During the phone conversation, General Vinh informed the RoK side of the COVID-19 situation in Vietnam, stressing that Vietnam has achieved success in controlling the disease thanks to the engagement of the whole political system and the firm direction of the Government, as well as the participation of all ministries, agencies and localities, with the military playing an important and active role.
The Vietnamese deputy defense minister expressed that Vietnam shared difficulties caused by the COVID-19 pandemic with the RoK people, highly valued the country’s outcomes and the RoK military’s role in the prevention and control of the disease. He also thanked the RoK Government for their active support, contributing to Vietnam's fight against the disease and assisting the Vietnamese community in the RoK.
General Vinh passed along Vietnamese Defense Minister General Ngo Xuan Lich’s greetings and invitation to the RoK Defense Minister to visit Vietnam and attend the ASEAN Defense Ministers' Meeting Plus (ADMM+) and the Vietnam International Defense Exhibition 2020. The Vietnamese defense ministry welcomes RoK defense enterprises to take part in the event, he added.
For his part, Vice Defense Minister Park Jae-min briefed the Vietnamese side on the COVID-19 situation in the RoK over the past time, and spoke highly of Vietnam’s efforts and the role of the Vietnam People’s Army in COVID-19 prevention and control.
On the occasion, both sides reviewed their bilateral defense ties over the past time and discussed defense cooperation programs in the time to come. They pledged to effectively implement commitments reached by the two defense ministries in delegation exchanges at all levels, military medicine, U.N. peacekeeping operations, cyber security, defense industry, and so on. Notably, they agreed to enhance cooperation in military medicine to cope with the complicated developments of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Regarding the multilateral cooperation, General Vinh held that the Vietnamese Government and Ministry of National Defense will make their utmost efforts to prevent the disruption of defense external affairs caused by the disease when Vietnam holds the ASEAN Chair in 2020 and takes its position as a non-permanent member of the United Nations Security Council in the 2020-2021 term. He briefed the RoK side on the schedule for all activities in 2020 and hoped the East Asian nation will back Vietnam and actively participate in these events.
Additionally, General Vinh stressed that the COVID-19 pandemic is a major threat to peace, stability, and security in the region and the world. Vietnam and the RoK share the same views that all disputes should be solved by peaceful negotiations, dialogues, and respect for international law, without using or threatening to use violence, he noted.
In turn, Vice Defense Minister Park Jae-min applauded Vietnam’s efforts in conducting activities within its ASEAN Chairmanship Year 2020 amid the complicated developments of the COVID-19 pandemic.
He stated that the RoK side will take part in activities hosted by the Vietnamese side, including the online ASEAN Defense Senior Officials’ Meeting Plus (ADSOM+), the online ASEAN Regional Forum Security Policy Conference (ASPC), the ASEAN Defense Ministers’ Meeting Plus (ADMM+), the “Women's role in U N. peacekeeping operations” Conference and the Vietnam International Defense Exhibition 2020.
Translated by Trung Thanh