Deputy Defence Minister Senior Lieutenant General Nguyen Chi Vinh (Photo: VNA) Paris (VNA) - Deputy Defence MinisterSenior Lieutenant General Nguyen Chi Vinh met with senior officers from theFrench Ministry of Defence to discuss a wide range of measures to boost defencecooperation between Vietnam and France.
The meetings took place on the occasion of theofficial visit to France by General Secretary of the Communist Party of VietnamCentral Committee Nguyen Phu Trong from March 26-28.
At a meeting with French Defence MinisterFlorence Parly on March 27, Vinh said Vietnam’s Ministry of Defence wants toexpand cooperation with the French counterpart for the benefits of the twoarmies and people and the bilateral strategic partnership.
Vietnam hopes that France with its significantrole and position in the European Union (EU) will make active contributions tothe maintenance of peace, stability, cooperation and development, ensuringnavigation and aviation safety and freedom in the region and the world, basedon respecting law.
Vietnam is ready to serve as a bridge for Franceto enhance cooperation with member countries in the Association of SoutheastAsian Nations (ASEAN), he said.
He described defence as a key pillar in thebilateral strategic partnership and urged the two countries’ armies to elevatethe cooperation in this field to a new height, especially in celebration of the45th founding anniversary of Vietnam-France diplomatic ties and the fifthanniversary of strategic partnership.
The Deputy Defence Minister proposed specificmeasures such as increasing all-level delegation exchanges, sharing defencestrategic issues, and promoting cooperation in training, defence industry,military trade, medical military, peacekeeping activities, and post-warconsequences settlement, among others.
Agreeingwith the Vietnamese leader’s opinions, Minister of Defence Florence Parlyshowed her belief in outcomes of bilateral cooperation in the coming time.France will invite the Minister of Defence of Vietnam to pay an official visitto France this year, during with the two countries are expected to signcooperative documents that hold important significance to the promotion ofbilateral cooperation.
Earlier,Senior Lieutenant General Nguyen Chi Vinh had a working session with Phillippe Errera, Director General for InternationalCooperation and Strategy of the Ministry of Defence.
At the meeting, both sides discussed regional and international situations ofshared concern and agreed that current issues should be deal with by peacefulmeasures and strict compliance with international law.
The two sides agreed on key orientations to ratchet up bilateral defence ties,mutual support at multilateral forums, participation in UN peacekeeping force,and the possibility of France’s participation in ADMM , and more.
On the occasion, the two ministries signed a letter of intent on the signing ofa joint statement on a joint vision on defence cooperation for 2018-2020 and anagreement amending the cooperation agreement on hydrography, oceanography and maritimemaps.-VNA
