HÀ NỘI — India’s shipbuilding enterprises said they would comply with the needs of the Vietnamese shipyard industry at the Maritime Industry Business Meeting in Hải Phòng City on September 25.

The meeting, co-organised by the Indian Embassy in Việt Nam and the Việt Nam Chamber of Commerce and Industry’s branch in Hải Phòng City, was a part of the ongoing celebrations to commemorate the 45th anniversary of establishment of diplomatic relations between India and Việt Nam, the 10th anniversary of establishment of Strategic Partnership and 25th anniversary of India-ASEAN relations.

At the meeting, Indian shipbuilders, including Goa Shipyard Limited, Bharat Electronics Limited and Larsen & Toubro Limited confirmed that they belonged to India’s Ministry of National Defence, and were capable of producing equipment for military vessels, including fire control systems, communication equipment, and able of designing and building big ships, and were ready to co-operate with Vietnamese shipyard plants.

Speaking at the meeting, Indian Ambassador Parvathaneni Harish said that this year marked an important milestone in the relationship between Việt Nam and India. He said that Việt Nam-India relations had deep roots and many similarities in culture.

At the same time, the relationship between the two countries as comprehensive strategic partners, in the light of the Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Việt Nam in 2016, was an important milestone for the co-operative potential between the two sides, he said.

The Ambassador hoped that the relationship between the two countries would grow stronger, especially in the maritime field. Thereby, it was becoming a bridge to help enterprises of both sides have the opportunity to co-operate, especially in the field of high-value ship manufacturing, he said.

During Modi’s visit to Việt Nam in 2016, the two governments signed an agreement worth US$100 million to build 12 naval patrol vessels for Việt Nam’s Ministry of Defence.

"Also during the visit, the Indian PM announced a $500 million credit package for the Vietnamese defence sector. We expect this package to be disbursed soon,” said Harish.

Deputy Chairman of the Hải Phòng City People’s Committee Nguyễn Văn Thành said that leaders of the city, with its long-tradition of the shipbuilding industry and home to many shipyard plants, would regularly receive requests and proposals to create opportunities for businesses of both India and Việt Nam, aimed at pushing joint development.

Thereby, it promoted investment co-operation and trade between the two countries, he said.

Two Indian Naval ships, INS SATPURA and INS KADMATT, were at the Chùa Vẽ Port in Hải Phòng City as part of a friendship visit from September 23 to 27. During the visit, the Indian Navy ships had exchange activities with the Việt Nam People’s Navy towards further enhancing the co-operation between the two forces.

Việt Nam and India have long been co-operating with maritime partners. In the first week of October, another Indian naval vessel will visit Việt Nam and join the Vietnamese navy in training of search and rescue operations at sea. In addition, in 2018, Việt Nam and India would have the opportunity to co-operate with the United Nations Peacekeeping Force in Africa, the India Ambassador said. — VNS