Welcome ceremony held for UK Secretary of State for Defence Robert Ben Lobban Wallace (Photo: VNA) During the talks, the two sides exchanged views on the world and regional situations and issues of mutual concern. The British side shared Vietnam’s views on solving the East Sea issue, affirming the importance of navigation and aviation freedom, supporting the rule of law, and emphasising that disputes need to be settled by peaceful means, based on international law, including the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.
They agreed that over the past time, the bilateral cooperation has been lifted to a new height, with many achievements in the fields of politics, economy, trade, culture and education.
Talks between Defence Minister General Phan Van Giang and UK Secretary of State for Defence Robert Ben Lobban Wallace (Photo: VNA) They consented to continuing to promote defence ties with a focus on the exchange of delegations, the implementation of the existing cooperation mechanisms such as the Defence Policy Dialogue at the deputy ministerial level and the bilateral working group on defense cooperation, English language training for Vietnamese officers, the participation in UN peacekeeping missions, defence industry and cooperation on multilateral forums.
Vietnam supports the UK’s participation in the ASEAN Defence Ministers' Meeting Plus (ADMM+) on the basis of ASEAN consensus, and backs the UK in promoting collaboration with ASEAN, including in military defence.
Minister General Phan Van Giang expressed his pleasure to welcome and hold talks with Secretary of State for Defence Robert Ben Lobban Wallace in Hanoi amid the complicated developments of the COVID-19 pandemic in the world as well as in two countries.
The move affirms the goodwill, efforts and determination of the two countries in promoting cooperation in general and defence cooperation in particular, he stated.
He took the occasion to thank the British Government for sharing experience in COVID-19 prevention and control, and putting Vietnam on the priority list of vaccines. He also suggested Wallace, within his authority, help the Vietnamese Defence Ministry in gaining access to COVID-19 vaccines.
Within the framework of his Vietnam visit from July 21-23, the UK Secretary of State for Defence is scheduled to pay a courtesy visit to Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh, visit the Diplomatic Academy of Vietnam and the Vietnam National Border Committee, and have a meeting with several officers who participated in UN peacekeeping missions./.
VNA
