On November 27, 2020, India and Vietnam hold virtual Defence Ministers bilateral talks where India was represented by Union Minister Rajnath Singh, Ministry of Defence (MoD) and Vietnamese side was represented by General Ngo Xuan Lich, Minister of National Defence of Socialist Republic of Vietnam.
- During the meet, various discussions were held regarding ongoing projects, collaboration in Defence Industry capability building, training and cooperation in United Nations (UN) Peacekeeping Operations.
- Both sides reaffirmed the strong Defence cooperation which is a key pillar of Comprehensive Strategic Partnership between the two countries.
Key Points:
–Vietnamese Defence Minister invited Rajnath Singh for ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) Defence Ministers Meeting Plus being hosted by Vietnam on December 10, 2020 through virtual mode
–India urged closer defence industry cooperation between both nations by concluding an institutionalised framework agreement in the near future.
–Vietnamese side thanked India for the assistance by Indian Armed Forces in capacity building of Vietnamese Defence Forces especially in the field of Human Resource (HR) development.
- India expressed its willingness to enhance the scope of training for all three services of Vietnam Defence forces in Indian Defence Institutes.
–India-Veitnam signed an Implementing Arrangement for cooperation in the field of Hydrography
In order to further deepen bilateral cooperation, both sides signed an implementing arrangement for cooperation in the field of Hydrography. It was signed between Dehradun (Uttarakhand) based National Hydrographic Office, India and Vietnam Hydrographic Office in the presence of the two Ministers.
- This arrangement will enable sharing of hydrographic data and assist in production of navigational charts by both sides.
Recent Related News:
i.On October 12, 2020 Rajnath Singh, Union Defence Minister virtually inaugurated 44 bridges, built by Border Roads Organisation (BRO) across 7 States/UTs(Union Territories) in border areas. He also laid the Foundation Stone for 450 meters long, ‘Nechiphu Tunnel’, a bi-lane tunnel, on the road to Tawang in Arunachal Pradesh.
ii.On October 27, 2020, India hosted the third India-United States (US) 2+2 Ministerial Dialogue in New Delhi where India side was represented by Raksha Mantri (Defence Minister) Rajnath Singh and External Affairs Minister Dr. Subrahmanyam Jaishankar and the US side was represented by Secretary of State Michael Richard Pompeo also known as Mike Pompeo and Secretary of Defense Mark Thomas Esper.
About Vietnam:
Prime Minister– Nguyen Xuan Phuc
Capital– Hanoi
Currency– Vietnamese dong
