Vietnam coastguards hailed for job well done

The Vietnam Border Defense Force turned away 3,100 boats and detained 2,000 others, Senior Lieutenant-General Nguyen Trong Nghia, deputy head of the army’s General Department of Politics, said at a conference held in Hanoi by the Ministry of National Defense to review its functioning over the last decade.

Besides safeguarding territorial sovereignty, the coastguards also coordinate with the Ministry of Public Security to prevent drug-related crimes, smuggling, trade fraud, and human trafficking, he told the meeting Monday.

They have handled around 115,000 cases in the last decade, seized 12.8 tons of drugs, nearly 500,000 tons of coal, 45,000 tons of minerals, and 46.3 million liters of gasoline and oil.

They also seized more than 1,000 guns and VND3.1 billion worth of counterfeit money and rescued nearly 1,600 trafficking victims.

National Assembly chairwoman Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan hailed the Vietnam Border Defense Force’s performance, underlining the importance of the maritime boundary, saying it plays a key role in ensuring the nation’s stability and development.

Vietnam has a long coast stretching 3,260 km (2,025 miles).