Promoting its 80-year tradition of construction, combat, and maturity, the General Department of Defence Industry (GDDI) continues to take synchronised measures to successfully fulfil the goal of developing a “proactive, self-reliant, dual-purpose, modern” defence industry as a spearhead of national industry, facilitating the building of a modern Vietnam People’s Army (VPA), firmly protecting the Fatherland in the new era.

Gen. Phan Van Giang, Minister of National Defence visits the GDDI’s booth at Vietnam International Defence Expo of 2024

With his strategic thinking and vision, only a few days after our people had seized power, on 15 September 1945, President Ho Chi Minh signed a Decree on establishing Department of Military Ordnance under the Ministry of National Defence (MND), the forerunner of the present-day GDDI, laying a foundation for developing Vietnam Defence Industry.

Amid numerous difficulties of the country and an urgent need for weapons of the armed forces, cadres and soldiers of the Military Ordnance Sector always heightened self-reliance and self-strengthening, both building forces and remaining active in researching, refining, manufacturing, repairing, and providing millions of tons of weapons and equipment, thus opportunely meeting the requirements of building and developing the armed forces, maintaining operations across the battlefield, contributing to great victories in the two resistance wars against French colonialism and US imperialism, gaining national independence, bringing the whole country to socialism.

In the period of Doi Moi (renovation), particularly in recent years, the GDDI has achieved all-round, breakthrough developments. It has grasped and effectively implemented resolutions on defence industry development, especially Resolution 08-NQ/TW, dated 26 January 2022, by the 13^th Politburo on “fostering defence industry development towards 2030 and beyond”. It has well performed the function of sate management of defence industry, giving advice and maintaining coordination in many key, breakthrough tasks and projects, step by step mastering technologies for designing, manufacturing, and repairing many types of modern weapons and equipment and hi-tech base materials for defence industry manufacture, reducing dependence on import, better meeting the building of a modernised VPA. With its brilliant achievements, the Defence Industry Sector has been given the title of Hero of the People’s Armed Forces, a Gold Star Order, and 3 Ho Chi Minh Orders by the Party and State; many collectives and individuals have also been granted the titles of Hero of the People’s Armed Forces and Labour Hero as well as many other noble rewards.

Currently, the situation on global and regional scales has rapid, complex, unpredictable developments. Our country is entering a new era of development with intertwined opportunities and challenges; more demanding requirements are being imposed on VPA building and Fatherland protection. Against that backdrop, the GDDI advocates promoting its tradition and developing a “proactive, self-reliant, dual-purpose, and modern” defence industry to meet the requirements of building a modern VPA. To that end, the following key tasks and measures should be well implemented.

First, continuing to give advice on completing mechanisms, policies, and laws on defence industry development in the new era. This is a strategic task aimed at formulating guidelines and measures for building and developing defence industry to meet the requirements of building a modern VPA. Bringing into play its recorded results, especially in building the Law on Defence and Security Industry and Industrial Mobilisation, the GDDI will continue adhering to our Party’s lines on defence industry development, recommending the MND to collaborate with relevant ministries and sectors to review, build, and perfect legal documents in an innovative, integrated manner so as to improve the performance of the function of state management, step up administrative reform, opportunely remove bottlenecks, and realise the motto “institutions go ahead to pave the way for development”. Emphasis will be placed on giving advice on completing laws, mechanisms, and policies for international cooperation, technology transfer, and confidentiality, proposing policies on preferential treatment, risk sharing, and intellectual property, creating a favourable legal corridor for defence industry’s integration and rapid, sustainable development. Due attention will be paid to building mechanisms for linking defence industry with civilian industry as well as for management and supervision in order to maximise the potential of national industry for defence tasks, integrate defence industry more deeply into national defence, and improve the combination of defence and economy. 

XCB-01 infantry fighting vehicles researched and manufactured by the GDDI

Second, streamlining the Defence Industry Sector in an “adept, compact, strong” fashion and developing modern scientific and technological potential. This measure plays a core role and acts as “the key” to defence industry development amid the breakthrough developments of science and technology. Recently, the GDDI has actively given advice to the MND on rearranging research centres, establishing a number of corporations, restructuring enterprises, concentrating resources and focalised investments on technical infrastructures and modern production lines, thereby achieving a breakthrough in research, manufacture, repair, and modernisation of weapons and technical equipment. Promoting those good results, the GDDI will continue grasping and effectively implementing Resolution 08-NQ/TW in tandem with Resolution 57-NQ/TW, dated 22 December 2024, by the Politburo on breakthroughs in science - technology development, innovation, and national digital transformation. It will re-organise its core defence industry facilities in an “adept, compact, effective, focalised, specialised” manner, ensure a close connection between research, manufacture, and use of weapons and equipment in accordance with military strategic disposition, and work towards the establishment of defence industry groups and complexes in charge of manufacturing and repairing weapons and technical equipment. At the same time, priority will be given to executing in-depth technological investment projects and improving research centres’ capabilities in design, manufacture, and repair under the motto of “gaining a head start by taking a shortcut”. Advances in innovation, digital transformation, and management models will be applied to raise enterprises’ administration efficiency. Doing so will help step by step consolidate the Defence Industry Sector’s structure and increase defence industry potential to meet the building of a modern VPA.

Third, building high-calibre human resources as a solid foundation for developing defence industry. Fully aware that human resources play a key role in defence industry building and development, in the upcoming time, the GDDI will focus on grasping and effectively implementing the Project on “Policy to attract and utilise talent for the VPA towards 2030, with a vision towards 2050” and Decree 103/2025/NĐ-CP, dated 15 May 2025, by the Government, specifying policies for core defence and security industry establishments and their employees. Emphasis will be placed on adjusting and supplementing plans for attracting, using, and training talent, building a pool of cadres capable of making breakthroughs in research, design, and manufacture of weapons and military hardware, and especially developing a corps of top experts, scientists, engineers, and managers at key defence industry establishments. To do so, the GDDI will attach great value to building forces in charge of research in an “adept, compact, strong” manner and developing specialised research groups capable of playing a core role in fostering the development of defence science and technology. Besides, it will continue well performing the work of personnel training and perfecting mechanisms and policies to attract and recruit high-quality human resources. Adopting those above-mentioned approaches will help build human resources with comprehensive quality and capacity to master foundational technology, core technology, and strategic technology for the sake of developing a modern, self-reliant, dual-purpose defence industry in the new situation.

Fourth, enhancing international cooperation and applying advances in science and technology. Over the years, the GDDI has taken various measures to strengthen international cooperation and build defence industry cooperation with 50 countries across the globe, thereby making important progress and raising the effectiveness of science research and defence industry development. In 2022 and 2024, it collaborated with relevant agencies and units to assist the MND in successfully organising Vietnam International Defence Expo which was highly appreciated by our people and international friends. Bringing into play those good results, in the time to come, the GDDI will continue expanding bilateral and multilateral cooperation with partners having great defence industry potential in accordance with the “four no’s” defence policy of Vietnam. Importance will be attached to developing in-depth cooperation programs with a close combination of science research, high-calibre human resource training, and defence industry development. Due attention will be paid to stepping up reception, transfer, and application of technological advances, such as artificial intelligence (AI), robotics, automation, and simulation technology in order to improve research and design and raise the quality and competitiveness of defence products. At the same time, the GDDI will continue expanding cooperation to seek and develop markets for its products, with a focus on exporting defence and dual-purpose products. This is a foundation for Vietnam Defence Industry to make new breakthroughs, assert its position and prestige in the international arena, and meet the requirements of building a modern VPA.     

Promoting the tradition of “unity, self-reliance, proactivity, science”, cadres and employees of the Defence Industry Sector will continue heightening self-reliance, self-strengthening, and the “seven dares” spirit, remaining proactive in researching and mastering technologies, making breakthroughs in manufacture and management, creating synergy for the rapid, sustainable development of Vietnam Defence Industry on par with regional and global levels, meeting the building of a modern VPA, and firmly protecting the Socialist Vietnamese Fatherland in the new situation.

Lt. Gen., Dr HO QUANG TUAN

Director of the GDDI