Vietnamese defence minister meets Indian, Japanese, Philippine counterparts
Vietnamese Minister of Defence Gen. Phan Van Giang held bilateral meetings with defence leaders from India, Japan and the Philippines on the sidelines of the 17th ASEAN Defence Ministers' Meeting (ADMM) and the 10th ADMM-Plus in Jakarta, Indonesia on November 16.
In their meeting, Giang and Indian Defence Minister Shri Rajnath Singh shared the view that the former's official visit to India in June has generated a driving force for the effective and practical development of bilateral defence ties.
Both sides agreed to facilitate the exchange of delegations at all levels, particularly high-level visits and meetings, as well as maintain and improve the effectiveness of dialogue and consultation mechanisms, including the 14th deputy ministerial-level defence policy dialogue in India and the fourth joint field exercise on maintaining peace in Vietnam next month.
Hosting his Japanese counterpart Minoru Kihara, Giang noted that bilateral defence cooperation has achieved significant progresses recently. In September, the two sides successfully coordinated the Competency Evaluation Programme for Prospective United Nations Peacekeepers (CEPPP) in Vietnam. They also effectively fulfilled the co-chairmanship of the ADMM Experts' Working Groups for the 2021-2023 period.
In the coming time, they agreed to enhance the exchange of delegations and meetings between defence leaders and roll out cooperation between armed forces, and collaboration in personnel training, cybersecurity, and effective settlement of post-war consequences.
Gen. Giang and his Philippine counterpart Gilberto Teodoro promised to actively coordinate and effectively implement the contents specified in the signed bilateral defence cooperation agreement. They also committed to consulting and supporting each other at multilateral military-defence forums and adhering to the common stance of ASEAN on regional issues.
