At the event. (Photo: VNA) Kiev (VNA) – The Vietnamese Embassy and DefenceAttache Office in Ukraine, in collaboration with the Vietnamese war veterans’association in Ukraine, on December 21 held a ceremony to mark the 77thfounding anniversary of the Vietnam People’s Army (VPA) and the 30th All People’s Defence Festival (December 22).
Guests at the event included President of the Association of Veterans of Ukraine, Major General Vladimir Popovich and Ukrainian war veterans who used to help Vietnam during the war.
Speaking at the event, Vietnamese Defence Attache in UkraineColonel Nguyen Quang Chien reviewed the 77-year development of the Vietnam People’sArmy and its feats in two resistance wars against the French colonists andAmerican imperialists.
He highlighted results of Vietnam's defence diplomacy including the country's participation in United Nations peacekeeping operationand the deployment of the No. 2 field hospital in South Sudan and the CentralAfrican Republic, which were recognised and appreciated by the UN and theinternational community.
He thanked Ukrainian veterans for their support toVietnam during the wartime, emphasising that Vietnamese people will neverforget those contributions.
Major General VladimirPopovich congratulated the VPA on the anniversary and wished the VPA to be moreelite and modern, successfully fulfilling its task of protecting theFatherland. He highlighted the long-standing friendship between thepeople, army and veterans of the two countries, and the close relations between theVeterans Association of Ukraine and the Embassy, the Defense Attache Office,the Vietnamese Veterans Association in Ukraine, adding that he looked forwardto stronger relations between two sides in the future.
For his part, Nguyen Van Loan, chairman of the Vietnamese war veterans’association in Ukraine, said Vietnamese veterans always maintain the virtues of Uncle Ho’s soldiers. They have actively participated in activities organisedby the embassy as well as people-to-people diplomacy, contributing to promotingrelations between two associations and building a stronger Vietnamese community inUkraine, he said.
After the ceremony, the participants watched a documentaryabout the 77 years of development of the VPA and sang songs praising the heroictraditions of the VPA./.
