Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Le Thi Thu Hang recently presented the Navy High Command with VND 1.55 billion (USD 63,500) donated by overseas Vietnamese (OV) to a program on greening Truong Sa (Spratly), VNA reported.

The donation was handed over during a visit by a delegation of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to offer greetings to the Navy High Command in the northern city of Hai Phong ahead of the Lunar New Year (Tet) festival.

Soldiers plant trees in the Truong Sa island. Photo: VNA

The “Greening Truong Sa” program was launched by the Vietnam People’s Navy in 2023. Many good and creative models to build green, clean, and beautiful landscapes on the islands have achieved high efficiency, creating natural green color, creating shade for walkways, and contributing to supplementing vegetables for officers and soldiers on the islands.

Based on the actual climate and soil conditions on the islands, navy officers and soldiers have proactively researched and actively overcome environmental conditions to self-incubate and extract plants of all kinds.

Trees in Truong Sa not only create beautiful landscapes, regulate climate, and provide shade but also act as shelters, and wind and storm protection, contributing to the defense and combat activities of the army and people on the island.

Hang, who is also Chairwoman of the State Committee for OV Affairs, noted that during 2012 - 2023, the OV community donated over VND 28 billion (USD 1.14 million) for building patrol canoes and some facilities, and presenting essentials and gifts to soldiers and residents on the islands and the DK1 platforms, which are economic, scientific, and technical stations on the country's southern continental shelf.

Besides, OVs have also made practical spiritual contributions to the safeguarding of the Fatherland’s maritime sovereignty over the past many years.

Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Le Thi Thu Hang presents the Navy High Command with the sum donated by overseas Vietnamese to the “Greening Truong Sa” program.

Following trips to Truong Sa, they have become the key force in many activities supporting the islands such as establishing the Vietnamese people’s fund for the seas and Island Sovereignty in the Republic of Korea in 2015, the Truong Sa Club in Germany in 2017, along with the Hoang Sa - Truong Sa Club in Poland in 2019 and another in the Czech Republic in 2022. They have also organized several workshops and forums on the East Sea, she noted.

The Deputy Minister thanked leaders of the Navy High Command and relevant units for providing favorable conditions for the State Committee for OV Affairs to successfully arrange 10 trips for its staff members and OV representatives to visit soldiers and residents in the island district of Truong Sa and the DK1 platforms so far.

She voiced her belief that navy officers and soldiers will always fulfill their duties, including firmly safeguarding maritime sovereignty as well as peace and security at sea.

Rear Admiral Do Van Yen, Deputy Political Commissar of the navy force, pledged to continue coordinating closely with the State committee to organize more trips to Truong Sa for OVs.

Expressing his hope for the OV community’s continued support for the homeland’s seas and islands, he appreciated their material and spiritual assistance and considered this as a source of encouragement for Truong Sa soldiers and residents to keep defending the country’s sacred territorial waters.