The 11th Vietnam - Republic of Korea defence policy dialogue took place in Hanoi

(Bqp.vn) - On April 23, in Hanoi, the 11th Vietnam - Republic of Korea (RoK) defence policy dialogue took place. Deputy Minister of National Defence Senior Lieutenant General Hoang Xuan Chien and his RoK counterpart Kim Seon Ho co-chaired the event.

At the dialogue.

The 11th Vietnam - RoK defence policy dialogue was to review results of the two countries’ cooperation in the field, discussing matters of shared concerns, and agreeing on orientations for joint work in the time to come.

Senior Lieutenant General Hoang Xuan Chien speaking at the dialogue.

Senior Lieutenant General Hoang Xuan Chien said that the bilateral ties have been enhanced across areas, including defence, following the upgrade of the Vietnam - RoK relations to a comprehensive strategic partnership in December 2022. He noted that with support from their leaders, the countries’ defence cooperation has reaped practical outcomes regarding delegation exchanges, education-training, dialogue and consultation mechanisms, defence industry, military trade, cybersecurity, military medicine, and UN peacekeeping. The two sides have also consulted and backed each other at related multilateral forums and mechanisms, particularly ASEAN-led mechanisms.

Deputy Minister of National Defence Kim Seon Ho speaking at the dialogue.

Highly appreciating the support of the Government and people of RoK through the Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) in overcoming the consequences of landmines and mines after the war in Vietnam, Senior Lieutenant General Hoang Xuan Chien took the occasion to thank the RoK Government for granting a total of 34 million USD for two projects on tackling wartime bombs in Vietnam.

The two deputy defence ministers signing the dialogue’s minutes.

He recommended they continue to foster joint work in these spheres, and affirmed that the Vietnamese Ministry of National Defence is willing to host senior officers from the RoK attending training courses at the National Defence Academy and Vietnamese language courses at the Military Science Academy in Vietnam.

For his part, Deputy Minister of National Defence Kim Seon Ho stated the RoK wants to expand its defence collaboration with Vietnam and proposed the two sides maintain current joint activities and explore new cooperation areas based on their friendship.

All delegates in a joint photo.

At the dialogue, the two sides exchanged their views on the global and regional situations of mutual concerns. Regarding the East Sea issue, Senior Lieutenant General Hoang Xuan Chien emphasised that Vietnam remains steadfast in resolving all disputes through peaceful means, based on international law and commitments in the region, including the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).