Defence Minister Rajnath Singh held bilateral talks with Vietnam's Minister of National Defence General Phan Van Giang, during his two-day visit to India from June 18-19. The meeting focused on enhancing cooperation between both nations' defence industries and maritime security.

After the meeting, the defence minister also gifted INS Kirpan, an indigenously-built in-service missile corvette to Vietnam. In a press release, the government called this a "milestone" in enhancing the Vietnam People’s Navy's capabilities. A corvette is a small warship.

#WATCH | Delhi | Defence Minister Rajnath Singh held bilateral talks with Minister of National Defence of Vietnam General Phan Van Giang today to further boost the defence cooperation between India and Vietnam. pic.twitter.com/ty69mz8Z0p

— ANI (@ANI) June 19, 2023

The meeting was attended by Chief of Defence Staff General Anil Chauhan and other high-ranking officials from the Ministry of Defence.

As per his tweet, the raksha mantri reviewed a full range of India-Vietnam defence ties during the "fruitful" meeting with General Giang in Delhi.

The primary focus of the talks was to strengthen bilateral defence ties and assess the situation in the South China Sea, an area witnessing increased Chinese assertiveness. Both sides also shared perspectives on regional and global issues of mutual concern.

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According to a press release by the Ministry of Defence, both sides expressed satisfaction with the ongoing engagements.

"Both ministers identified means to enhance existing areas of collaboration, especially in the field of defence industry cooperation, maritime security and multinational cooperation," the release read.

India and Vietnam elevated their relationship to a "strategic partnership" during the visit of Vietnam's former Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung to India in July 2007.

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Subsequently, during Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Vietnam in 2016, bilateral relations were further enhanced as a "comprehensive strategic partnership."

Given India's emphasis on the Act East policy, Vietnam has become a significant partner. Defence engagements between the two countries include extensive interactions between their armed forces, military exchanges, capacity-building initiatives and training programs.

During Defence Minister Rajnath Singh's visit to Vietnam in June 2022, a joint vision statement on the India-Vietnam defence partnership and a Memorandum of Understanding on mutual logistics support were signed.

Speaking at the meeting today, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh referred to the Mutal Logistics Support Agreement and Joint Vision Statement on India and Vietnam Defence Partnership signed during his 2022 visit.

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"This Joint Vision Statement is now an overarching guiding document of the bilateral defence cooperation between the two countries. This statement has enhanced the scope and scale of our current defence cooperation. I believe that this will pave a path for the future," Singh said.

#WATCH | Defence Minister Rajnath Singh says, "During my last visit to Vietnam in June 2022, we signed Mutual Logistics Support Agreement and Joint Vision Statement on India & Vietnam Defence Partnership towards 2030. This Joint Vision Statement is now an overarching guiding… pic.twitter.com/LQrwM2RnGd

— ANI (@ANI) June 19, 2023

He also paid tribute to soldiers and laid a wreath at the National War Memorial.

VIDEO | Vietnam's Defence Minister General Phan Van Giang visited the National War Memorial earlier today and paid homage to the fallen soldiers. pic.twitter.com/QUd4oBbhOj

— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) June 19, 2023

Later, General Giang is also scheduled to visit Agra.

With agency inputs.

First Published:Jun 19, 2023 2:48 PM IST