Thayer, New Party Secretary in Cao Bang Province

Thayer Consultancy Background Brief:
ABN # 65 648 097 123

New Party Secretary in Cao
Bang Province
October 3, 2021
How do you assess the transfer of General Trần Hồng Minh from the General
Department of Defence Industries to become party secretary in Cao Bang province?
ANSWER: On 16 September 2021, the
Vietnamese media reported that the
Politburo decided to transfer Lt. General
Trần Hồng Minh from his post as Director of
the General Department of Defence
Industry (Tổng cục Công nghiệp quốc
phòng) to become secretary of the Cao
Bang province party committee.1 Lt.
General Minh replaces the current
provincial party secretary Lại Xuân Môn
who will become Deputy Head of the
Central Propaganda Committee.
Both Lt. General Minh and Môn were
elected to the party Central Committee at
the thirteenth national congress earlier this
year.
According to VietNamExpress (September 14, 2021), “Since the new wave [COVID-19
Delta variant] emerged in late April, Vietnam has reported 630,662 community
infections in 62 of its 63 cities and provinces, with only the northern Cao Bang Province
being Covid free.”2 So why was Minh sent to replace Môn?
Cao Bang is a mountainous province that borders China. Local authorities have had a
difficult time controlling illegal border crossings. According to Tuổi Trẻ Online (January
11, 2021), “Since the beginning of 2020, the Cao Bang Border Guard Command
established 125 fixed points and 25 mobile control groups, maintaining a 24/7
1
“Trung tướng Trần Hồng Minh giữ chức bí thư Tỉnh ủy Cao Bằng,” Tuổi Trẻ Online, September 16,
2021. https://tuoitre.vn/trung-tuong-tran-hong-minh-giu-chuc-bi-thu-tinh-uy-cao-bang-
20210916113316614.htm.
2
Le Nga, “Vietnam's Covid infection tally rises by 10,496,” VNExpress International, September 14, 2021.
https://e.vnexpress.net/news/news/vietnam-s-covid-infection-tally-rises-by-10-496-4356288.html.
2
presence with over 400 officers and soldiers assigned to pandemic prevention
operations. Up to now, Border Guard posts have detected and received over 12,260
Vietnamese citizens returning from China.”3
This year the Cao Bang Border Guard was augmented twice with reinforcements from
outside the province. In January, 140 officers and cadets from the Border Guard
Academy in Hanoi were posted to Cao Bang to assist in combatting the spread of the
COVID-19 pandemic.4 They were assigned to assist with controlling the movement of
people and vehicles across the border and to deal with illegal cross-border activity.
In May, another tranche of 150 Border Guard officers and soldiers was sent to Cao
Bang province to assist in combatting the COVID-19 virus. Tuổi Trẻ Online (May 20,
2021) reported that, “According to daily statistics from the Border Guard Command,
Cao Bang is a ‘hot’ area for illegal entry and exit. Border Guards are flat out to detect
and prevent people from illegally entering Vietnam.”5
On 16 September, the Vietnam Communist Party’s Central Organization Committee held
a conference in Cao Bang to implement the Politburo's decisions on personnel work.
Truong Thi Mai, a member of the Politburo and head of the Central Organising
Committee, attended this meeting to announce the change in province leadership. Mai
stressed, in particular, Minh’s experience as deputy commander (May 2016-December
2017) and commander (January 2018-September 2019) of Military Region 1.6 Military
Region 1 includes six provinces: Cao Bang, Lang Son, Bac Kan, Thai Nguyen, Bac Ninh,
and Bac Giang.
In sum, Minh’s transfer to Cao Bang is a sign of new urgency by Vietnam’s leaders to
control COVID-19’s fourth wave. Minh’s “marching orders” are to get a firm grip on
controlling the illegal movement of people across the border with China to curb the
spread of the virus.
Suggested citation: Carlyle A. Thayer, “New Party Secretary in Cao Bang Province,”
Thayer Consultancy Background Brief, October 3, 2021. All background briefs are
3
“Tăng cường 140 cán bộ, học viên biên phòng lên biên giới Cao Bằng chống dịch,” Tuổi Trẻ Online,
January 11, 2021. https://tuoitre.vn/tang-cuong-140-can-bo-hoc-vien-bien-phong-len-bien-gioi-cao-
bang-chong-dich-20210111185209764.htm.
4
“Tăng cường 140 cán bộ, học viên biên phòng lên biên giới Cao Bằng chống dịch,” Tuổi Trẻ Online,
January 11, 2021. https://tuoitre.vn/tang-cuong-140-can-bo-hoc-vien-bien-phong-len-bien-gioi-cao-
bang-chong-dich-20210111185209764.htm.
5
“150 cán bộ, chiến sĩ được tăng cường cho tuyến biên giới Cao Bằng,” Tuổi Trẻ Online, May 20, 2021.
https://tuoitre.vn/150-can-bo-chien-si-duoc-tang-cuong-cho-tuyen-bien-gioi-cao-bang-
20210520213129233.htm.
6
“Trung tướng Trần Hồng Minh giữ chức bí thư Tỉnh ủy Cao Bằng,” Tuổi Trẻ Online, September 16, 2021.
https://tuoitre.vn/trung-tuong-tran-hong-minh-giu-chuc-bi-thu-tinh-uy-cao-bang-
20210916113316614.htm.
3
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Thayer Consultancy provides political analysis of current regional security issues and
other research support to selected clients. Thayer Consultancy was officially
registered as a small business in Australia in 2002.

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ABN # 65 648 097 123

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