Vietnamese Defence Minister to arrive in India next week

Close on the heels of the third New Delhi-Hanoi Security Dialogue, Vietnam’s Minister of National Defence, General Phan Van Giang is arriving in India next week to hold a bilateral meeting with Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, the Ministry of Defence said in a statement on Saturday.

According to the Ministry, the Vietnamese Defence Minister is landing in India on a two-day (June 18-19) visit and during a meeting with his Indian counterpart, he will carry forward issues related with the India-Vietnam defence cooperation.

Both sides will also exchange views on regional and global issues of mutual interest, the Ministry said.

India and Vietnam share a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership. Bilateral defence relations form a significant pillar to this partnership.

Defence engagements between the two nations have diversified to include wide-ranging contacts between the services, military-to-military exchanges, high-level visits, capacity building and training programmes, cooperation in UN Peacekeeping, ship visits and bilateral exercises.

During the visit of Defence Minister Rajnath Singh to Vietnam in June 2022, major overarching guiding documents namely ‘Joint Vision Statement on India-Vietnam Defence Partnership towards 2030’ and a Memorandum of Understanding on ‘Mutual Logistics Support’ were signed that have significantly enhanced the scope and scale of defence cooperation between both the countries.

The Vietnamese Defence Minister’s visit is taking place close on the heels of the 3rd India-Vietnam Maritime Security Dialogue which was held on May 31 in New Delhi.

At the Dialogue, while the Indian delegation was led by Muanpuii Saiawi, Joint Secretary (Disarmament & International Security Affairs), Ministry of External Affairs, the Vietnamese delegation was led by Ambassador Trinh Duc Hai, Vice Chairman, National Boundary Commission.

During the dialogue, the two sides conferred on ways to sustain a secure maritime environment conducive for inclusive growth and global wellbeing.

They reviewed ongoing cooperation initiatives in the maritime domain and avenues of reinforcing international and regional mechanisms for comprehensive maritime security.

Both sides vowed to further strengthen their shared efforts and existing frameworks in areas such as marine scientific research, Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief (HADR), maritime connectivity and maritime security, including Navy and Coast Guard co-operation, maritime law enforcement and capacity building.