Among the honoured were 64 soldiers who fell in the 1988 battle of Gac Ma Island in Truong Sa (Spratly) archipelago.
After the ceremony, a painting named Gac Ma-Immortal Circle by Ho ChiMinh City painter Bui Le Trang was auctioned and sold for 1.28 billionVND (58,700 USD).
The money from the auction andother donations will be used to support the families of soldiers whohave fought to protect the nation’s sovereignty at sea./.
The buyer, the Hoa Binh Corporation, later donated the painting to the Vitnam National Museum of History.-VNA