Legislators adopt draft revised National Defence Law

Hanoi (VNA) - The draft amended Law on National Defence sailed through the National Assembly on June 8 with 88.3 percent of votes in favour.

The law prescribes principles and policies on defence, martial law and curfews, the people’s armed forces, rights of agencies, organisations and citizens for national defence and the combination of national defence and socio-economic development.

Per the law, strategies, planning schemes, master plans and projects on socio-economic development as well as major projects of the country and border, island and strategic areas must include national defence tasks.

The Defence Ministry was assigned to work with agencies and organisations to set forth plans on national defence and to combine national defence with socio-economic development.

The ministry will develop economic-defence areas and supervise the operation of businesses that serve national defence, and military units that have been given defence and economic tasks.

Strategies, planning schemes, master plans and projects of ministries, agencies and localities must be assessed by the Defence Ministry in line with the Law on Planning, the Investment Law and other relevant regulations.

The law also asks agencies, organisations and individuals to combine socio-economic development and national defence while conducting production, business and investment activities.

Several investment projects in key areas in terms of national defence should be ready to serve national defence demands.

A report on acquiring feedback on the draft amended law of the NA Standing Committee showed that the Defence Ministry is restructuring and rearranging businesses, with the number of enterprises dropping from 88 to 18.

Article 24 of the revised law says that activities of people’s armed forces must abide by the Constitution, laws and international treaties to which Vietnam is a member, and be under the leadership of the Communist Party of Vietnam, the command of the President and the management of the Government.

The use of people’s armed forces in war and emergent situations of national defence must be done under the order of the President.

According to the law, the participation of people’s armed forces in protecting regional and global peace must follow decisions of the Council on National Defence and Security. Meanwhile, the Government decides the use of people’s armed forces to deal with complex situations of national security and social order and safety, crimes and natural disasters and disease consequences. -VNA