Philippine defence secretary pays official visit to Vietnam

Philippine Secretary of National Defence, Delfin Negrillo Lorenzana, is on an official visit to Vietnam from March 10 to 13 at the invitation of the host Defence Minister, General Ngo Xuan Lich.

Vietnamese Defence Minister General Ngo Xuan Lich welcomes Philippine Secretary of National Defence Delfin Negrillo Lorenzana in Hanoi on March 11. (Photo: qdnd.vn)
Vietnamese Defence Minister General Ngo Xuan Lich welcomes Philippine Secretary of National Defence Delfin Negrillo Lorenzana in Hanoi on March 11. (Photo: qdnd.vn)

The Vietnamese minister hosted an official welcome ceremony for his guest in Hanoi on March 11.

Following the ceremony, the two ministers held talks, in which they exchanged views on the current situation in each country, in the region and around the world, as well as the bilateral defence relations over the past few years.

They discussed the results achieved since the two ministries of defence signed an agreement in the field in 2010 and the two countries upgraded their relations to the level of strategic partnership in 2015.

Both sides agreed that the bilateral defence relations between Vietnam and the Philippines have witnessed positive development in all fields, especially the exchange of delegations at all levels, mechanisms for dialogue, consultation, naval cooperation, information sharing, deputy-ministerial level defence policy dialogues, joint working groups on defence and bilateral navy consultations.

Minister Ngo Xuan Lich holds talks with Philippine Secretary Delfin Lorenzana. (Photo: qdnd.vn)

The two ministers agreed to further promote the relationship between the two defence ministries in the near future, promising to hold regular meetings, exchanges, consultations and support each other’s initiatives at multilateral forums.

The Philippines side pledged to support Vietnam in hosting military-defence conferences and activities when Vietnam takes over the Chair of ASEAN in 2020, while promoting cooperation in a number of key areas, such as exchanges of young officers, defence industry, non-traditional security, air force and military medicine.

During the visit to Vietnam, Philippine Secretary Delfin Lorenzana and his entourages will have a working visit to the Military-run Industry and Telecommunication Group (Viettel), lay wreaths at the Memorial of National Heroes and Martyrs, place wreaths and visit President Ho Chi Minh at his mausoleum, and visit scenic spots and historical monuments in Hanoi.