The conference also reviewed the first phase of the “500-Day Campaign to Accelerate the Search, Recovery and Identification of Fallen Soldiers' Remains.”
Senior Lieutenant General Le Quang Minh, Vice Chairman of the General Department of Political Affairs and member of the National Steering Committee for the Search, Recovery and Identification of Fallen Soldiers' Remains, attended and delivered guidance remarks.
    |
 |
|
Delegates attend the conference. |
Over the past time, MR4 has strengthened leadership and accountability, requiring party committees and commanding officers to follow the “six clears” approach, namely clear personnel, clear tasks, clear timelines, clear responsibilities, clear authority and clear deliverables. Despite difficulties, its agencies and units have implemented comprehensive measures to fulfill their assigned targets. In 2026, recovery teams were deployed to Laos two months earlier than in previous years, with operations expected to conclude two months later.
During the 2025–2026 dry season, the units recovered 144 sets of remains in Laos and 119 in Viet Nam. As of November 3, 2026, the total number recovered across MR4 reached 459. The region also completed sampling at all 21,641 eligible graves in cemeteries by September 24, seven months ahead of the deadline set by the National Steering Committee, helping accelerate DNA identification efforts.
At the conference, delegates reviewed achievements, shared experience, discussed difficulties and proposed measures to improve search, recovery and identification operations.
|
|
 |
|
Senior Lieutenant General Le Quang Minh presents certificates of merit to collectives and individuals. |
Senior Lieutenant General Le Quang Minh commended MR4 for its results and innovative approaches, particularly its early completion of remains sampling under the 500-day campaign. He urged the region to continue adjusting plans and targets in line with field assessment findings and actual conditions, while making effective use of specialized and temporary forces.
He emphasized the need for persistent, methodical efforts rather than pursuing numerical targets, and called for a shift from waiting for information to pro-actively gathering leads and conducting searches at the grassroots level. He also stressed the importance of providing adequate equipment, supplies and technical resources, while improving living conditions and regularly inspecting and encouraging teams operating overseas.
Regarding the second phase of the campaign, Senior Lieutenant General Le Quang Minh called on MR4 to strengthen the accountability of party committees, commanding officers and heads of agencies, units and localities. Campaign results should be linked to assessments of collective and individual performance. He also urged the region to develop innovative measures and make every effort to achieve the campaign's targets, contributing to efforts to honor fallen soldiers.
On behalf of the Minister of National Defense, Senior Lieutenant General Le Quang Minh presented certificates of merit to two collectives and two individuals. MR4 also awarded certificates of merit to nine collectives and 20 individuals for outstanding achievements in searching for, recovering and identifying fallen soldiers' remains.
Translated by Tran Hoai