Minister of Defence (Vietnam)

The minister of national defence (defence minister; Vietnamese: Bộ trưởng Bộ Quốc phòng, lit. 'minister of the Ministry of National Defence') is a Vietnamese cabinet member in charge of the Ministry of National Defence. The minister is responsible for the formal executive management functions of state for defense. By Vietnamese politics' design, the assigned defence minister also automatically assumes the positions of deputy secretary of the Central Military Commission (CMC), member of the Politburo and member of the Council for National Defense and Security, by that the defence minister is practically the highest-ranking military officer - who always keeps the rank of army general - and politically the second-highest leader of the Vietnam People’s Army as well as the Militia and Self-Defence Force, just under the general secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam - who serves ex officio as the secretary of the Central Military Commission. The current defence minister is Army General Phan Văn Giang, since 8 April 2021.

Minister of National Defence
Bộ trưởng Bộ Quốc phòng
Emblem of Vietnam with the MOD's banner
Incumbent Phan Văn Giang since 8 April 2021
Ministry of Defence
Style	His Excellency
Member of	Cabinet
Reports to	The president The prime minister
Appointer	The president with CPV Politburo introduction, advice and consent
Term length	No fixed term
Formation	8 May 1945
First holder	Chu Văn Tấn
Deputy	Vice Minister of Defence
Website	www.mod.gov.vn

Chain of command

• General Secretary of the Communist Party (ex officio Secretary of the CMC)
• President (nominal commander-in-chief of the People's Armed Forces)
• Prime Minister
• Minister of Defence (ex officio Deputy Secretary of the CMC)
• Chief of the General Political Department
• Chief of the General Staff (ex officio Deputy Defence Minister)
• Deputy ministers of defence

Lists of ministers of defence

No. [note 1]	Portrait	Name (birth–death)	Took office	Left office	Rank [note 2]	Prime Minister
Minister of Defence of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam (1945 – 76)
1	—	Chu Văn Tấn (1909–1984)	May 8, 1945	March 1946	—	Ho Chi Minh
2		Phan Anh (1912–1989)	March 1946	May 11, 1946	—
3		Võ Nguyên Giáp (1911–2013)	May 11, 1946	May 8, 1947	—
4		Tạ Quang Bửu (1910–1986)	May 8, 1947	May 8, 1948	—
3		Võ Nguyên Giáp (1911–2013)	May 8, 1948	July 2, 1976	5
						Phạm Văn Đồng
					7
Minister of Defence of the Republic of South Vietnam (1969 – 76)
—	—	Trần Nam Trung (1912–2009)	June 8, 1969	July 2, 1976	—	Huỳnh Tấn Phát
Minister of Defence of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (1976 – present)
1		Võ Nguyên Giáp (1911–2013)	July 2, 1976	February 1980	4	Phạm Văn Đồng
2		Văn Tiến Dũng (1917–2002)	February 1980	February 16, 1987	6
					—
3		Lê Đức Anh (1920–2019)	February 16, 1987	August 8, 1992	6	Phạm Văn Đồng
						Phạm Hùng
						Đỗ Mười
4	—	Đoàn Khuê (1922–1999)	August 8, 1992	December 29, 1997	5	Đỗ Mười
						Võ Văn Kiệt
					6
5		Phạm Văn Trà (born 1935)	December 29, 1997	June 28, 2006	5	Phan Văn Khải
					11
6		Phùng Quang Thanh (1949-2021)	June 28, 2006	April 8, 2016	8	Nguyễn Tấn Dũng
					2
7		Ngô Xuân Lịch (born 1954)	April 9, 2016	April 7, 2021	—	Nguyễn Xuân Phúc
					6
8		Phan Văn Giang (born 1960)	April 8, 2021	Incumbent	—	Phạm Minh Chính
					12

See also

• Prime Minister of Vietnam
• Deputy Prime Minister of Vietnam

Notes

1. These numbers are not official.
2. The Central Committee when it convenes for its first session after being elected by a National Party Congress elects the Politburo. The Politburo members are ranked in an official order of precedence every time the body is elected by the Central Committee.^[1]