Grasping and implementing the foreign policies of the Party, the leadership and direction of the Central Military Commission (CMC), the Ministry of National Defence (MND) on international integration and defence diplomacy, Vietnam Coast Guard has been promoting international integration and defence foreign affairs, creating the power to successfully accomplish the task of enforcing the law at sea, building stable, peaceful, friendly, cooperated and developed seas, making contribution to safeguarding the Fatherland from afar.

In recent years, Vietnam Coast Guard Party Committee and Command have paid attention to comprehensively and synchronously leading and directing international integration and defence foreign affairs at all levels and gained positive results. Both the bilateral and multilateral international cooperation at sea have been conducted in echelon, logically and in higher professionalism, assuring the orientation, safety, efficiency and practicality. Recently, Vietnam Coast Guard has established the bilateral cooperation with the maritime law enforcement forces of 21 countries and many international organisations; signed 10 cooperation documents including memoranda, hotline regulations, protocols, letters of intent, etc. with the forces from China, Cambodia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Indonesia, Thailand, Korea, the USA, India and Japan; at the same time, proactively and responsibly taken part in multilateral actions to share information and experience of crime and piracy prevention, humanitarian support, responses to natural disasters, search and rescue at sea, etc. Especially, in the past 3 years, Vietnam Coast Guard has planned and successfully held the exchange programme namely “Vietnam Coast Guards and friends” with the maritime law enforcement forces from countries sharing the sea borders, and exchanges on the party and political work between Vietnam Coast Guard and China Coast Guard; joined hand with other countries to build the peaceful, prosperous, stable, friendly, cooperated and developed waters; widely spreading the image, heightening the position of Vietnam Coast Guard in the international arena.

Officer of the Vietnam Coast Guard is deployed to the IFC in Singapore

In the coming time, it is estimated that in the world and region still exist unpredictable situations; conflicts about sovereignty, sovereign rights and national jurisdiction in the East Sea rely on many unstable and unforeseen factors, at the same time, there are violations of law, security and order at sea, especially the drug trafficking, illegal transportation of goods, illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing (IUU), etc. which are happening under new, complicated, cross-national, spontaneous and reckless covers. Hence, in order to successfully accomplish the assigned tasks, together with implementing comprehensively many working methods, Vietnam Coast Guard advocates continuing to promote the international integration and defence foreign affairs with several solutions as follows:

Firstly, strengthening the leadership and direction on concretising guidelines and policies of the international integration and defence foreign affairs. This is a primarily crucial solution for the international integration and foreign affairs by the Coast Guard to be rightly oriented and gain good results. Accordingly, the Coast Guard Party Committee and Command, and their subordinate offices and units continue to thoroughly grasp foreign viewpoints, guidelines and policies of the Party and the State; resolutions, directives and plans of the CMC, the MND on the international integration and defence foreign affairs, focusing on Resolution No. 59-NQ/TW, dated 24 January 2025 by the Politburo on international integration in the new situation; Conclusion No. 53-KL/TW, dated 28 April 2023 by the Politburo, and Resolution No. 2662-NQ/QUTW, dated 26 February 2024 by the CMC on international integration and defence foreign affairs to 2030 and the following years, etc. On this basis, the Coast Guard checks and completes all categories and solutions in the plans and programmes, making them suitable with the situations and the task requirements in each sea region; at the same time, actively make renovation to improve the quality and effectiveness in holding, researching and forecasting situations; proactively advise the CMC, the MND on policies, plans, contents and solutions; guide, examine and organise the implementation of the international integration and defence foreign affairs at sea.

Together, the Coast Guard offices and units need to pay attention to promoting the education and propaganda, creating the stronger changes in the thinking, awareness and responsibility of cadres and soldiers for the task of international integration and defence foreign affairs in general, and the one of the Coast Guard in particular. This is considered as the regular and main political task which is placed directly under both the unified and comprehensive leadership of Vietnam Coast Guard Party Committee, and the direction and management of Vietnam Coast Guard Command. This is also an effective working method which is important and decisive for Vietnam Coast Guard to successfully accomplish its assigned functions and tasks; strengthen the trust among the functional offices and forces of other countries and international organisations in the region and the world; heighten the position, image and prestige of Vietnam Coast Guard and the country in the international arena; contributing to maintaining the stability at sea, and implementing the strategic direction on safeguarding the Fatherland from afar with legal and peaceful solutions.

Commander of the Vietnam Coast Guard meets with Japanese Deputy Ambassador to Vietnam

Secondly, continuously improving the competence, professional knowledge and skills for the Coast Guard cadres who are conducting the international integration and foreign affairs. Playing an important part in the international integration and defence foreign affairs of the Party, State and Army; the international integration and foreign affairs of the Coast Guard contain high demands for code of conduct, diplomatic reception, knowledge, foreign languages, especially deep understanding about Vietnamese law, international law and international relations. Therefore, to meet the demands in the new situation, it is highly required to improve the competence, professional knowledge and skills for the contingents directly doing this work. Offices and units in the Coast Guard, then, need to pay attention to education and training, considering them as a crucial phase in building the forces. To gain high effectiveness, it is necessary to closely combine the education at schools with further training and practice through reality, at the same time, intensely encourage the spirit of active self-studying, training, upgrading and complementing new knowledge for cadres and soldiers so that they can better meet the requirements of their undertaken responsibility and tasks.

Thirdly, being active and proactive in conducting synchronously, completely and effectively the international integration and foreign affairs in the Coast Guard. Bringing into play the results, the Coast Guard continues to grasp and consistently implement foreign guidelines and policies of the Party and State, resolutions and directives of the CMC and MND; completely implement the plans and contents of international integration and defence foreign affairs at all levels under the spirit that “Vietnam is willing to be a friend, a reliable and responsible partner in the international community” and in the “active, proactive, flexible, effective” motto, combined with the aim of assuring the security and safety, building peaceful, stable, cooperated, developed and prosperous seas and a clean environment.

The Coast Guard continues to bring into play the effectiveness of bilateral cooperation with partners; seriously implement all signed documents, foster the re-signature or new signature of cooperation documents with the law enforcement forces of other countries, the ones owning sea borders with Vietnam particularly; proactively cooperate, build, manage and safeguard the sovereignty at sea; enhance the cooperation in preventing crimes, violations, piracies, terrorism, trans-national crimes, illegal migration, entry and exit, etc. The Coast Guard also strengthens the cooperation with the regional countries in search and rescue, overcoming the consequences of natural calamities; enhances the IUU prevention, sharing information of maritime security and safety, law enforcement at sea and environmental protection; cooperates with other partners to fully and properly carry out the cooperation projects and other agreements regarding the support and transference of technical equipment and means, training courses and education programmes; well conducts the joint patrols, being willing to coordinate and support each other in effectively solving any problems possibly happening at sea.

Together, the Coast Guard frequently maintains the daily routines, improves the effectiveness of exchange programmes between Vietnam Coast Guard and other maritime law enforcement forces in the region and the world; fosters and newly creates leading initiatives on international cooperation; actively and responsibly takes part in all mechanisms of multilateral cooperation; enhances more cooperation channels with the embassies of other countries which have relations with Vietnam on coast guard; selects and sends cadres and staff to attend the UN peacekeeping operations and work in the Maritime Information Fusion Centre (IFC) in Singapore Navy and in the Thai Maritime Enforcement Command Centre (Thai-MECC).

In a responsible and proactive spirit, Vietnam Coast Guard continues to closely coordinate with military and civil agencies with a view to implementing completely, synchronously and effectively international integration and defence foreign affairs, contributing to building a peaceful, stable, secure and safe environment, firmly safeguarding the sovereignty over seas and islands from afar.

Major General VU TRUNG KIEN, Deputy Commander of Vietnam Coast Guard