The meeting was in the framework of the two-day visit of Party General Secretary To Lam, his spouse and the high-ranking Vietnamese delegation to Azerbaijan, starting May 7.
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Azerbaijani Minister of Defense Zakir Hasanov welcomes his Vietnamese counterpart Phan Van Giang. |
Expressing his delight at meeting with his Vietnamese counterpart in Baku, Minister Hasanov believed that the Vietnamese Party chief’s visit would contribute to consolidating and developing the traditional friendly and cooperative ties between the two countries in general and the two defense ministries in particular.
The Azerbaijani defense leader hoped that on the basis of the flourishing bilateral relations, the two defense ministries would step up contacts, exchanges, work out measures to boost the bilateral defense cooperation in a more effective and practical manner.
Delighted at his first visit to beautiful Azerbaijan which is rich in culture and history, Gen. Giang confirmed that Vietnam highly appreciates the country’s role and position in Central Asia and the world at large.
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The two defense ministers shake hands. |
He sent congratulations to Minister Hasanov and all personnel of the Azerbaijani Ministry of Defense on the occasion of the 80th anniversary of the Victory in the Great Patriotic War.
The Vietnamese defense chief also expressed deep thanks to Azerbaijan military and people for their assistance to Vietnamese people and military in the past struggle for national independence and reunification.
During their meeting, the two ministers spoke highly of the positive outcomes in bilateral defense ties in recent times. They agreed that the leaders of the two defense ministries and affiliated functional agencies should continue paying attention to and considering extension of cooperative contents to tap potentials of cooperation.
To effectively carry out the signed Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on defense cooperation and on the basis of Gen. Giang’s proposals, the two sides were unanimous in studying and jointly implementing some approaches to boost bilateral defense cooperation. Accordingly, exchanges of delegations at all levels will be enhanced to promote friendship, mutual understanding and potential cooperation areas. In addition, the aforementioned MoU will continue to be effectively realized with a focus on fields that both sides have needs and strengths.
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Azerbaijani Minister of Defense Zakir Hasanov talks to Minister of National Defense of Vietnam Phan Van Giang. |
Both ministers reached agreement on bolstering personnel training. Specifically, the Vietnamese Ministry of National Defense stays ready to welcome Azerbaijan’s military cadets to study Vietnamese and participate in international defense official training courses in Vietnam.
Other reached agreements included creating favorable conditions for the two countries’ defense enterprises to meet and seek cooperation opportunities in terms of military trade and defense industry; speeding up the establishment of experts’ working group mechanism between the two defense ministries to study and exchange other potential cooperation fields.
At the event, Vietnamese minister said that the Vietnamese Ministry of National Defense welcomes defense industry enterprises and facilities to display their products at the Vietnam Defense Expo.
On the occasion, the two ministers exchanged the MoU on defense cooperation in the presence of Party General Secretary To Lam and Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev.
Reported by Thu Trang (from Baku, Azerbaijan)
Translated by Mai Huong