Asia-Pacific Chiefs of Defense gathers in Canada

Senior Lieutenant General Phan Van Giang, member of the Party Central Committee, permanent member of the Central Military Commission, Chief of the General Staff and Deputy Defense Minister, led the Vietnamese high-ranking military delegation to attend the conference at the invitation of Admiral Harry B. Harris, Commander of the US Pacific Command and General Jonathan H. Vance, Chief of the Defense Staff of the Canadian Armed Forces.

Senior Lieutenant General Phan Van Giang (first from left) at the conference

The conference this year focused on three key topics: Trends in Indo-Asia-Pacific; Prevention of Extremism and Terrorism; and Peace Support Operations.

The topic on Peace Support Operations stressed the importance of these activities while complicated security challenges require defense forces to increase their support for the UN Peacekeeping Operations. The topic also highlighted the significance of cooperation, negotiation, reconciliation and peacekeeping, to name a few.

On the sidelines of the conference, Senior Lieutenant General Phan Van Giang had bilateral meetings with head delegates of some countries to discuss issues of mutual concerns.

Asia-Pacific Chiefs of Defense in a joint photo

The participation of the Vietnamese high-ranking military delegation in the conference is to continue strengthening Vietnam’s role and status in the region and in the world through bilateral and multi-lateral military-defense fora. This is also to reiterate Vietnam’s foreign policy of multi-lateralization and diversification and to show Vietnam’s responsibility in international integration.

Translated by Nam Long