India, Vietnam ink military logistics support pact ; vision document to expand defence ties

New Delhi, June 8 (PTI): India and Vietnam on Wednesday inked a vision document to further broad-base the “scope and scale” of defence ties by 2030 and sealed a logistics support pact to allow militaries of the two sides to use each other’s bases for repair and replenishment of supplies.

The signing of the two documents after Defence Minister Rajnath Singh’s “fruitful” talks with his Vietnamese counterpart General Phan Van Giang in Hanoi, is seen as a major upswing in India-Vietnam strategic ties amid common concerns over China’s increasing muscle-flexing in the South China Sea.

The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on mutual logistics support is the first such major agreement that Vietnam has signed with any country.

After the talks between Singh and General Giang, the defence ministry said India and Vietnam continue to have the “most trustworthy relations in contemporary times with broader convergence of interests and common concerns.”

Singh said the close defence and security cooperation between India and Vietnam is an important factor for stability in the Indo-Pacific region.

“In these times of increasing cooperative engagements between the defence forces of the two countries, this (logistics pact) is a major step towards simplifying procedures for mutually beneficial logistic support and is the first such major agreement which Vietnam has signed with any country,” it said in a statement.

Singh, who arrived in Vietnam on Tuesday on a three-day visit, also called on Vietnamese President Nguyen Xuan Phuc and the discussions were focused on overall strategic ties between the two countries.

The two defence ministers signed the ‘Joint Vision Statement on India-Vietnam Defence Partnership towards 2030’ that provides for expansion of defence and military ties in diverse areas, officials said.

“Had an excellent meeting with General Phan Van Giang, the Defence Minister of Vietnam. We renewed interactions on expanding bilateral cooperation. Our close Defence and Security cooperation is an important factor of stability in the Indo-Pacific region,” Singh tweeted.

He said the “wide-ranging discussions” were focused on “effective and practical” initiatives to further expand bilateral engagements, adding regional and global issues also figured in the talks.

“After our fruitful deliberations, we signed the ‘Joint Vision Statement on India-Vietnam Defence Partnership towards 2030’, which will significantly enhance the scope and scale of our defence cooperation,” he added.

The signing of the vision document to expand bilateral defence and security ties came amid growing congruence between the two countries in the maritime security domain amid China’s increasing muscle-flexing in the region.

Singh and Gen Giang also agreed to the early finalisation of the USD 500 million defence Line of Credit (LoC) extended to Vietnam by India.

The defence ministry, in a statement, said the implementation of the projects under the LoC will add substantially to Vietnam’s defence capabilities and further Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision of ‘Make in India, Make for the World’.

Singh also announced gifting of two simulators and monetary grants towards setting up a language and IT laboratory at the Air Force Officers Training School for capacity building of the Vietnamese armed forces.

Hours later, the defence minister interacted with the Indian community in Hanoi during which he expressed appreciation for their achievements and contributions in promoting India-Vietnam relations.

The defence minister began his visit by paying respects to late President Ho Chi Minh at his Mausoleum in Hanoi.

He also visited Tran Quoc Pagoda, a revered Buddhist temple which reaffirmed the age-old civilisational and people-to-people linkages between the two countries.

Singh also paid a visit to the Military History Museum.

Vietnam, an important country of the ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations), has territorial disputes with China in the South China Sea region.

India has oil exploration projects in the Vietnamese waters in the South China Sea. India and Vietnam are boosting their maritime security cooperation in the last few years to protect common interests.

The defence ministry described Vietnam as an important partner in India’s Act East policy and the Indo-Pacific vision, adding both countries share a rich history of civilisational and cultural linkages spanning over 2,000 years.

It said bilateral defence engagements have expanded over a period of time to include wide-ranging contacts between the two countries, including through defence policy dialogues, military-to-military exchanges, high-level visits, capacity building and training programmes and cooperation in the UN Peace Keeping and bilateral exercises.

Relations between the two countries were elevated to the level of ‘strategic partnership’ during the visit of Vietnam’s then Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung to India in July 2007.

In 2016, during Prime Minister Modi’s visit to Vietnam, bilateral relations were further elevated to a ‘comprehensive strategic partnership’.

Vietnam has become an important partner in India’s Act East policy and the Indo-Pacific vision.