Chief of the General Staff of the Vietnamese People’s Army and Deputy Defence Minister Phan Van Giang and Admiral Katsutoshi Kawano, Chief of Staff of the Japan Self-Defence Forces, held talks in Tokyo on March 4 following the welcome ceremony. 

Deputy Defence Minister Phan Van Giang (L) and Chief of Staff of the Japan Self-Defence Forces Katsutoshi Kawano

They agreed that mutual trust and understanding between both sides have been strengthened, as well as coordination and mutual support at multilateral forums, especially at the ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF), the ASEAN Defence Ministerial Meeting Plus (ADMM ) have been promoted. 

Kawano thanked Vietnam for creating conditions for Japanese self-defence forces to exchange with Vietnamese armed forces. 

He suggested maintaining activities at sea and facilitating exchanges with Vietnamese army units. 

Giang thanked Japan for its support in human resources training, Vietnam’s participation in the United Nations peacekeeping activities, and the national defence capacity improvement programme. 

He agreed to continue exchanges among armed forces to foster trust and for the benefit of the two countries, the region and the world. 

The Japanese side also briefed the delegation about the regional security environment and Japan’s policy. 

During a courtesy call to Japanese Defence Minister Takeshi Iwaya in the afternoon the same day, Giang informed his host about the outcomes of his talks with the Admiral, while affirming that the visit aims to concretise the Joint Vision Statement on Vietnam – Japan Defence Cooperation towards the next decade between the two defence ministries. 

He asked Japan to continue sharing its experience in natural disaster prevention and overcoming post-war aftermaths such as bombs, mines and dioxin. 

Iwaya expressed his belief that bilateral defence ties will see new progresses, including in training and natural disaster prevention. 

He said Japan always treasures ties with ASEAN, including Vietnam, and congratulated Vietnam on successfully hosting the second DPRK-USA summit in Hanoi. 

During the stay, the delegation visited Kisarazu air field of the Japan Ground Self-Defense Force and met Vietnamese embassy staff in Japan.

Their four-day working trip will last on March 5.-VNA