Improving the overall quality and combat strength is a consistent goal, which has been led, directed and implemented by the Party Committee and Commands of Division 5 by means of many synchronous and appropriate measures, ensuring that the Division is always in high combat readiness and successfully handles all situations.

To truly deserve its role as a full-strength main unit of Military Region 7, over the years, the Party Committee and Command of Division 5 have consistently focused on leading and directing the comprehensive implementation of all work aspects; regularly placed the highest priority on improving the overall quality and combat strength, ensuring that, under any conditions or circumstances, they are always combat-ready, fight victoriously, and successfully fulfill all assigned missions.

To achieve that goal, first of all, the Division focuses on building political strength; identifying this as the crucial factor, the basis for improving the overall quality, and creating the foundation for combat strength. The Division concentrates on synchronously implementing measures to enhance the political and ideological education; improving the effectiveness of the party and political work in activities, especially strengthening the leadership and direction of all-level Party committees and commands over the training and combat readiness tasks; concurrently, proactively conducting the ideological management and internal political protection, etc. Therefore, the Division's political and ideological education has been much innovated; strictly implementing the plan, ensuring the right and sufficient content for all target groups. The focus is on conveying the basic issues of Marxism - Leninism, Ho Chi Minh's thought; the Party's military and defence guidelines, the State's policies and laws; the tasks of the Army, the Military Region, and the Division; at the same time, giving more information to help soldiers gain a correct perception on the situation, partners, objects, plots, and tricks of hostile forces.

The Division regularly conducts traditional education for troops

All units have flexibly and creatively applied various forms and methods of education and propaganda, with the motto “Easy to remember, easy to understand, focused on the units and soldiers”, strongly shifting from “understanding guidelines and tasks” to “determining responsibilities and actions. To achieve the sustainability, the Division has directed the construction of models including “Every evening with a historical story combined with musical gifts”; “Sending letters to the rear, families of officers and soldiers when on annual or short leave”; “Support for the training season”; “Mobile arts teams cooperated with the Dat Do Band”, etc. At the same time, education has been enhanced through practical training and combat readiness to build soldiers’ determination, confidence in victory based on human factors, trust in weapons, equipment, and the righteousness of the war for national defence. Together, democracy has been promoted; the pioneering and exemplary role of officers and party members have been brought into full play; the motto “Close to soldiers, understand soldiers, trust soldiers” has been conducted to promptly detect, prevent, and solve any arising issues. As a result, in the political test, 100% officers and non-commissioned personnel perform well (with 25% being excellent); 100% warrant officers and soldiers pass (with over 80% being good and excellent), and the unit achieves an excellent rating; 100% officers and soldiers possess firm political stance, are ready to accept and successfully accomplish all assigned tasks; the spirit of solidarity and unity in the entire unit is strengthened.

Besides, the Division’s Party Committee particularly emphasises consolidating and enhancing the leadership capacity and combat strength of all-level party committees and organisations; building pure, strong, and exemplary party committees and cells combined with building comprehensive, “exemplary and typical” agencies and units. In their activities, all party committees and organisations strictly follow the principle of democratic centralism, collective leadership accompanied by individual responsibility, promote the self-criticism and criticism, combine democracy with strict obedience to the seniors’ leadership and direction, and uphold discipline; resolve the phenomena of formal democracy, “living in peace at all costs”, undisciplined freedom, individualism, and disrespect for the collective. Education on political stance, ethics, lifestyle, vanguard and exemplary spirit, as well as the improvement of professional qualifications, working methods, skills, and style of cadres and party members is highly valued. All cadres and party members strictly abide by the Party's Credo, Charter, and resolutions; uphold the sense of thrift, combat corruption and waste; match words with deeds; seniors must set an example for subordinates, and officers must set an example for soldiers.

Along with strengthening the political and spiritual foundation, the Division makes a breakthrough in improving the quality of training and combat readiness; identifying this as one of the central tasks, and a direct measure to improve the overall quality and combat power. The Division has focused on well implementing Resolution No. 1659-NQ/QUTW, dated 20 December 2022 by the Central Military Commission and Resolution No. 1908-NQ/ĐU, dated 27 April 2023 by the Military Region Party Standing Committee on “Improving the training quality in the 2023-2030 period and the following years”. Particularly, it has focused on reforming the leadership, direction, and administration of training, clearly defining the responsibilities of each department and unit in advising, directing, managing, and operating training; strongly renewing the content, organisation, and methods of training and drills; and being proactive in training preparation, especially the training and fostering for cadres. The Division has required all agencies and units to closely follow the motto “Basic, practical, solid”, attach more importance to synchronised and specialised training, take practice as the main focus, and properly implement the mottoes, viewpoints, principles, and combinations in training. During the process, the Division has focused on fostering cadres at all levels, especially young and newly - graduated cadres, to grasp the staff work, experience in training operation and organisation, and the levels of soldiers organisation, command, and management. Therefore, 100% of its cadres are able to conduct training as empowered, in which over 86% of platoon and company cadres, and over 91% of battalion cadres are rated good and excellent.

The Division pays special attention to infantry tactical training.

Along with the training of various services and branches, the Division has focused on combined arms training; centering on improving the mobility and combat coordination efficiency of the soldiers, especially the tactical training for infantry platoons, companies, and battalions; increasing field training, urban and riverine combat training, scenario-based training, etc. In 2026, the Division was selected by the Military Region as a model unit for tactical training of an infantry company attacking enemy airborne landing, and infantry battalion launching raids, defending, and attacking enemy airborne landing. To achieve these good results, the Division paid attention to improving the quality of exercises at all levels; at the same time, it required agencies and units to develop field exercise documents using information technology, organize practical exercises applying information technology, and promote the opposition exercises, comprehensive tactical exercises, and live-fire tactical exercises. All units fully implemented all stages and steps in transitioning to combat readiness status, putting officers and soldiers into wartime states and combat situations to raise their vigilance and combat morale, and flexibly and effectively handle the situations. The results of training and testing across all subjects were 100% passing, with over 75% rated good or excellent, ensuring the absolute safety, exceeding the targets set by the Resolution of the Division Party Congress for the 2025–2030 tenure.

Promoting regularity building and discipline training is defined by the Division as both a goal and a measure to improve combat strength. Accordingly, the Division's Party Committee and Command request agencies and units to thoroughly grasp Directive No. 11/CT-TM, dated 12 April 2023, by the General Staff on “Improving the quality of regularity building and discipline management in the entire army”. The focus is placed on well conducting the  education to raise the self-awareness and responsibility of soldiers in abiding by laws of the State, discipline of the Army, and regulations of the units; combining regularity building with discipline training and building a democratic and healthy military cultural environment. At the main time, strict punishment is applied to cases of discipline violations. All units regularly inspect the training of dress etiquette, addressing, greeting, and discipline compliance of both officers and soldiers. All-level cadres work according to their responsibilities, act in accordance with regulations, and thoroughly overcome unauthorised absences and any negative phenomena in soldiers management. Since 2025, all units (from company level and above) have basically met the 4 criteria of the comprehensive “exemplary, typical” strength; there have been neither officers nor soldiers committing serious discipline violations, and the rate of normal discipline violations has been kept below 0.2%.

The Devision strengthens technical training

The logistics and technical work has been much concerned by the Division’s Party Committee and Command, ensuring the full and timely support for all missions. In implementation, the Division requires agencies and units to promote the emulation movement of “The Army's Logistics Sector following Uncle Ho's teachings”; focuse on adjusting the system of combat-ready logistics and technical documents; and make exact and sufficient reserves of logistics materials and equipment for combat readiness, disaster prevention, rescue, and relief. With suitable policies, the Division has consistently guaranteed full and timely meal allowance standards for all personnel; closely conducted the production plans; executed the intercropping and sequential cropping well while thoroughly utilising the units' manpower and land, keeping the food supplied to the soldiers' meals always 10% to 25% cheaper than the market at the same time. Recently, it has also inspected and put into use a clean water project for daily life and production; constructed and renovated high-tech clean vegetable net houses; and zoned the fruit orchards; directed the food processing, improving the quality of the soldiers' meals and food safety and hygiene; assuring the healthy personnel rate of over 98%.

Simultaneously, it has effectively implemented Resolution No. 1656-NQ/ QUTW, dated 20 December 2022, by the Central Military Commission on “Leading the technical work to 2030 and the following years” associated with the Campaign of “Good, durable, safe, and economical management and exploitation of weapons and technical equipment, and traffic safety”. The Division has paid special attention to investing in and upgrading equipment to maintain and repair vehicles, weapons, and technical equipment; maintaining a routine for “Technical day” and maintenance; and regulations on natural disaster prevention, fire, explosion and warehouses safety. Due to this, the technical coefficient always ranges from 0.98 to 1 (Kt = 1 for combat-ready weapons and technical equipment). The coefficient of all weapons and vehicles always meets standards; the disposal of types of ammunition is carried out properly in procedures and absolute safety; the equipment in workshops and warehouses is frequently inspected and kept in operation without any damage, loss, or unsafety.

These achieved results are of great significance, laying the foundation for the Division to continue improving its overall quality and combat strength, remaining ready to successfully complete all assigned tasks, and deserving the title “Hero of the People's Armed Forces” awarded by the Party and State.

Senior Colonel HUYNH LE VIET KHA, The Division Commander