India and Vietnam held a virtual bilateral meeting on Friday, during which they discussed the future trajectory of their relations and also signed an implementation agreement (IA) on hydrography. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh represented India and his counterpart, General Ngo Xuan Lich, led the Vietnamese delegation. The arrangement, which was signed between National Hydrographic Office, India and Vietnam Hydrographic Office, is expected to facilitate sharing of hydrographic data and assist in the production of navigational charts between the two countries.
After the meeting, the Indian Defence Minister released a statement saying that his interaction with the Vietnamese delegation had been “fruitful” and that they “discussed ways to further the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership and friendship between both countries”. He also added that defence cooperation between the two allies had “expanded considerably”. The Indian delegation underlined Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision of “Atma Nirbhar Bharat”, discussed developments in ongoing projects and also explored other areas of cooperation including capacity building of their defence industry, training and cooperation in United Nations peacekeeping operations.
Additionally, Lich thanked the Indian Defence Minister for the assistance of the Indian Armed Forces in capacity building of the People's Army of Vietnam (PAVN), especially in the field of human resource development. Singh conveyed India’s willingness to enhance the scope and level of training for all three sectors of the Vietnamese defence force in Indian defence institutes. In 2016, India and Vietnam upgraded their relationship to the level of comprehensive strategic partnership. Since then, defence cooperation has been a strong pillar of the rapidly expanding relationship.
India also congratulated Vietnam for its successful and innovative presidency of ASEAN despite the many hurdles posed by the COVID-19 pandemic this year. In return, the Vietnamese Defence Minister invited Singh for the ASEAN Defence Ministers Meeting Plus being hosted by Vietnam on December 10 through video conferencing.
Historically, India and Vietnam have shared a warm diplomatic relationship with several high-level meetings taking place all year round. Only this August, the two partners held the 17th meeting of their bilateral Joint Commission on Trade, Economic, Scientific and Technological Cooperation, wherein they had agreed to strengthen their strategic partnership “in line with India’s Indo-Pacific Oceans Initiative (IPOI) and the ASEAN’s Outlook on Indo-Pacific to achieve shared security, prosperity and growth for all in the region”. Further, Vietnam has also previously offered India to expand its oil and gas exploration in the South China Sea (SCS), in the areas that it firmly believes fall well within Vietnam’s economic zone. Vietnam's claim to the SCS in disputed by China's assertion of its controversial nine-dash line, which infringes on maritime territory claimed by Vietnam. Additionally, the MEA also stated earlier this year that India had approved 12 quick impact projects (QIPs) for implementation in Vietnam. Seven of these projects are in water resource management in Vietnam’s Mekong Delta Region and five are related to the construction of educational infrastructure in Vietnam.
India and Vietnam Hold Bilateral Talks, Sign Hydrography Agreement
Indian Defence Minister Rajnath Singh met with his Vietnamese counterpart General Ngo Xuan Lich on Friday. The two inked a hydrography agreement and pledged to bolster their partnership.
November 30, 2020
SOURCE: RAJNATH SINGH TWITTER