The visit to Myanmar by a high-level military delegation of Vietnam led by Minister of National Defence Ngo Xuan Lich from October 1-3 was a success.

Minister of National Defence Ngo Xuan Lich (L) has talks with Senior General Min Aung Hlaing, Commander-in-Chief of the Myanmar Armed Forces

Lieutenant General Vu Chien Thang, Director of the Foreign Relations Department under the Ministry of National Defence, made the statement in a recent interview with Quan doi Nhan dan (People’s Army) newspaper about defence cooperation prospects between Vietnam and Myanmar.

The visit aimed to review defence ties between the two countries and discussed cooperation plans to reinforce and strengthen the Vietnam-Myanmar partnership, Thang said.

At talks between Minister Lich and Senior General Min Aung Hlaing, Commander-in-Chief of the Myanmar Armed Forces, the two sides agreed to hasten the implementation of defence cooperation deals and enhance relations between the two countries’ armies on par with their comprehensive cooperative partnership. 

The visit of the Vietnamese high-level military delegation, which took place shortly after a visit by Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong, re-affirmed Vietnam’s desire to develop the traditional friendship between the two countries, especially their armies, Thang said.

He added that with defence cooperation between Vietnam and Myanmar has seen new developments in various fields, particularly after they signed an agreement on defence cooperation in 2011 as well as visits by State leaders and high-ranking military officers. 

Notable collaboration fields include delegation exchanges, training, medical military, and defence economy, he noted.

The two countries also agreed to study the establishment of a deputy ministerial level defence policy dialogue mechanism to increase political trust and understand better their respective viewpoints on issues of mutual concerns.

They agreeded to boost information exchanges and consultation and provide mutual support at multilateral forums, especially within the framework of the ASEAN Defence Ministers’ Meeting (ADMM) and ADMM .

A notable outcome in the bilateral defence partnership came during the Vietnam visit in March by Senior General Min Aung Hlaing, Myanmar granted an operational license to the Mytel company – a joint venture in telecommunications between Vietnam’s military-run Viettel group and partners in Myanmar.

It is also the biggest investment project of Vietnam in Myanmar and the largest foreign one since Myanmar’s new government was formed in 2016, Thang said.

Both Vietnam and Myanmar are members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and share cultural similarities and common concerns, he said.

Based on the bilateral comprehensive strategic partnership, the two countries’ defence relations will be pushed ahead in a deeper and more efficient manner, contributing to the maintenance of peace, stability and development in each nation as well as in the region and around the world, he added.

VNA