Gen. Thang highly appreciated the scale and prestige of the SAHA 2026, as well as Türkiye’s professional organization of the event. He emphasized that Vietnam highly values Türkiye’s role and position in the international and regional arenas, considering the country one of Vietnam’s important partners in the region.
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Sr. Lt. Gen. Nguyen Truong Thang (left) and Turkish Defense Minister Yasar Guler |
Over the past time, bilateral defense cooperation has achieved positive results in various fields, including exchanges of delegations at all levels, especially high-level ones; the establishment of resident Defense Attaché Offices in each country; the development of a cooperation framework and the implementation of the Deputy Minister-level Defense Policy Dialogue mechanism; as well as cooperation in defense industry, military trade and training, and more.
To further enhance bilateral defense cooperation in a more practical and effective manner, Gen. Thang hoped that Minister Yasar Guler would direct relevant agencies under the Turkish Ministry of National Defense to coordinate in implementing several key areas of cooperation, including exchanges of delegations at all levels, particularly high-level ones; the effective implementation of the Deputy Minister-level Defense Policy Dialogue mechanism; training cooperation; enhanced cooperation in defense industry and military trade; and the promotion of cooperation in other areas of mutual interest.
On the occasion, Gen. Thang conveyed the invitation of Deputy Prime Minister and Defense Minister General Phan Van Giang to Minister Yasar Guler and Turkish defense enterprises to attend the Vietnam Defense Expo 2026, which is expected to take place in December this year.
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Gen. Thang presents a gift to Minister Yasar Guler. |
For his part, Minister Yasar Guler thanked the Vietnamese side for sending a high-level delegation to attend the SAHA 2026. He also conveyed his appreciation and congratulations to General Phan Van Giang, adding that Türkiye would send a delegation to participate in the Vietnam Defense Expo 2026 and encourage major Turkish defense industry enterprises to showcase their products at the event.
The Turkish defense minister also highly appreciated the role and position of Vietnam, affirming that Vietnam is one of Türkiye’s important partners in the Asia-Pacific region. He expressed his hope that bilateral defense cooperation would continue to advance to a new level in a broader, deeper, more practical and effective manner.
He called for stronger exchanges of delegations at all levels, strengthened coordination among services and arms, stressing that Türkiye stands ready to cooperate with and support Vietnam in defense industry, including shipbuilding, equipment upgrading and maintenance, as well as technology transfer. He further hoped to welcome General Phan Van Giang in Türkiye in the near future, saying such a visit would create impetus for expanding bilateral defense cooperation across new areas.
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Gen. Thang visits the booths of MKE and Aselsan at SAHA 2026. |
* On the same day, Sr. Lt. Gen. Nguyen Truong Thang and the delegation visited the booths of MKE and Aselsan of Türkiye at the SAHA 2026.
He spoke highly of the leading position of MKE and Aselsan in the production of weapons, ammunition, explosives, military equipment, high-tech defense systems, advanced military electronics for naval, ground and air forces, as well as radar and guided missile systems.
He also proposed a number of concrete measures to promote bilateral defense industry cooperation and invited the two corporations to participate in product exhibitions and showcases at the Vietnam Defense Expo 2026.
Reported by Kieu Trinh from Istanbul, Türkiye
Translated by Quynh Oanh