New Delhi: Defence Minister Rajnath Singh who received Vietnamese Defence Minister General Phan Van Giang on Monday held bilateral talks with the latter to further boost the defence cooperation between India and Vietnam. General Phan Van Giang is on a two-day official visit to India and he arrived here on June 18.
The minister will also undertake a cultural visit to Agra. Earlier in the day, the General laid a wreath at National War Memorial in memory of the fallen, here. The two also exchanged views on regional and global issues of mutual interest, said a statement from the defence ministry.
India and Vietnam share a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership. Bilateral defence relations form a significant pillar of this partnership, the release said. 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, the statement read.
During Rajnath Singh's visit 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.
Last year, Rajnath Singh who went on an official trip to Vietnam, handed over 12 high-speed guard boats to Vietnam. Five of those were built in India, and the rest were constructed in a Vietnamese shipyard. It was carried out under India’s $100 million Defence Line of Credit (LoC).
“The implementation of the projects under the LoC will add substantially to Vietnam’s defence capabilities and further Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision of ‘Make in India, Make for the World,” a statement from the defence ministry said. He also announced that India would gift two simulators besides monetary grants towards setting up a language and IT laboratory at the Air Force Officers Training School in Vietnam, aimed at capacity building of the Vietnamese armed forces. (with Agency inputs)
