In a recent interview with a local newspaper, Major General Doan Bao Quyet, Deputy Political Commissar of the Vietnam Coast Guard talked about the role of the Vietnam Coast Guard in performing its missions, contributing to the development of marine economy.

A Vietnam Coast Guard ship.

Resolution 36 is of particular importance to the development of marine economy and to ensure national defense and security in the sea.

In response to the requirements of the cause of building and defending the country in the new situation, the 8th Conference of the 12th Party Central Committee issued Resolution 36-NQ/TW on the Strategy for Sustainable Development of Vietnam’s Marine Economy to 2030, with a Vision to 2045 (hereinafter referred to as Resolution 36).

Implementing Resolution 36, on March 5, 2020, the Government issued Resolution No. 26/NQ-CP Promulgating the Government's master plan and 5-year plan to implement Resolution No. 36-NQ/TW dated October 22, 2018 of the 8th Conference of the 12th Party Central Committee on the Strategy for Sustainable Development of Vietnam’s Marine Economy to 2030, with a Vision to 2045.

Major General Doan Bao Quyet emphasized that Resolution 36 has a particular important meaning to the development of marine economy and to ensure national defense and security in the sea.

Resolution No. 26/NQ-CP of the Government clearly stated: Building a strong force, the core of which is Navy, Air Defense - Air Force, Coast Guard and Border Army, combined with coastal military zones, fisheries surveillance, marine self-defense militia forces... ensuring the capacity to well perform the task of managing and protecting sovereignty of sea and islands and law enforcement at sea, improving the operational capacity of the forces performing the task of preventing, avoiding and mitigating natural disasters, rescuing at sea, serving as a solid support for people to do business, live in the sea, islands and marine economic development activities; building the entire-people involved defense posture and the people's security posture at sea through economic-defense activities.

This shows that our Party and Government's consistent and cross-cutting stance on marine economic development must be closely combined with national defense and security assurance and affirming the role of law enforcement forces on the sea in general and the Vietnam Coast Guard in particular in the task of developing marine economy. As an armed force, a specialized force of the State, the core of law enforcement and protection of national security, order and safety at sea, the Vietnam Coast Guard plays a great role in the mission of contributing to the development of marine economy, ensuring marine defense and security.

The Vietnam Coast Guard plays a great role in the mission of contributing to ensuring marine defense and security

A working group of the High Command of Coast Guard Region 3 visits the Lach Tru boat mooring area in Tam Thanh commune, Phu Quy island district, Binh Thuan province to propagate and educate about the law on maritime sovereignty for fishermen.

The Deputy Political Commissar of the Vietnam Coast Guard told the Environment and Natural Resources newspaper: The Vietnam Coast Guard has actively coordinated closely with the people's armed forces, the functional forces of the State to grasp the sea situation; collect information, analyze and forecast possible situations at sea; promptly advise the Party, State, Central Military Commission - the Ministry of National Defense to handle defense and security situations at sea effectively, in accordance with the policies to contribute to maintaining the sovereignty of sea and islands of the country, practically building Vietnam's territorial waters as a region of peace, security, safety and sustainable development.

In addition, the Vietnam Coast Guard has organized thousands of trips to patrol in Vietnam’s waters in order to protect Vietnam's economic activities at sea; to propagate the law and for more than 15,000 times request foreign ships illegally entering Vietnam’s water to move out; detected hundreds of foreign ships and boats violating Vietnam’s sovereignty, handled them according to law; resolutely prevented and coordinated with relevant forces to well handle unexpected situations, firmly protecting national sovereignty and interests at sea. In 2019 and the first six months of 2020, more than a thousand violating vehicles and boats were detected and handled with the amount of administrative fines worth up to tens of billions of VND. The Vietnam Coast Guard also investigated, arrested and handled hundreds of smuggling and commercial fraud cases at sea with the total amount of administrative sanctions, the sale of assets to supplement the State budget worth up to hundreds of billion VND, contributing to economic security stability.

The Vietnam Coast Guard also coordinated with relevant forces to guide and propagate subjects operating at sea to strictly abide by the law, actively participate in the fight to prevent violations and crimes at sea to serve economic development.

Implementing the program "The Coast Guard accompanies fishermen" in island communes and districts, Coast Guard fleets and Coast Guard teams have united with island communes and districts to organize and coordinate activities to implement the program, with a total funding of over VND15 billion being mobilized to assist fishermen since 2017. The program “The Coast Guard accompanies fishermen” has become a solid fulcrum to help fishermen feel secure in reaching out and sticking to the sea, contributing to building people's hearts and security at sea, protecting the environment and resources of the country’s islands and sea to serve marine economic development.

With the spirit of not being afraid of danger, ready to overcome big waves and storms to support and help fishermen operating at sea, the Vietnam Coast Guard has successfully carried out hundreds of offshore rescue cases, strictly complying with "orders from the heart". In the 2016 - 2020 period, the Vietnam Coast Guard conducted more than 200 cases of search and rescue, saving hundreds of vessels with more than 1,000 fishermen in distress, fishing out 19 bodies, including 4 foreign ships and 34 foreign sailors and towing 361 fishing boats of fishermen to the safe area.

Not only doing well the patrol missions, fighting to prevent Vietnamese fishing vessels from violating foreign waters for illegal fishing, contributing to removing the yellow card for Vietnam's fisheries industry, the Coast Guard has also actively participated in contributing opinions on programs, plans, projects for marine economic development, especially projects related to the construction and development of seaport systems, wind power, oil and gas, tourism to ensure national defense and security and to develop marine economy.

Thục Anh