Senior Lieutenant General Nguyễn Trường Thắng, Deputy Minister of National Defence of Việt Nam, and Hugh Jeffrey, deputy secretary of Australia’s Department of Defence responsible for Strategy, Policy and International Cooperation, sign the minutes of the 9th Việt Nam–Australia Defence Policy Dialogue. — VNA/VNS Photo An Đăng

HÀ NỘI — Việt Nam–Australia relations have developed rapidly in many areas, particularly following the upgrade of bilateral relations to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership in March 2024, participants heard at a dialogue held in Hà Nội on Monday.

Senior Lieutenant General Nguyễn Trường Thắng, member of the Party Central Committee, member of the Standing Board of the Central Military Commission and Deputy Minister of National Defence of Việt Nam, made the statement while co-chairing the 9th Việt Nam–Australia Defence Policy Dialogue with Hugh Jeffrey, deputy secretary of Australia’s Department of Defence responsible for Strategy, Policy and International Cooperation.

Expressing appreciation for the defence cooperation between Việt Nam and Australia, Thắng said the two countries have collaborated in numerous areas, including delegation exchanges and contacts at all levels, especially the senior level, as well as dialogue and consultation mechanisms, training, United Nations peacekeeping, the defence industry and military medicine.

At the dialogue, Thắng expressed his sincere gratitude to Australia’s Department of Defence for supporting Việt Nam for eight consecutive years in transporting the Level-2 Field Hospital to carry out peacekeeping duties at the UN Mission in South Sudan.

He also expressed his hope that Việt Nam’s Ministry of National Defence would continue to receive scholarships from Australia’s Department of Defence at various levels of education.

Thắng confirmed that Việt Nam’s Ministry of National Defence is ready to welcome Australian military personnel to study Vietnamese and attend the International Defence Officials Course in Việt Nam.

The defence ministry will also welcome a delegation of the Chief of Army of Australia to attend the 3rd Việt Nam International Defence Expo in Hà Nội from December 10 to 13 this year.

As he said this dialogue is an important opportunity for the two sides to further deepen their bilateral defence cooperation, Jeffrey proposed that the two sides continue to work together to carry out agreed areas of collaboration and explore the expansion to new areas suited to each country’s needs and interests, with particular focus on maritime security, search and rescue, and other relevant fields.

Jeffrey said that Australia’s Department of Defence would actively support Việt Nam in strengthening its capacity to conduct DNA identification of the remains of Vietnamese service members who died during the war, as well as promote cooperation and the sharing of information and documents related to this issue.

This would contribute to Việt Nam’s 500 Days and Nights Campaign to intensify the search, recovery and identification of the remains of fallen soldiers, helping to consolidate and develope the Việt Nam–Australia Comprehensive Strategic Partnership in an increasingly substantive and effective manner.

At the dialogue, the two sides exchanged views on global and regional situations and issues of mutual concern.

Thắng said Việt Nam maintains its position of resolving maritime differences through peaceful measures in accordance with international law, including the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea. It is also working to fully implement the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the East Sea (internationally known as the South China Sea) and building a substantive, effective and efficient Code of Conduct in the East Sea.

In the near future, the two sides will continue to carry out the common understandings reached by the senior leaders of both countries and their defence ministries, as reflected in the Joint Statement on Deepening the Việt Nam–Australia Comprehensive Strategic Partnership and the updated Joint Vision Statement on Promoting Defence Cooperation between the two defence ministries, signed in August this year.

Cooperation will be expanded in areas such as defence industry, cybersecurity, humanitarian assistance and disaster relief, and science, technology and innovation.

The two sides will also promote consultation and mutual support in regional and international defence and security mechanisms and forums, particularly those led by ASEAN, such as the ASEAN Defence Ministers’ Meeting Plus.

Thắng and Jeffrey also signed the minutes of the 9th Việt Nam–Australia Defence Policy Dialogue. — VNS