This statement was made by Senior Lieutenant General Phan Van Giang, Chief of the General Staff of the Vietnam People’s Army and Deputy Defense Minister, while hosting Sri Lanka Ambassador to Vietnam Prasanna Gamage in Hanoi on November 4.
At the reception, General Giang underlined that Vietnam and Sri Lanka has been developing bilateral cooperation in various spheres such as politics, diplomacy, economy, trade, and defense since the establishment of bilateral diplomatic relations nearly 50 years ago.
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Senior Lieutenant General Phan Van Giang (R) and Sri Lanka Ambassador to Vietnam Prasanna Gamage |
He added that the two countries are expected to hold a number of practical activities to mark the 50th anniversary of diplomatic ties next year. It offers an opportunity for both sides to further their multi-faceted relations, including defense cooperation.
The Vietnamese general wanted both sides to map out appropriate plans to tap their potentials for defense cooperation in delegation exchanges at all levels, military medicine, logistics, UN peacekeeping operations, humanitarian assistance and natural disaster relief, defense industry, and personnel training.
As Vietnam takes the Chair of ASEAN in 2020, the Vietnamese Defense Ministry will hold a number of activities. General Giang wanted that Sri Lanka would actively participate in all relevant events.
For his part, Ambassador Gamage thanked General Giang for a warm reception and pledged that during his term of office, he would do his utmost to foster the Sri Lanka-Vietnam relations, especially defense cooperation.
Translated by Van Hieu