Minister of National Defence General Phan Văn Giang has a meeting with outgoing French Ambassador to Việt Nam Olivier Brochet. — VNA/VNS Photo

HÀ NỘI — Politburo Member, Deputy Secretary of the Central Military Commission, Deputy Prime Minister, and Minister of National Defence General Phan Văn Giang received outgoing French Ambassador to Việt Nam Olivier Brochet in Hà Nội on Tuesday.

Congratulating Olivier Brochet on successfully completing his tenure in Việt Nam, General Giang spoke highly of his contributions to bilateral relations in general and defence cooperation in particular. He noted that the elevation of bilateral ties to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership in October 2024 had created favourable conditions for the two countries to further enhance collaboration across various areas, including defence.

He affirmed that Việt Nam attaches importance to cooperation with France, an important member of the European Union (EU) and Việt Nam’s first comprehensive strategic partner within the EU. Bilateral relations have made effective progress in a wide range of areas, including economy and trade, science and technology, education and training, culture and tourism, as well as defence and security.

Defence cooperation has received attention from both sides and delivered practical results in areas including delegation exchanges, dialogue and consultations, training, military medicine, United Nations peacekeeping operations and defence industry, he said.

On the occasion, Giang thanked France for sending peacekeeping experts to provide technical assistance to the Việt Nam Department of Peacekeeping Operations under the Ministry of National Defence (MND), and for facilitating the deployment of Vietnamese officers to the European Union Training Mission in the Central African Republic.

Expressing his wish for stronger Việt Nam-France defence cooperation in the coming period, he affirmed that the MND stands ready to work with the French Ministry for the Armed Forces and Veterans Affairs to effectively implement signed cooperation mechanisms and agreements, particularly in areas with significant potential, including training, military medicine, UN peacekeeping, defence industry, cooperation in searching for missing and unaccounted-for military personnel, and the exchange of war memorabilia.

Thanking leaders of the MND as well as agencies and units of the Việt Nam People’s Army for their support and effective coordination throughout his tenure in Việt Nam, Olivier Brochet expressed his pleasure at witnessing the positive outcomes achieved in Việt Nam-France relations in general and between the two countries’ defence ministries in particular.

He expressed his hope that bilateral defence cooperation would continue to grow in an increasingly substantive manner, with a focus on UN peacekeeping, military medicine, training and defence industry. — VNA/VNS