General Nguyễn Tân Cương, Chief of the General Staff of the Việt Nam People’s Army and Deputy Minister of National Defence, and General Romeo Brawner Junior, Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces of the Philippines inspect the guard of honour of the Việt Nam People's Army during an official welcome ceremony held on Wednesday in Hà Nội. — VNA/VNS Photo An Đăng

HÀ NỘI — Việt Nam and the Philippines have agreed to strengthen comprehensive, substantive and trust-based defence cooperation while working closely to effectively implement the memorandum of understanding on defence cooperation recently signed by the two countries’ defence ministries.

The agreement was reached on Wednesday during talks between General Nguyễn Tân Cương, Chief of the General Staff of the Việt Nam People’s Army and Deputy Minister of National Defence, and General Romeo Brawner Junior, Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces of the Philippines, who is on an official visit to Việt Nam from June 3 to 6.

The talks took place following an official welcome ceremony for General Brawner and his high-level delegation.

General Nguyễn Tân Cương, Chief of the General Staff of the Việt Nam People’s Army and Deputy Minister of National Defence, and General Romeo Brawner Junior, Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces of the Philippines at the official welcome ceremony on Wednesday in Hà Nội. — VNA/VNS Photo An Đăng

General Cương noted that the visit comes shortly after the two countries elevated ties to an Enhanced Strategic Partnership and their defence ministers signed a memorandum of understanding on defence cooperation.

He said the visit reflects the proactive efforts of both militaries to implement the shared vision of the two countries’ senior leaders on military and defence cooperation while contributing to celebrations marking the 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Việt Nam and the Philippines (July 12, 1976–July 12, 2026).

The Vietnamese general congratulated the Philippines on successfully hosting a series of important events as ASEAN Chair in 2026. He highly valued the country’s contributions to promoting ASEAN centrality and unity, as well as its role as co-chair of the ASEAN Defence Ministers’ Meeting Plus (ADMM-Plus) Experts’ Working Group on Maritime Security for the 2024–27 cycle.

Việt Nam supports and is confident that the Philippines will successfully fulfil its responsibilities as ASEAN Chair, he said.

The two high-ranking delegations hold talks. — VNA/VNS Photo An Đăng

General Cương praised the growing defence relationship between the two countries, highlighting regular exchanges of high-level and working-level delegations, the effective maintenance of annual cooperation mechanisms and expanding cooperation among military services.

He also pointed to substantive progress in training, exchanges among strategic research institutions, defence industry cooperation, logistics, military medicine and search and rescue operations. In addition, the two sides have coordinated closely and supported each other at ASEAN-led mechanisms and multilateral forums, as well as at international events hosted by either country.

Looking ahead, both sides agreed to continue promoting delegation exchanges and high-level contacts; maintain bilateral mechanisms such as the Defence Policy Dialogue and service-to-service consultations; expand exchanges among military services; strengthen young officer exchanges and professional experience-sharing; and coordinate promptly to address incidents at sea.

The two militaries also agreed to deepen cooperation in human resource development, defence industry, logistics, military medicine, search and rescue, cybersecurity, United Nations peacekeeping operations and strategic studies. They pledged to continue consulting and supporting each other in maintaining ASEAN’s common positions on regional and international security issues.

General Cương invited the Philippine Department of National Defence to continue sending officers to Việt Nam for Vietnamese-language courses and the International Defence Officials Course. He also welcomed exchanges between military academies and educational institutions of the two countries while expressing hope that the Armed Forces of the Philippines would support English-language training for officers of the Việt Nam People’s Army.

During the talks, the two generals also exchanged views on regional and international developments and issues of mutual concern.

General Cương reaffirmed Việt Nam’s consistent foreign policy of independence, self-reliance, multilateralisation and diversification of international relations, stressing that the country remains a friend, trusted partner and responsible member of the international community. He also reiterated Việt Nam’s adherence to its Four No’s defence policy.

Regarding the East Sea (internationally known as the South China Sea), the Vietnamese General reaffirmed Việt Nam’s position that all disputes should be resolved through peaceful means in accordance with international law, including the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).

He called for the full and effective implementation of the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the East Sea (DOC) and the early conclusion of an effective, substantive Code of Conduct in the East Sea (COC) consistent with international law.

On the occasion, General Cương invited General Brawner and the Armed Forces of the Philippines delegation to attend the third Việt Nam International Defence Expo, scheduled to take place in Hà Nội in December. He also welcomed Philippine defence industry companies to showcase their products at the event.

For his part, General Brawner expressed his pleasure at visiting Việt Nam, noting that the trip builds on the successful outcomes of Party General Secretary and State President Tô Lâm’s recent State visit to the Philippines, as well as the ASEAN defence and military meetings hosted by the Philippines in 2026.

The Philippine military chief reaffirmed the importance his country attaches to defence cooperation with Việt Nam and pledged to work closely with his Vietnamese counterparts to strengthen bilateral defence ties, contributing to regional security, stability and prosperity. — VNS