Vietnam, Italy agree to boost defence cooperation

An overview of the conference (Photo: VNA)

The consensus was announced on July 3 at the fourth Vietnam-Italy defence policy dialogue in Italy, co-chaired by Deputy Defence Minister Hoang Xuan Chien and Italian Undersecretary of State for Defence Matteo Perego Cremnago.

During the event, the two sides pledged to promote the exchange of experiences in deploying forces to participate in United Nations (UN) peacekeeping activities, overcoming the consequences of the war in Vietnam, and collaboration in cyber security for peace, cooperation and development for the benefit of both peoples.

In addition, they shared their views on international and regional issues of common interest. They emphasised the importance of maintaining peace, stability and security, including maritime security, and advocated for the peaceful settlement of disputes in accordance with international law, in particular the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).

Cremnago underlined Italy's willingness to support the Vietnam People's Army to strengthen its capabilities and promote practical and effective bilateral defence cooperation through the defence policy dialogue at the vice-ministerial level.

While in the European country, Chien and his delegation paid a courtesy call to Defence Minister Guido Crosetto and held meetings with Admiral Luciano Portolano, Secretary General of Defense and National Director of Armaments, and representatives of the Italian Association of Aerospace and Defense Industries to discuss measures to promote defence collaboration.

This year, Vietnam and Italy celebrate the 50th anniversary of the bilateral diplomatic relations (1973 - 2023) and 10 years of strategic partnership (2013 - 2023). Over the past 50 years, the friendship and cooperation between the two countries have always been promoted in many fields such as politics, diplomacy, economy, trade, investment, defence, security, culture, tourism and people-to-people exchange./.

VNA