On this land hosting the border intersection landmark of Vietnam, Laos, and China alongside the A Pa Chải Flagpole, every inch of land and every patrol route bears the footprints of the Điện Biên provincial border guards.

In mid-March, at Landmark No.3 on the Vietnam-China border line, a delegation from the Điện Biên provincial Border Guard Command and a delegation from the Mengzi Border Guard Area of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army held an inauguration ceremony to launch joint bilateral patrols for 2026. This annual activity has become an effective coordination mechanism, demonstrating a spirit of cooperation, trust, and responsibility in border management and protection. This also stands as a bright spot in border guard foreign affairs, contributing to constructing a border line of peace, friendship, cooperation, and development.

Following the launch ceremony, patrol forces from the A Pa Chải Border Post coordinated with the Jinping Talks and Meetings Station under the Mengzi Area Border Guard to conduct patrols along the border section from Landmark No.3 to the tripoint landmark intersecting Vietnam, China, and Laos. Through inspection, the entire border line and landmark system remained in their original state, with no signs of violating border management agreements or regulations, while regional security remained stable.

At the conclusion of the patrol, forces from both sides performed a ceremony to touch up the red paint on the tripoint landmark of Vietnam, China, and Laos, followed by talks to evaluate coordination results. Both sides agreed to continue maintaining the hot-line information exchange mechanism, strengthening joint border management and protection, and proactively preventing illegal entry and exit, smuggling, human trafficking, drug crimes, and other legal violations. These activities contribute to consolidating friendly relations between the border management forces of both countries while creating a stable environment for border residents to work and produce with peace of mind.

With its management area situated at the border tripoint of Vietnam, Laos, and China, the A Pa Chải Border Post regularly faces complex security elements, yet consistently maintains strict border guard measures, firmly protecting territorial sovereignty and keeping the area stable. The unit identifies managing and protecting territorial sovereignty as its central political task, deployed synchronously across border management, area protection, and building the people’s heart-bound defense posture.

Major Nguyễn Đức Anh, Deputy Head of the A Pa Chải Border Post, stated: “The unit constantly maintains a strict combat readiness posture, closely monitoring construction workers and units operating in border areas to guarantee that no violations of border management agreements, regulations, or border area operational rules occur.”

Hand in hand with inspection and control work is the organization of patrol forces to protect border lines and landmarks. Since the beginning of the year, the unit organized 20 patrol operations involving 140 turns of officers and soldiers, regularly inspecting the status of national boundary landmarks to detect and handle arising situations promptly right at the grassroots. The unit strictly maintains combat readiness, command duty, staff duty, personnel count duty, air defense duty, and specialized duty schedules. Patrols and guards are intensified during holidays, Tết, and major political events, ensuring absolute safety for working delegations from the Government, the Ministry of National Defense, the Border Guard Command, and provincial leaders visiting and working in the area.

The effectiveness of professional operations is clearly demonstrated through crime prevention outcomes. Since the beginning of the year, the A Pa Chải Border Post chaired and coordinated with specialized departments, the Leng Su Sìn Border Post, and the Sín Thầu commune Police to discover and arrest a Lao national illegally storing narcotics, seizing 24 synthetic drug pills. Upon completing dossiers, the unit handed over the suspect and evidence to police authorities for handling in accordance with the law.

Regarding border area entry and exit activities at the A Pa Chải - Long Phú border opening, the unit strictly maintains border inspection, control, and oversight workflows. Full border entry and exit registrations and verifications are performed, closely controlling people and vehicles entering and leaving border zones while facilitating favorable conditions for residents on both sides to visit relatives and exchange goods according to international treaties and current regulations.

The persistent efforts of border guard forces in managing and protecting territorial sovereignty, political security, and social order create a solid foundation for border localities like Sín Thầu to develop. Here, a stable security environment opens numerous opportunities to boost economic growth, tourism, and living standards for ethnic communities.

Đỗ Thùy Giang, Vice Chairman of the Sín Thầu commune People’s Committee, noted: “For a border commune like Sín Thầu, maintaining security and order serves as a prerequisite for socio-economic development. Border guard forces have effectively fulfilled their core, specialized role in managing and protecting territorial sovereignty and national border security, while coordinating closely with local party committees and authorities to build an all-people border defense posture linked with all-people national defense and people’s security postures. Consequently, the area remains stable, and residents feel confident, united, and active in labor, production, and border protection. This serves as an important foundation for the locality to exploit tourism potential efficiently, step-by-step elevating the material and spiritual lives of ethnic communities and building an increasingly developed and strong border region.”

On the westernmost frontier of the Fatherland, border guard officers and soldiers persistently cross mountains and forests, staying close to the terrain and the people to execute synchronous border guard measures, building an increasingly solid all-people border defense posture linked with the people’s security posture.

Silent patrolling footsteps, deep bonds with ethnic communities, and the steadfast bravery of front-line soldiers contribute to building a stable and safe border region, enabling Sín Thầu today to stand firm on its development journey, worthy of being a solid shield on the frontier.