Singapore (VNA) – Defence Minister Gen. Ngo Xuan Lich held bilateralmeetings with other delegates to the 18th Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore onJune 1.

At his meeting with US Acting Secretary ofDefence Patrick Shanahan, both sides said that cooperation between Vietnam andthe US has produced practical results that conform with the bilateralcomprehensive partnership, thus contributing to maintaining peace and stabilityin the region and the world.

Shanahan stressed that the US welcomesVietnam’s voice in the region and the world and support the country in successfullyassuming the role as ASEAN Chair in 2020. He also spoke highly of Vietnam’sparticipation in the UN’s peacekeeping missions.

Lich asked the US to continue itscooperation to soon finish a project on dioxin contamination remediation atBien Hoa airport which was launched in April, and maintain its support forVietnam’s deployment of a second level-2 field hospital and an engineer companyto join the UN's peacekeeping activities.

Both sides agreed to continue intensifyingcooperation, with priority given to addressing war aftermaths and maintainingdialogue mechanisms and high-level delegation exchanges.

At Lich’s meeting with his New Zealandcounterpart Ron Mark, they reached a consensus on maintaining all-leveldelegation exchanges, promoting gained achievements and seeking new cooperationopportunities in the fields of training, cybersecurity, search and rescue, andjoining UN peacekeeping activities.

The Vietnamese official affirmed thatVietnam, as an active member of ASEAN, supports New Zealand in fostering itscollaboration with the bloc, particularly in defence. He suggested the countryback Vietnam when it undertakes the role as ASEAN Chair in 2020.

Meeting with UK Secretary of State forDefence Penny Mordaunt, Lich thanked the Department of Defence for helpingVietnam in deploying the first level-2 field hospital in South Sudan and providingEnglish-language training for soldiers who participate in the UN peacekeepingmissions.

To make defence ties match with thebilateral strategic partnership, both ministers agreed to step up delegationexchanges, effectively carry out dialogue and cooperation mechanisms, sign newcooperation agreements, maintain mutual support at multilateral forums, andstrengthen collaboration in the UN peacekeeping activities.

Lich asked the UK to continue trainingEnglish language for Vietnamese soldiers, affirming that the Vietnamese DefenceMinistry is willing to welcome UK soldiers to join Vietnamese-language andinternational defence officer courses organised by Vietnam.

At their meeting, Minister Lich and SingaporeanDefence Minister Ng Eng Heng were unanimous in speeding up the exchange ofdelegations and young soldiers, collaborating in military medicine, search andrescue activities and defence industry.

While hosting his French counterpartFlorence Parly, Lich affirmed that Vietnam always supports France’s efforts tointensify its cooperation with ASEAN and maintain peace, stability and win-wincooperation in the region.

Both sides agreed to continue workings toincrease the efficiency of existing cooperation mechanisms and seekopportunities in the fields of mutual concern.

Meeting with his Malaysian counterpart HajiMohamad Sabu, Lich proposed both sides direct law enforcement forces at sea toavoid using violence in addressing fishermen who violate each other’s waters.

The two ministers agreed to effectively usea hotline between the two sides to share information and solve arisingincidents quickly to prevent them from harming the bilateral relations.

The Vietnamese minister also had a meetingwith his Mongolian counterpart Enkhbold Nyamaa, during which they reached aconsensus on continuing cooperation in delegation exchanges, training andparticipation in the UN peacekeeping missions, and seeking cooperationopportunities in defence industry, military medicine, and logistics.

He also met High Representative of theEuropean Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Federica Mogherini andCanadian Defence Minister Harjit Singh Sajjan to discuss measures to boostbilateral defence collaboration.-VNA