Safeguarding of Southwestern waters
The southwestern waters border many countries, with high vessel traffic density and latent security challenges such as illegal fishing, smuggling, trade fraud, transportation of untraceable goods, and illegal immigration. In response, the Coast Guard Region 4 Command has implemented comprehensive measures, focusing on enhancing overall quality, combat readiness, and law enforcement capacity to maintain security and order in its assigned maritime area.
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Major General Nguyen Van Dung, Political Commissar of the Coast Guard Region 4 Command (second from left), disseminates legal information and presents national flags to fishermen. |
Combat readiness is comprehensively and rigorously maintained; operational documents are regularly reviewed and updated to reflect current realities. Training and exercises are aligned with mission requirements and local conditions. Coordination between maritime forces and onshore functional units is well-organized to ensure proactive and flexible responses, avoiding passivity or surprise in any situation. In law enforcement, the unit has effectively conducted reconnaissance, inspection, and control to promptly detect and strictly handle legal violations, particularly those related to illegal fishing, smuggling, unauthorized cargo transportation, and illegal immigration. All professional activities are conducted in accordance with legal procedures, ensuring objectivity, humanity, and practical effectiveness.
From 2020 to 2025, the unit inspected and handled 1,866 cases involving 2,152 ships; administratively sanctioned 1,809 cases involving 2,059 ship visits, with total fines exceeding VND 35 billion. It confiscated nearly 9.89 million liters of diesel oil, 89.9 tons of scrap metal, and over 230 million tons of urea fertilizer. The total value of assets sold and paid to the state budget reached nearly VND 149.52 billion. Additionally, the unit transferred 55 cases involving 91 violating ships to provincial authorities in Kien Giang, Ca Mau, Soc Trang, and the Region II Military Criminal Investigation Agency for legal handling. The total amount collected from fines and asset sales amounted to VND 184.95 billion. Currently, the unit is investigating one case involving the illegal transportation of 30 tons of refined sugar.
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Officers and soldiers of the Coast Guard Region 4 Command present national flags and portraits of President Ho Chi Minh to fishermen. |
Close bond with fishermen and their relatives
One of the key factors behind the comprehensive strength of the Coast Guard Region 4 Command lies in its close relationship with local people. On their maritime missions, every officer and soldier serves not only as a law enforcer but also as a source of spiritual support and a trusted companion to fishermen at sea.
Undeterred by harsh weather or distance, the unit organizes hundreds of missions each year, combining patrols, law enforcement, technical support for trawlers, free medical treatment, search and rescue, and assistance for distressed fishermen. These missions are not just professional duties but journeys that build trust between the military and the public.
Between 2020 and 2025, under the “Coast Guards accompany fishermen” program, the Coast Guard Region 4 Command carried out various practical activities promoting responsibility and solidarity within maritime communities. The unit conducted 29 legal dissemination campaigns, distributed over 113,000 leaflets and materials, and presented 10,277 national flags and portraits of President Ho Chi Minh, gifts that instill confidence in every seafaring trip. Additionally, 405 fishing boat owners signed commitments not to violate illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing rules, while over 11,800 boats with more than 104,000 fishermen were directly educated on legal matters and sovereignty protection awareness. Through the fisheries communication system, nearly 29,000 boats and 190,000 fishermen were reached, forming an effective communication network, a “sensory system” that helps promptly handle incidents and reinforces national defense at sea.
Beyond professional duties, the Coast Guard Region 4 Command also pays special attention to the material and spiritual lives of coastal communities. The unit provided medical aid to 44 fishermen, rescued 24 people, assisted five boats with technical issues, responded to three fire incidents, and supplied 350 cubic meters of fresh water and 900 twenty-liter bottles during severe drought and salinity. It also supported 90 individuals in difficult circumstances, built three gratitude houses worth VND 80 million each, offering “a place to live for a life to thrive.” In collaboration with the Vu A Dinh Scholarship Fund and the “For beloved Truong Sa-Hoang Sa” Club, the unit awarded 250 scholarships to children of struggling fishermen and sponsored 12 underprivileged students. These heartfelt gestures provide motivation for the next generation to pursue education.
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Officers and soldiers of the Coast Guard Region 4 Command seize an oil smuggling vessel. |
Through such practical and compassionate acts, the Coast Guard Region 4 Command has nurtured deep trust among fishermen, turning every citizen in remote islands into a “silent soldier” actively defending sovereignty and safeguarding security and order in the sacred waters of the nation.
The comprehensive results achieved from 2020 to 2025 vividly affirm the core role of the Coast Guard Region 4 Command in firmly defending sovereignty and ensuring safety in the southwestern sea of the country. At the same time, they reflect a strong political responsibility toward the Party, State, and people, making practical contributions to sustainable maritime economic development and the building of an all-people’s defense posture in the maritime direction.
In the coming years, the Party Committee and Command of Coast Guard Region 4 will continue to thoroughly implement directives and resolutions of the Party, the Central Military Commission, and the Ministry of National Defense; focus on building a clean, strong Party organization in tandem with a comprehensively strong unit that is “exemplary and typical.” Political and ideological education will be intensified to help officers and soldiers remain vigilant, maintain strong willpower, and embody the spirit of “sacrificing for the people.” Concurrently, the unit will enhance training quality, physical fitness, and mastery of weapons and technical equipment; strictly adhere to discipline and law; foster a regular lifestyle and good internal unity, contributing to building a professional, elite, modern Coast Guard force capable of safeguarding national maritime sovereignty in the new era.
Translated by Minh Anh