Brigade 675 continue to “train their strength, cultivate their virtue, and hone their skills,” building a pure, strong Party organisation and a comprehensively strong, exemplary, and model unit. They consistently fulfil all assigned tasks with excellence, remaining worthy of the honourary title “Heroic Artillery Brigade” bestowed by beloved President Ho Chi Minh.

Senior Colonel QUACH NGOC VAN, Brigade Commander