Hanoi, September 16, 2025 — The Europe Today: Party General Secretary Tô Lâm has urged ministries and agencies to establish mechanisms and create favourable conditions for the armed forces to advance the development of a self-reliant, modern and dual-use defence industry that can serve as a driving force for the national industrial sector.
He made the remarks on Monday at a ceremony marking the 80th anniversary of the General Department of Defence Industry (September 15, 1945 – September 15, 2025) and celebrating the department’s second conferment of the title Hero of the People’s Armed Forces. The event was hosted by the Ministry of National Defence.
In his commemorative address, Lieutenant General Hồ Quang Tuấn, Director of the General Department of Defence Industry, recalled the establishment of its predecessor, the Ordnance Department under the Ministry of National Defence, on September 15, 1945, with two strategic missions: developing defence production and contributing to national economic construction.
He noted that over the past five years, the general department has successfully produced more than 140 types of army weapons and service branch armaments, built nearly 140 new military vessels and repaired more than 380 others. These achievements have ensured timely provision of equipment, training and combat readiness for the armed forces, while supporting major national and international events.
Despite limited access to technical documentation, the general department has focused scientific research on five priority areas: developing new weapons and equipment, modernising existing armaments, producing technical materials, improving product quality and adopting advanced technologies to upgrade production lines.
In his keynote address, General Secretary Lâm emphasised that the ability to independently research and manufacture weapons is a crucial factor underpinning the strength of the People’s Army, enabling it to defend the nation and prevail against any aggressor. He commended the general department for its outstanding contributions and called on it to continue building on these accomplishments in the new phase of the revolution.
The Party chief reaffirmed that the Party and State attach priority to allocating resources for the development of the defence industry to build a revolutionary, regular, elite and modern People’s Army capable of meeting the demands of safeguarding the nation in the new era.
Looking ahead, he urged the Central Military Commission and the Ministry of National Defence to improve legal frameworks and organisational structures for the defence industry, enhance strategic advisory capacity and proactively assess global military science trends to develop strategically significant weapons and equipment. He also stressed the need to accelerate the application of science and technology, innovation and digital transformation in the design, production, repair and modernisation of weapons.
Key breakthrough projects should be implemented to master advanced technologies in weapons manufacturing, particularly semiconductors, advanced materials and specialised materials essential for modern strategic weapon systems.
Lâm also underlined the importance of building political steadfastness among defence industry personnel, ensuring absolute loyalty to the Party and the nation, nurturing high-quality scientific and technical staff, and fostering leading experts capable of designing and manufacturing advanced strategic weapons.
He further called for integrating defence industry development into the broader national industrialisation strategy and enhancing international cooperation.
At the ceremony, General Secretary Lâm presented the Hero of the People’s Armed Forces title to the General Department of Defence Industry in recognition of its remarkable achievements in researching, producing and modernising next-generation, high-tech strategic weapons and equipment.
