Lieutenant General Phung Si Tan is leading a Vietnamese defense mission to attend the International Military-Technical Forum 2021 (Army-2021) and the closing ceremony of the International Army Games 2021 (Army Games 2021).
At the reception, Colonel General Alexander Vasilyevich Fomin extended best wishes to the visiting delegation on the 76th anniversary of Vietnam’s National Day. He also thanked the VPA for accepting Russia’s invitation and sending a high-ranking delegation to attend activities within the framework of the Army Games 2021 in Russia.
The Russian defense leader emphasized that Russia highly appreciates Vietnamese Defense Minister General Phan Van Giang’s speech at the online Moscow Conference on International Security held in late June. He also took the occasion to thank General Phan Van Giang and former Defense Minister General Ngo Xuan Lich for supporting Russia’s hosting of the Army Games and the VPA for hosting two contests of the Army Games 2021.
For his part, Lieutenant General Phung Si Tan thanked the Russian side for the warm reception and congratulated Russia’s Ministry of Defense on its successful organization of the parade marking the 76th anniversary of the Soviet victory in the Great Patriotic War amid the complicated developments of the COVID-19 pandemic.
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Colonel General Alexander Vasilyevich Fomin at the talks |
General Tan affirmed that Vietnam always treasures the time-honored traditional friendship with Russia and the great and effective support of the Russian people to the country in its resistance war for national independence in the past and current national construction and defense cause and always considers Russia its reliable strategic partner.
Emphasizing that cooperation within the framework of the Vietnam-Russia Tropical Center is a model in the bilateral traditional friendship, General Tan suggested that in the coming time the two sides should expand cooperation and work together to turn the Vietnam-Russia Tropical Center into a regional-level research center, a symbol of the bilateral cooperation.
The Vietnamese Deputy Chief of the General Staff stressed that the VPA highly appreciates the Russian Defense Ministry’s determination and efforts in hosting the Army Games 2021 and Army-2021, saying that these events have contributed to reaffirming Russia’s stature in general and the Russian Defense Ministry’s prestige in particular. They have also offered an opportunity for participating militaries to strength mutual understanding and friendship for peace, stability and cooperation in the world and the region.
The two sides agreed that although the COVID-19 pandemic is still complicated and affecting countries around the world, the defense ministries of the two countries have been determined to carry out defense cooperation contents as planed, including online meetings between leaders of the defense ministries and general departments of political affairs of the two countries. These events have contributed to consolidating bilateral defense cooperation.
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Lieutenant General Phung Si Tan (R) presents a souvenir to Colonel General Alexander Vasilyevich Fomin. |
The two defense leaders affirmed that defense cooperation plays a key role in the Vietnam-Russia comprehensive strategic partnership and agreed to continue maintaining dialogues and exchanges of delegations at all levels and cooperating with each other within the ASEAN Defense Ministers’ Meeting Plus.
Reported by Ngoc Hung from Moscow, Russia
Translated by Tran Hoai