NEW DELHI: India and Vietnam have taken important steps to bolster the existing relations and more in the field of defence. Indian Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Wednesday held bilateral talks with Vietnam’s Minister of National Defence General Phan Van Giang in Hanoi.
The two Defence Ministers held wide-ranging discussions on effective and practical initiatives to further expand bilateral defence engagements and regional and global issues were held between the two sides.
The Ministry of Defence said, “The two Defence Ministers also signed the ‘Joint Vision Statement on India-Vietnam Defence Partnership towards 2030’, which will significantly enhance the scope and scale of existing defence cooperation. A Memorandum of Understanding on Mutual Logistics Support was also inked in the presence of both the Ministers.”
This is the first agreement which Vietnam has signed with any country. “In these times of increasing cooperative engagements between the defence forces of the two countries, this is a major step towards simplifying procedures for mutually beneficial logistic support and is the first such major agreement which Vietnam has signed with any country.”
Both Ministers also agreed on the early finalisation of the $US 500 million Defence Line of Credit extended to Vietnam. “Implementation of the projects shall add substantially to Vietnam’s Defence capabilities.
The Raksha Mantri also announced gifting two simulators and monetary grants towards setting up of Language and IT Lab at the Air Force Officers Training School for capacity building of the Vietnamese Armed Forces.
Defence Minister Rajnath, beginning from Wednesday, is on a three-day official visit. He paid respects to late President Ho Chi Minh at his Mausoleum in Hanoi. He also visited Tran Quoc Pagoda, a revered Buddhist temple which reaffirmed the age-old civilizational and people-to-people linkages between the two countries.
Before leaving for Vietnam, the Defence Minister had described the relationship as significant and called Vietnam an important partner. “India and Vietnam have shared a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership since 2016 and defence cooperation is a key pillar of this partnership. Vietnam is an important partner in India’s Act East policy and the Indo-Pacific vision.”
Bilateral defence engagements have expanded over a period of time to include wide-ranging contacts between the two countries, including Defence Policy Dialogues, military to military exchanges, high-level visits, capacity building and training programs, and cooperation in UN Peacekeeping, ship visits and bilateral exercises.
The logistics agreement will add endurance to the warships and aircraft of the two countries and will open the airbases and ports for the assistance of fuel, rest and ration and also basic maintenance
India has similar logistics agreements with the US, Singapore, France, South Korea, Japan, and Australia and one with Russia is pending.