On 22 December 2024, the 13^th Politburo issued Resolution 57-NQ/TW on breakthroughs in science, technology, innovation, and national digital transformation. This is an important document providing strategic orientations in this special field, aiming to usher our country into a new era of breakthrough development and affluence. Under that spirit, the whole Vietnam People’s Army (VPA) should heighten a sense of responsibility and seriously execute the Resolution via synchronised, effective measures in accordance with military - defence particularities.

Sr. Lt. Gen. Le Huy Vinh at the conference to introduce Resolution 3488-NQ/QUTW (photo: qdnd.vn)

Over the years, the Central Military Commission (CMC) and the Ministry of National Defence (MND) have formulated many lines and measures for the development of science, technology, innovation, and digital transformation, thus gaining significant results, practically raising the quality and effectiveness of leadership, command, operation, education, training, combat readiness, and defence industry development. However, science, technology, innovation, and digital transformation have yet to keep pace with realities or to design adequate products for the VPA. There has been an increase in the number of science and technology cadres across the VPA, but there is still a dearth of top experts in weapon design and manufacture, in strategic technology and core technology as well as “chief engineers” capable of managing and undertaking international-level science and technology missions. There have not been sufficient preferential treatment policies for scientists or for attracting talents to the Military. There has been a lack of strong research groups and world-class research centres. The outcome of science, technology, innovation, and digital transformation within the VPA has been still limited.

With their proactivity and strong sense of political responsibility, immediately after the issuance of Resolution 57-NQ/TW, the CMC and the MND organised conferences to study and introduce the Resolution across the whole VPA; the CMC released Resolution 3488-NQ/QUTW, dated 29 January 2025, on breakthroughs in the development of science, technology, innovation, and digital transformation within the Military; the MND designed Plan 536/KH-BQP, dated 31 January 2025, for realising the Government’s Resolution 03/NQ-CP, dated 9 January 2025, with a view to giving direction and assignments to its sectors, offices, and units.

Fully aware of the Politburo’s orientation, based on its functions and assigned tasks, the CMC has determined that the VPA’s science, technology, innovation, and digital transformation towards 2030 must be among top groups of the country; some domains must reach global level; the Military must master strategic and digital technologies, raise its self-reliance in designing, manufacturing, upgrading, and modernising hi-tech weapons and equipment, develop strategic weapons, improve its operational capability, get access to the world’s high technology, and carry out the work of management, command, and operation in the digital environment.

To fulfil all those established goals, meet the requirements of VPA building, defence consolidation, and Fatherland protection in the new situation, and facilitate the country’s breakthrough development towards prosperity, offices and units across the entire Military should well implement several main measures as follows.

First, focusing leadership and direction on raising public awareness, building great political resolve, creating new incentives for the development of science, technology, innovation, and digital transformation. This is a measure of utmost importance to promoting all forces’ synergy and ensuring that science, technology, innovation, and digital transformation will be developed under the Party’s lines. To that end, party committees and commands of offices and units across the VPA should continue to grasp and disseminate the Politburo’s Resolution 57-NQ/TW, the Government’s Resolution 03/NQ-CP, and the CMC’s Resolution 3488-NQ/QUTW among all troops to render all cadres and party members, first and foremost party committee members and commanders at all levels fully aware of the role of science, technology, innovation, and digital transformation, viewpoints and goals for the development of this field towards 2030, with a vision towards 2045, as well as major tasks and measures in line with the building of a modern VPA. The whole Military should be fully aware that science, technology, innovation, and digital transformation will be one of the top breakthroughs to contribute to building a revolutionary, regular, elite, modern VPA. Offices and units should formulate specialised resolutions and action plans for science, technology, innovation, and digital transformation within their programs of each year and period. To do so, offices and units should attach importance to promoting creativity and the spirit of daring to think, daring to do, and daring to take responsibility among cadres and party members, especially the key ones towards the development of science, technology, innovation, and digital transformation, taking the outcome of this task as a criterion for yearly commendation.

Furthermore, offices and units should step up the “digital study” movement and disseminate knowledge of science and technology among their cadres, employees, and soldiers via many forms, such as press, digital platforms, social networks, and other electronic means. It is necessary to regularly, continuously develop action plans for the “digital study” movement to disseminate and improve basic knowledge of science, technology, innovation, and digital transformation across the VPA. Due attention should be paid to opportunely commending and rewarding scientists, inventors, “chief engineers”, and authors of science and technology topics and projects which have been applied widely in practice.

Second, quickly, drastically perfecting institutions, removing all concepts and barriers that hinder the development of science, technology, innovation, and digital transformation. The Politburo has pointed out institution as one of the drawbacks and bottlenecks in unlocking creativity, labour, and resources of the entire society for science, technology, innovation, and digital transformation. In order to remove those barriers and foster breakthroughs in the development of science, technology, innovation, and digital transformation, the MND’s competence offices, particularly the Department of Military Science should quickly undertake researches and give advice on amending the Charter for the VPA’s Science and Technology Work, recommend the Government to adopt special mechanisms for science, technology, innovation, and digital transformation in the process of modernising the VPA, take part in amending several laws, decrees, and resolutions by the National Assembly, the State, and the Government, such as the Law on Science and Technology (2013) and other relevant laws in the project to build Law on Science, Technology, and Innovation so as to settle difficulties and create a favourable legal corridor for the development of science, technology, and innovation. Besides, the MND will focus state budget and investments in science, technology, innovation, and digital transformation. It will undertake researches and propose amendments to the laws and legal normative documents regarding cipher work to facilitate digital transformation, data connection, analysis, and processing as well as cloud computing and artificial intelligence (AI) development.

Third, investing in infrastructural development for science, technology, innovation, and digital transformation within the Military. Recent military conflicts have shown that modern, smart, long-range, precision weapons, unmanned vehicles, electronic warfare systems, information warfare, and cyber warfare have become popular. Hence, to meet the new requirements of Fatherland protection, offices and units according to their functions and assigned tasks should actively take part in designing National Program on the Development of Strategic Technology and Industry, and Strategic Technology Portfolio. Consideration should be given to researching and proposing the development of models and projects to establish Key AI Research Centre and Science and Technology Data Centre under the MND, with the aim of gathering and forming specialised research groups. It is essential to establish domestic and international networks for cooperation in AI, form research groups for AI application between military research centres, academies, and schools, effectively execute “the Strategy for military communication system development in the period of 2021 - 2030, with a vision towards 2045”, and develop modern military telecom infrastructures to meet the demands for the development of science, technology, innovation, and digital transformation within the VPA. It is important to invest in projects to improve science and technology potentialities, with priority given to several laboratories to develop high and strategic technologies for military - defence tasks in the new situation.

Fourth, developing and utilising talents and high-quality human resources for science, technology, innovation, and digital transformation within the VPA. Human resources act as the deciding factor in the quality and effectiveness of the revolution on science, technology, innovation, and digital transformation. Thus, offices and units should grasp and realise the 13^th Party Central Committee’s Resolution 45-NQ/TW, dated 24 November 2023, on continuing to build a contingent of intellectuals and promote the role of this contingent to meet the requirements of rapid and sustainable national development in the new era. Mechanisms and policies should be issued for realising the Project to attract and utilise talents for the VPA towards 2030, with a vision towards 2050. Offices and schools should continue to complete a set of criteria for smart military schools and a framework of digital competence for military cadets. At the same time, they should review, supplement, and realise projects and programs for training high-calibre military engineers, masters, and doctors in basic sciences and technologies to develop strategic technology. In this regard, great value should be attached to adept, compact, strong, specialised, modern training; focalised investments should be placed on strong research centres and specialised research groups; research should be closely combined with application and training to master strategic technology and digital transformation in the military - defence field. Offices, units, research centres, and schools should pay more attention to organising basic, long-term, specialised training at home and deploying cadres abroad for further training to serve the development of defence industry and the exploitation of new weapons and technical equipment. The Department of Military Training and School Management should collaborate with relevant offices and units to design AI training programs, with a view to training high-quality military human resources who have basic and specialised knowledge of AI and capability in mastering and creatively applying advances in AI to the development of science, technology, innovation, and digital transformation within the VPA.

Fifth, enhancing digital transformation, applying science, technology, and innovation in operations of military offices, units, organisations, and businesses, promoting international cooperation in science, technology, innovation, and digital transformation. Bringing into play the recorded results, the MND’s competent agencies, particularly Command 86 should cooperate with offices and units across the VPA to review and supplement the Program for E-Government Development within the MND. In the medium term, emphasis should be placed on effectively implementing the Project on Digital Transformation within the MND towards 2025, with orientation towards 2030, reviewing, supplementing, and adjusting the scope and scale of this Project’s tasks in accordance with the Government’s guidelines in the period of 2026 - 2030. Due attention should be paid to executing the Project on building digital businesses within the MND as the vanguard force in developing digital infrastructures, human resources, and data as well as in strategic technology and cyber security. Resources should be focused on researching and mastering several core and platform technologies for designing and manufacturing hi-tech weapon systems, stepping up digital transformation, and applying AI to military - defence tasks. Military schools should concentrate on basic research; research centres should give priority to core and platform technologies as the basis for grasping, transferring, and inventing new technologies. The General Department of Defence Industry, Military Industry - Telecoms Group, Military Science and Technology Institute, and other military research centres should focus their researches on suppressing, neutralising, and rendering a number of hi-tech, automatic weapon systems less effective or less lethal, developing semiconductors, information safety products, and core technologies to improve the design and manufacture of technical materials, and gradually mastering technologies for producing, upgrading, and modernising weapons and technical equipment.

Additionally, it is necessary to take drastic, synchronised, creative, effective, focalised measures for international cooperation in science, technology, innovation, and digital transformation, particularly in AI, semiconductor, biotech, technology for settling post-war consequences (bomb, mine, toxic chemicals/dioxin), quantum technology, and other strategic technologies. Mechanisms and policies should be formulated to encourage overseas Vietnamese experts and scientists as well as foreign experts and scientists in Vietnam to take part in science, technology, innovation, and digital transformation in the military - defence field.

The development of science, technology, innovation, and digital transformation within the Military represents an important part of the country’s strategy to develop science, technology, innovation, and digital transformation, providing a great incentive for building a revolutionary, regular, elite, modern VPA capable of firmly protecting the socialist Vietnamese Fatherland in the new situation. Hence, the entire Military should heighten a sense of responsibility and resolve to fulfil all established targets and tasks, contributing to successfully implementing Resolution 57-NQ/TW, laying a solid foundation for ushering our country into a new era of prosperity, civilisation, and affluence.

Sr. Lt. Gen., Dr LE HUY VINH

Member of the Party Central Committee

Member of the CMC

Deputy Minister of National Defence