At the meeting, Gen. Chien congratulated Colonel Shauna Graham on successfully completing her term of office in Vietnam, and welcomed Colonel Lyndon Wilson on his appointment for the new tenure in Vietnam.
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An overview of the reception |
The Vietnamese defense leader affirmed that Vietnam always attaches importance to its relations with New Zealand and highly values the country’s potential and position in the region and the world.
He emphasized that the upgrade of bilateral relations to a comprehensive strategic partnership in February 2025, coinciding with the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries, was an important milestone opening up many new opportunities for cooperation.
He said that over the past time, bilateral defense cooperation has been implemented in a practical and effective manner on the basis of the Memorandum of Understanding on defense cooperation signed in 2013.
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Gen. Chien (right) presents a souvenir to Colonel Shauna Graham. |
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Gen. Chien (right) presents a souvenir to Colonel Lyndon Wilson. |
Highly appreciating the contribution made by Colonel Shauna Graham to the outcomes of bilateral defense ties, Gen. Chien expressed confidence that Colonel Lyndon Wilson, as her successor, would continue these successes, further promoting bilateral relations in general and defense cooperation in particular. He suggested such key areas of cooperation as delegation exchanges, high-level contacts and regular consultation and dialogue mechanisms; development and signing of cooperation documents; training; U.N. peacekeeping; maritime security; cyber security; military medicine; defense industry; and mutual consultations within multilateral defense and security cooperation mechanisms, especially ADMM+, contributing to ASEAN - New Zealand relations.
Gen. Chien also affirmed that the Vietnamese Defense Ministry welcomes New Zealand counterpart to continue sending officers to study the Vietnamese language and to attend the international defense officials training courses in Vietnam.
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The hosts and guests in a group photo |
Agreeing with the host’s assessment of the positive cooperative relations between Vietnam and New Zealand, Colonel Shauna Graham stressed that defense cooperation is an important pillar in the overall bilateral relationship.
Expressing her gratitude to the leadership of the Vietnamese Defense Ministry and its affiliated agencies for their consistent support and effective coordination throughout her term, Colonel Shauna Graham hoped that both sides would continue to coordinate in implementing agreed cooperation contents, thereby further advancing bilateral relations and bilateral defense cooperation.
For his part, Colonel Lyndon Wilson spoke highly of the potential for cooperation between the two Defense Ministries in the time ahead and affirmed that he would make greater efforts to contribute to bilateral defense ties.
Translated by Mai Huong