Following the welcoming ceremony, General Phan Van Giang held talks with Indian Defence Minister Rajnath Singh.
General Phan Van Giang affirmed that the visit held special significance as the two countries celebrated the 10th anniversary of the establishment of their Comprehensive Strategic Partnership and had just upgraded their relationship to an Enhanced Comprehensive Strategic Partnership during the visit of General Secretary and President To Lam to India in early May.
Reviewing the positive results of defense cooperation, General Phan Van Giang stated that, based on the implementation of signed agreements, bilateral defense cooperation has been promoted in all areas, achieving many practical results.
These activities include, most notably, exchanges of delegations and high-level contacts; maintaining consultation and dialogue mechanisms; training and education; cooperation between military branches; UN peacekeeping; defense industry; military courts; and mutual support in international multilateral forums.
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of National Defence Phan Van Giang thanked the Indian Ministry of Defence for its very effective support to Vietnam in improving the quality of training and teaching at military schools; providing a non-refundable aid package of 1 million USD to build a foreign language classroom (at the Air Force Officer School) as well as supporting other preferential credit packages.
General Phan Van Giang proposed that the two sides coordinate the implementation of the agreed-upon cooperation contents, focusing on: maintaining effective exchanges of delegations at all levels and annual cooperation mechanisms to strengthen political trust and promote deeper bilateral defense cooperation; and enhancing cooperation in training.
Based on the Letter of Intent on educational and training cooperation signed in 2024, General Phan Van Giang expressed his hope that India would continue to provide the Vietnamese Ministry of National Defence with existing scholarships, and at the same time consider and increase quotas for some training specialties that the Vietnamese Ministry of National Defence needs.
In addition, both sides will promote cooperation between military branches, defense industries, UN peacekeeping, cybersecurity, military medicine, search and rescue, and continue to support each other in international multilateral forums...
On this occasion, General Phan Van Giang respectfully invites leaders of the Ministry of Defence and defence industry enterprises of India to attend and showcase their products at the 3rd Vietnam International Defence Exhibition, scheduled to take place in December this year.
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of National Defence Phan Van Giang affirmed that Vietnam consistently pursues an independent, self-reliant, peaceful, friendly, cooperative, and developmental foreign policy, multilateralizing and diversifying its foreign relations; is ready to cooperate with countries and international organizations for peace, cooperation, and development; and is steadfast in its "four no's" defence policy...
During the talks, Indian Defence Minister Rajnath Singh expressed his honor to visit Vietnam on the occasion of the 136th anniversary of the birth of President Ho Chi Minh - a great leader with a far-sighted vision and beloved and admired by the Indian people.
Mr. Rajnath Singh emphasized that India and Vietnam share a friendly relationship based on the pillars of defense cooperation and trust. He affirmed that this visit is of particular importance on the occasion of the 10th anniversary of the establishment of the Strategic Partnership, thereby contributing to demonstrating the depth and closeness of bilateral relations between the two countries.
The Indian Defence Minister highly appreciated the positive results of bilateral defence cooperation, demonstrating high trust between the two sides and contributing to the development of a strong defence relationship for mutual benefit and towards the future.
He expressed his hope that both sides would continue to coordinate and effectively implement the agreed-upon cooperation contents, focusing on exchanges of delegations at all levels, cooperation in training and capacity building, and cooperation between different branches of the armed forces.
The Indian Ministry of Defence is always ready to cooperate and provide the Vietnamese Ministry of Defence with training scholarships, thereby contributing to promoting bilateral defence cooperation that is increasingly substantive, effective, and profound, commensurate with the enhanced comprehensive strategic partnership between Vietnam and India.
Source: https://vietnamnet.vn/dai-tuong-phan-van-giang-chu-tri-le-don-bo-truong-quoc-phong-an-do-2517200.html
