During the talks, held after an official welcome ceremony for the Czech minister, Minister Giang said the long-lasting friendship between the two countries is a favourable prerequisite for their cooperation, adding that bilateral ties in politics, education-training, economy and trade have been maintained as the two countries have re-opened after the COVID-19 pandemic.
The two sides reviewed the implementation of the MoU on defence cooperation signed in 2012, and agreed that the establishment of the Czech Defence Attaché office in Vietnam in August 2020 is an important milestone in the defence cooperation between the two countries, contributing to promoting mutual understanding and trust, and facilitating cooperation between the two defence ministries in training, air defence - air force, scientific research, and defence industry.
Vietnam highly valued the active role of the Czech Republic as the rotating Presidency of the European Union (EU) as well as its support for the Vietnam-EU cooperation framework, Giang said, expressing the belief that the Vietnam – Czech relationship will significantly contribute to the ASEAN-EU Strategic Partnership as well as cooperation mechanisms led by ASEAN.
He hoped the Czech Republic will continue to support defence cooperation activities between Vietnam and the EU, including the agreement on the establishment of a framework for Vietnam's participation in crisis management activities with the EU (signed in 2019).
The two sides agreed to further promote defence ties through the exchange of all-level delegations and cooperation in human resources training; and continue to support each other in multilateral cooperation mechanisms.
The ministers exchanged views on global and regional issues of common concern, and underlined the importance of ensuring security and safety of navigation and aviation in the East Sea/South China Sea, settling disputes by peaceful measures on the basis of international law, including the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (1982 UNCLOS), and supporting ASEAN's central role in cooperation mechanisms between the bloc and its partners.
