Hanoi (VNA) – President Tran DaiQuang has written an article titled “The heroic People’s Army of the heroicVietnam nation,” on the occasion of the 73rd founding anniversary ofthe Vietnam People’s Army (December 22).

The President wrote that the Vietnam People’sArmy (VPA) was born from the people to fight for the people. It was founded andhas been led, educated and trained by the Communist Party of Vietnam andPresident Ho Chi Minh, and lovingly called “Uncle Ho’s Soldiers”.

Over the past 73 years, the VPA has beendeveloping strongly, joining hands with the entire Party and people to overcomea range of difficulties and challenges, recording many glorious feats of arms, repellingall enemies and contributing to the cause of national liberation andunification as well as national construction and protection.

The VPA also worked with the armed forces andpeople of Laos and Cambodia to fight against the common enemies for independenceand freedom of each country.

After the success of the resistance war againstthe American imperialists, the VPA entered the fierce struggle to safeguard thecountry’s border and performed a noble international mission to help the Cambodiapeople escape the genocidal regime, leaving a beautiful image of “Uncle Ho’sSoldiers” among Cambodian people.

The glorious triumph of the August Revolutionand the victory of the resistance wars against the French colonists and the Americanimperialists opened a new era for Vietnam – an era of peace, unification,national independence and socialism.

In the new period of revolution, the fine traditionof “Uncle Ho’s Soldiers,” which was steeled through the resistance wars, hascontinued to flourish.

Guided by the Party, the VPA has focused onbuilding the revolutionary, regular, battle-hardened and modern people’s armedforces, while firmly protecting national independence, sovereignty, unificationand territorial integrity and safeguarding the Party, State, people andsocialism.

Together with maintaining preparedness forcombat, the VPA has also performed well in mass mobilisation, while helpingpeople in production, poverty reduction, natural disaster prevention andrecovery, search and rescue activities and giving people access to educationaland healthcare services.

The VPA has been developing political bases atgrassroots levels, reinforcing the steadfast “people-based battlefield,”especially in remote, border and island areas.

Looking to the future, the nation is eyeingpromising prospects, which go along with difficulties and challenges, requiringthe VPA in particular and the people’s armed forces in general to uphold theirrevolutionary spirit, stay vigilant and work harder to build a strong army withhigh combat capacity.-VNA