India and Vietnam discussed ways to bolster their defence ties, with a focus on enhancing cooperation between their defence industries and maritime security.
Defence Cooperation
In a statement on Monday, the Indian Ministry of Defence said that the defence leaders of both sides held talks in New Delhi to carry forward bilateral defence cooperation.
In this regard, India gifted the indigenously-built in-service Missile Corvette INS Kirpan to Vietnam to enhance its naval capabilities.
Guard of honour for visiting Vietnamese defence minister in Delhi earlier today pic.twitter.com/ZCLfvnGMzN
— Sidhant Sibal (@sidhant) June 19, 2023
In a conversation with his Vietnamese counterpart General Phan Van Giang, Indian Defence Minister Rajnath Singh reviewed the progress on various bilateral defence cooperation initiatives. They also identified means to expand existing areas of collaboration, especially in the fields of defence industry cooperation, maritime security, and multinational cooperation.
During his two-day visit, the Vietnamese leader also visited the headquarters of India’s Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and discussed ways to improve defence industrial capabilities through joint defence research and production.
General Phan Van Giang laid a wreath at the National War Memorial earlier in the day.
“Shared Cultural Linkages”
On the same day, General Giang also met with Indian President Droupadi Murmu.
Murmu said the two countries’ shared a “rich history of civilisational and cultural linkages spanning over 2000 years” and stressed that Vietnam is “an important pillar” of India’s Act East Policy and Indo-Pacific Vision.
Reviewed the full range of India-Vietnam Defence ties during the fruitful meeting with Vietnamese Defence Minister, General Phan Van Giang in New Delhi today. pic.twitter.com/m5LUJiCM2S
— Rajnath Singh (@rajnathsingh) June 19, 2023
The India-Vietnam ‘Comprehensive Strategic Partnership’ has “widened the range of bilateral collaboration including in defence and security cooperation, trade and investment relations, energy security, development cooperation, cultural and people-to-people relations,” Murmu said.
The President also noted that the India-Vietnam defence engagement “spanned a wide spectrum, including capacity building, industry cooperation, peacekeeping, and joint exercises.”
Past Defence Cooperation
Last June, during Singh’s visit to Vietnam, the two sides inked a vision statement aimed at enhancing defence cooperation, after Hanoi called on New Delhi to use its big power status to ensure respect for international law across the region.
The pair also signed an MoU on Mutual Logistics Support that was hailed as a “major step towards simplifying procedures for mutually beneficial logistic support.” It marked the first time Vietnam has signed such an agreement with any country.
Additionally, the ministers finalised a $500 million line of credit to improve Vietnam’s defence capabilities and further the Indian government’s ‘Make in India, make for the World’ initiative.