Army holds simulation exercise in response to COVID-19

Deputy Prime Minister Vu Duc Dam (3rd from left) attends and directs the exercise. Minister of National Defense Gen. Ngo Xuan Lich (2nd from left) chairs the event. - Photo: VGP

Photo:VGP

 Minister of National Defense Gen. Ngo Xuan Lich presided over the exercise.

The participants included by Sen. Lieut. Gen. Phan Van Giang, Chief of the General Staff of the Viet Nam People’s Army (VPA), Deputy Defense Minister and head of the steering committee for the exercise, alongside leaders of the Ministry of Defense, the Ministry of Health and other relevant units.

The whole army will rehearse the operation of mechanisms and actual deployments according to five training issues corresponding to the levels of the epidemic.

Photo:VGP

Five levels of training are: (i) Level 1: COVID-19 infected patients enter Viet Nam from affected areas; (ii) Level 2: Secondary COVID-19 transmission is reported in the country; (iii) Level 3: The number of COVID-19 patients reaches between over 20 and 1,000; (iv) Level 4: The epidemic spreads widely in the community with over 1,000 to 3,000 infection cases; (v) Level 5: The epidemic spreads widely in the community with over 3,000 to 30,000 infected people, and has spread into some military units.

Sen. Lieut. Gen. Phan Van Giang, Chief of the General Staff of the Viet Nam People’s Army (VPA) says this is the biggest epidemic rehearsal of the Army so far. Photo:VGP

 The exercise is connected online from the Ministry of Defense to all military regions, arms, the Ha Noi Capital High Command, the Ho Chi Minh City High Command, and the Military Commands of provinces and centrally run cities.

Sen. Lieut. Gen. Phan Van Giang, Chief of the General Staff of the VPA and Deputy Defense Minister said the event is the Army’s largest epidemic response exercise thus far, which, he said, is significant and urgent in the current period.

He asked the units in the entire Army to strictly follow instructions to conduct the exercise in accordance with the set plan, thus affirming the Army’s pioneering spirit and demonstrating that each soldier is a military medical soldier in the disease prevention and control.

Following are some pictures of the exercise.

Maj. Gen. Nguyen Xuan Kien, Director of the Military Medical Department, speaks at the event - Photo:VGP

Deputy Minister of Health Nguyen Thanh Long speaks at the event. Photo: VGP

Medical vehicles on duty - Photo:VGP

Regiments 916 and 918 join the exercise. Photo: VGP

Photo:VGP

Photo:VGP

Medical staff take care of COVID-19 patients (simulation) - Photo:VGP

By Vien Nhu