Vietnam’s Defence Minister General Phung Quang Thanh and his Australian counterpart Stephen Smith met with the press in Hanoi on August 29 on the occasion of Minister Smith’s visit to Vietnam.

Thanh said the visit serves to deepen the comprehensive partnership that both countries share, as well as the two defence ministries in particular.

Smith noted that this was the third official visit to Vietnam since the two countries set up defence ties.

The ministers informed reporters about the outcomes of their talks which took place earlier. During the talks, they reviewed defence ties and exchanged measures to strengthen and promote the relationship on the basis of the Memorandum of Understanding on Defence Cooperation signed in 2010.

Both noted with pleasure the bilateral defence ties, especially in training cooperation. They agreed to enhance mutual consultation at multilateral forums and bilateral dialogues at strategic and lower levels.

In the future, the two sides expect to further expand cooperation in training of English skills for Vietnamese soldiers and officers, exchange visits of naval forces, exchange views on security in Asia-Pacific on the basis of mutual respect, effectiveness and mutual benefit.

The Australian Defence Ministry will share experience and help Vietnam in overcoming the consequences of post-war unexploded ordinance.-VNA